Ankle Replacement in Portland, OR

Ankle replacement is typically recommended after osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, or arthritis following a past ankle injury has progressed to the point where bracing, medication, and injections no longer provide meaningful relief. Your surgeon will weigh ankle replacement against the main alternative, ankle fusion, which permanently joins the ankle bones together to eliminate painful motion entirely.

Ankle replacement preserves more natural up-and-down motion in the joint than fusion does, which many patients value for walking on uneven ground and for reducing extra stress on nearby joints in the foot. Fusion, on the other hand, can be a better fit for patients with significant bone loss, prior infection, or very high-impact activity demands. Your surgeon will recommend whichever procedure fits your anatomy, activity level, and overall health. If you're still earlier in that conversation, your care team at Orthopedic + Fracture Specialists(opens in a new tab) can walk you through your full range of options.

What to Expect Before, During & After Surgery

Before Your Surgery. In the weeks leading up to your procedure, you'll have a pre-operative appointment where your surgical team reviews your health history and gives you specific instructions on medications to pause beforehand and how to prepare your home for a longer, slower recovery than other joint replacements, including a knee scooter or crutches and a plan for keeping your foot elevated.

The Day of Surgery. Please follow the arrival time and check-in instructions provided by your care team. When you arrive, our staff will check you in and guide you through the next steps. Our pre-operative team will review your health history, start an IV, and get you into a gown and non-skid socks. Both your surgeon and your anesthesiologist will speak with you before you're taken back to one of our five operating rooms. Our physician anesthesiologists are trained in nerve block techniques that numb the foot and ankle for hours afterward, reducing how much narcotic pain medication you'll need in the first day or two.

After Your Procedure. You'll move to a recovery area staffed by a dedicated nurse, who watches your vitals and helps manage pain as the anesthesia wears off. Unlike hip or knee replacement, you won't be walking on your new ankle right away. Most patients go home the same day in a splint or cast with strict instructions to keep weight off the foot entirely, and a caregiver arranged to help at home is essential during early recovery.

Recovering From Ankle Replacement

Ankle replacement recovery moves more slowly than hip or knee replacement, and that's expected, not a sign anything went wrong. Your surgeon will tell you how much weight you can put on your foot and when. You may use crutches, a knee scooter, or a walking boot while you heal. Please follow those instructions closely.

Keeping your foot elevated above heart level as much as possible in the early weeks helps manage swelling, which is often more pronounced and longer-lasting than after hip or knee surgery because of the ankle's thinner soft tissue covering. Call your surgeon's office if you notice increasing redness or warmth around the incision, drainage that doesn't improve, or a fever above 101°F. Physical therapy, available in the same building through the team at Orthopedic + Fracture Specialists(opens in a new tab), typically begins once you're cleared for more weight-bearing and plays a central role in regaining motion and strength. For a closer look at recovery, visit How We Get You Home.

Understanding the Risks

Like any surgery, ankle replacement carries real risks, and we think you deserve a straightforward answer about what those are. Because the ankle has less soft tissue covering the joint than the hip or knee, wound healing problems are a more significant concern here than they are for those procedures, which is part of why strict weight-bearing restrictions matter so much in early recovery. Other possible risks include infection, nerve or blood vessel injury, implant loosening over time, and, in some cases, the eventual need for revision surgery or conversion to a fusion.

We take these risks seriously. Center for Specialty Surgery tracks infection and complication rates every quarter and reports them publicly, rather than keeping that information internal. If you have specific concerns about how your health history, including diabetes or circulation issues, might affect your surgical risk, that conversation is best had directly with your surgeon, since these factors matter more for ankle surgery than for many other joint replacements.

What Ankle Replacement Costs

Ankle replacement is billed through your medical insurance, the same way it would be at a hospital, through your surgeon's office, our facility, and your anesthesia provider separately. Having three separate bills can be confusing at first: our facility fee covers the operating room, supplies, and nursing care, while your surgeon's fee and your anesthesia fee are billed on their own.

We accept most major insurance plans; visit our Insurance page for the full list. If you have questions about your specific coverage or estimated cost, our billing team can walk you through what to expect before your surgery date.

Our Safety and Quality Standards

Center for Specialty Surgery has been performing joint replacement surgery since 2003, accredited by the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care (AAAHC) and certified by Medicare. Our infection and complication rates are tracked every quarter and reported publicly, and we've been recognized among Newsweek's Best Ambulatory Surgery Centers(opens in a new tab) in Oregon in 2025, 2026, and 2027.