Most of us know someone with an artificial knee or hip joint, but what you may not realize is just how many people receive shoulder replacements to help relieve the same type of pain.

Gordon Lowe says his shoulder pain was so bad it was disturbing his everyday activity, that is until he sought help from his orthopedic surgeon. "It was almost constant pain. He indicated that he was certain he could help me and I was certainly willing to have some help."

Orthopedic Surgeon Todd Atkinson explains that shoulder replacement offers hope to patients with painful conditions like arthritis that can limit the use of the shoulder. "When people get arthritis and the cartilage wears down the bone then starts to rub up against the bone, and that can be very painful and can cause a lot of inflammation of the shoulder."

Dr. Atkinson says that alleviating that pain is the main goal of a total shoulder replacement. Doctors say it can offer lasting relief to patients who tried more traditional methods of therapy without much results.

"So what we do is we take a rough, painful surface and we turn that into a smooth, painless surface. We place a metal ball over the bone, meaning we use a saw to take away the bad bone and the arthritis and we put a smooth metal ball over that."

Doctors like Dr. Atkinson say patients who receive the surgery can return to full function with physical therapy and experience long lasting results. "Typically they last ten to fifteen years, sometimes they'll last twenty years, sometimes a little bit longer but, in the older individuals you like to do it once - which means your going to do the shoulder replacement that is going to last them the rest of their life."

People who are experiencing stiffness, pain, or limited motion in their shoulder should contact their physician as soon as possible to receive a proper diagnosis and treatment.

After the surgery, patients can expect to wait a couple of weeks before seeing immediate improvement in their shoulder and allow proper healing.