Sponsored Feature
With a dozen locations across the metro area, including one in Fayetteville, Ortho Atlanta specializes in orthopaedics and sports medicine. Services include on-site physical therapy, pain management, five imaging centers and two AAAHC surgical centers. The Fayetteville location also offers OrthoQUICK Urgent Care services. Dr. Sharrona Williams practices in Fayettville, Newnan, and Stockbridge.
Joint problems can have a major impact on a person’s quality of life. Thankfully, the specialists at Ortho Atlanta have the training and expertise to help. One of the practice’s Southside physicians, Dr. Sharrona Williams, is now performing full ankle replacements, a procedure that few doctors nationwide and only two in South Atlanta offer.
“This isn’t a new or trial procedure,” she says. “The outcomes are excellent, but a lot of doctors aren’t aware that it’s an option.”
In full replacement, the cartilage is replaced with implants, much like in a knee replacement. It’s an alternative to the more commonly performed ankle fusion. In fusion, however, the patient loses virtually all joint movement. A replacement preserves – and often restores – movement. Further, because the joint is essentially “frozen” in a fusion, the adjacent joints have to work harder, which can mean additional problems down the road.
“When I perform a replacement, we customize the cut guides used to make the implants based on each patient’s CT scan,” Dr. Williams explains. “That allows us to make the implants fit as perfectly as possible. Not every physician does that, but I find it leads to the best results.”
Replacement is not the best option for all patients and not everyone requires surgery, so Dr. Williams urges people to come see her sooner rather than later.
“It’s amazing how many people live with pain for months or years because they’re afraid of surgery,” she says. “I can often give them a non-surgical solution and then they wish they’d come in sooner.
Dr. Williams is board certified by the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery and is an American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons Fellow. She completed her medical degree at Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine, and her fellowship in foot and ankle surgery at Duke University Medical Center. She is a member of several regional and national professional organizations and her practice includes orthopaedic surgery, sports medicine, and foot and ankle disorders. She is an NCAA scholar athlete, has served in the Army reserves, and is active in Big Brothers Big Sisters of America.
Full replacement isn’t an option for everyone, but when it is, the outcomes are excellent because we can preserve motion in the joint.
• Dr. Sharrona Williams one of only two doctors on South side and one of few in nation to offer full ankle replacement procedure
• Practice includes 35 specialists in all areas of orthopaedics and sports medicine plus more than 50 additional healthcare professionals
• Physical therapy, physiatry, pain management, surgery, and imaging
• OrthoQUICK Urgent Care available at Fayetteville location
