First Total Ankle Joint Replacement Performed at Seaside Surgery Center
Cody J. Togher, DPM
NAPLES, Fla. (December 6, 2022) — Seaside Surgery Center, Southwest Florida’s first ambulatory surgical center designed and built for outpatient joint replacement surgeries, recently marked a milestone, with the first outpatient total ankle arthroplasty (TAA), or total ankle joint replacement, conducted at the facility on Veterans Park Drive in Naples.
Performing the procedure was fellowship-trained foot and ankle surgeon Cody J. Togher, DPM, AACFAS. “I am excited to bring the practice of outpatient total ankle replacement surgery to Southwest Florida; while incidence of the procedure has been increasing over the last 50+ years, it has really only started being done on an outpatient basis over the last 10 years. There is no denying that outpatient surgery is commonly the least expensive option for patients and insurance companies alike, and early research has demonstrated no increased risks in performing the procedure on an outpatient basis when compared to an inpatient setting,” remarked Dr. Togher.
Trained on eight different implants, Dr. Togher has completed over 100 ankle replacement surgeries using six of them. For this procedure he used the Wright Medical Infinity Implant. “Not only am I the most familiar with this implant, but their new Adaptis technology on the implant bone interface promotes the best environment for bone ongrowth to the implant. Additionally, the Vitamin E crosslinking helps decrease oxidation and, theoretically, the chance the patient will need revision surgery down the road,” noted Dr. Togher.
Dr. Togher cites the patient experience as the major difference between outpatient surgery and inpatient, saying, “The benefit with outpatient surgery is that we are creating an efficient environment for patients to be cared for, from the second they arrive to the moment they are discharged. This not only enhances the patient experience but decreases the potential for risks by decreasing the time they can potentially occur.”
While outpatient hip and knee replacement patients are up walking mere hours after their surgeries, the recovery process for ankle joint replacement surgery is much different, and Dr. Togher cautions that patients take longer to recover with artificial joints of the ankle when compared to knee and hip replacements. “Patients do not begin walking until at least a week after surgery. This means they will have to call upon gait assistive devices like knee scooters, walkers, crutches, or wheelchairs during this time. If no other procedures are done at the time of replacement, the patient then advances into partial weightbearing in a cast for the next three weeks. After these first four weeks, the stitches are removed and walking activities in a boot are commenced. At this time physical therapy begins but focuses mostly on range of motion and stability about the ankle,” explained Dr. Togher.
ABOUT SEASIDE SURGERY CENTER: Seaside Surgery Center is a physician owned multi-specialty Ambulatory Surgery Center (ASC) and was the first ASC in Southwest Florida to offer same-day outpatient total joint replacement. Conveniently located at 1879 Veterans Park Drive, Suite 1101 in Naples, Florida, Seaside is licensed by the State of Florida Agency for Health Care Administration and has been approved by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations. For more information or to schedule a surgery consultation, please contact Seaside Surgery Center at 239-592-4955. Online at www.SeasideSurgeryCenter.com.