Are you considering knee replacement surgery? You’ll want a high performance knee implant so you can return to your active life as fast as possible. Now, there is a new technologically advanced surgical procedure available at Ingalls that can meet these expectations.

Mark R. Nikkel, D.O., orthopedic surgeon on staff at the Advanced Orthopedic Institute at Ingalls, is one of the nation’s leading surgeons using the revolutionary Visionaire knee replacement system that uses a patient’s MRI and X-ray images to design and build surgical instruments customized for his or her unique knee anatomy.

While every person’s knee joint has subtle differences in shape and contour, traditional surgical instruments used to place knee implants are one-size-fits-all. In the past, Dr. Nikkel would spend time during the procedure adapting to a knee’s “terrain” in order to achieve the proper placement of the implant. But now, he comes to the operating room equipped with single-use instruments, engineered exclusively for that patient’s knee.

Join Dr. Nikkel for an enlightening 60-minute seminar about the causes and treatment of knee pain, as well as the benefits of custom-fit knee replacement, to be held from 6 to 7 p.m. on Wednesday, May 16, at the Apollo Recreation Center in Alsip. Dr. Nikkel is board certified in orthopedic surgery and is fellowship trained in sports medicine and knee and shoulder surgery. He has offices in Oak Lawn, Orland Park and Calumet City.

The Apollo Recreation Center is located at 12521 S. Kostner Avenue, east of Cicero Avenue and north of 127^th Street. Seating is limited, so please call 1.800.221.2199 to reserve your seat at the free seminar.

For more than 88 years, Ingalls has helped the residents of Chicago’s South Suburbs to be well through its 563-bed hospital, home care agency, four community-based treatment centers, Ingalls Wellness Center at the Homewood-Flossmoor Racquet and Fitness Club, centers for inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation, four magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) facilities and a medical staff of more than 450 physicians. In addition, Ingalls Memorial Hospital has been designated as a “Blue Distinction Center” for Knee & Hip Replacement and for Spine Surgery by BlueCross BlueShield of Illinois, an Independent Licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, as well as a designated Aetna Institute of Quality Orthopedic Care for Total Joint Replacement and Spine Surgery.