MADISON, Wis. -- Joint replacements are a procedure that is becoming more and more common.

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As more and more Baby Boomers get a little older, more and more are getting the procedure done, as a way to keep their active lifestyle.

Six places in the world perform knee replacements like no other, and those include: Philadelphia, Dallas, Baltimore, Los Angeles, Columbus, Ohio, and Prairie du Sac, Wis.

When knee pain became too much to bear for a Sauk County woman -- who is all about living life to the fullest -- she didn't have to go far for a solution.

Bev Walsh was suffering four years ago -- years of an active lifestyle had worn out her knee joint.

"When it starts to affect your sleeping and your lifestyle, then it's time to get it done," said Walsh. "All the things I liked to do -- bike, walk, garden -- it became a chore."

So she turned to Dr. Arnold Rosenthal at Sauk Prairie Memorial Hospital.

He first did a traditional right knee replacement in 2004.

By this summer, about the time Bev's left knee was wearing out, Sauk Prairie Memorial Hospital was selected by the Biomet Corp. as one of six hospitals in the world to perform a breakthrough joint replacement technology.

"I think the company wanted to show that this technology was applicable in a community setting like ours," said Rosenthal.

The patient first has an MRI of the joint. That 3-D image is then shipped to Belgium for measurements.

With that perfect computerized fit, surgeons no longer have to use a crude method to angle the joint on the operating table.

"To determine alignment, we would normally be putting a large drill hole at the end of the thigh bone, and sliding these big rods up and down inside the bone to create the alignment measurements. That is entirely eliminated with this system," said Rosenthal.

That old method meant more bleeding, more swelling and a longer recovery. For Bev, there's no comparison between the old process and the new one.

"So I regained my range of motion faster; my physical therapy was faster, I didn't have as much swelling, as much pain up here and down my leg," said Walsh.

And with a more precise, accurate measurement of the knee implant, it will last longer.

"If it's aligned properly -- and this is a system to measure the entire hip, leg, knee and ankle -- we'll be able to create a perfect or nearly perfect alignment," said Rosenthal.

Less than two months after surgery, Bev is pain-free and back to gardening, playing with her grandkids and going for walks with her husband.

"To be able to do those things, it feels awesome and I'm so glad they have something that you can get back to that point," said Walsh.

There are now more than 130,000 knee replacement surgeries each year in the U.S., WISC-TV reported.

For this new custom-fit procedure, the less time measuring means less time in the operating room.

In fact, it cuts the surgical time down to only about 45 minutes. The waiting period from MRI to surgery is about three weeks.

Rosenthal said as long as people can have an MRI, they can have this surgery.

That means those with pacemakers and metal pins and screws in joints from previous surgeries are ineligible.