Elbow replacement surgery is an option if your elbow is consistently hurting and stiff due to arthritis or other causes. A broken elbow can benefit from surgery to ease persistent discomfort and restore motion.

Elbow replacement surgery (sometimes known as complete elbow arthroplasty) is a procedure in which doctors replace a damaged elbow’s joint and restore motion. A doctor replaces your elbow joint with an artificial joint during this procedure.

The complete elbow is not always replaced during elbow replacement surgery. In some cases, doctors just replace a portion of the joint, such as the radial head (the knobby head of the radius bone where the joint meets the radius bone).