Simply put, the longer you wait to get a knee replacement, the more wear and tear you put on your knees – and the longer you live with increasing pain, stiffness or mobility issues. But there are a few other things to consider, including: As your knee condition worsens, your quality of life can also decrease.
Joint damage: If you delay surgery, the damage to your knee joint will likely worsen. This can lead to a loss of function and mobility and may even require revision surgery. Increased risk of injury: Knee pain can make it difficult to walk, climb stairs, and participate in other activities.
'” Genetics notwithstanding, Sheth said there are some factors that can potentially stave off a knee replacement. Keeping body weight down eases the impact on the knee. And when exercising, Sheth said avoiding activities that cause pounding or other possible trauma to the knee can better preserve cartilage.
If a patient decides to postpone knee replacement surgery, a doctor can recommend options to temporarily relieve arthritic knee pain. For example, a person who wants to postpone surgery for 6 to 12 months may be able to get one or more cortisone or hyaluronic acid injections to reduce his or her knee pain.
When is surgery necessary? You may be offered knee replacement surgery if: you have severe pain, swelling and stiffness in your knee joint and your ability to move the joint is significantly reduced. your knee pain is so severe that it interferes with your quality of life and sleep.
Mild knee injuries may heal by themselves, but all injuries should be checked and diagnosed by a doctor or physiotherapist. Persistent knee pain needs professional help. Prompt medical attention for any knee injury increases the chances of a full recovery.
Doctors sometimes recommend that people under age 60 wait to undergo a knee replacement, because these artificial joints typically last only about 15 to 20 years. If someone younger gets the procedure, the joint will likely need to be replaced again down the line.
Hip and knee replacements are among the most common elective surgeries, and these days they are routinely done for patients who are well into their 80s and even their 90s. Osteoarthritis, a common reason for joint replacement, tends to get worse with age.
In most cases, patients can walk without help from assistive devices like crutches or a walker within six weeks after knee replacement surgery. That said, physical therapy continues after this time to help your knee and the surrounding muscles grow stronger and more flexible.
arthroscopy – where fluid is flushed into the knee joint to clear out any loose bone and cartilage. osteotomy – where the shape of your shin bone is changed to reduce pressure on the worn or damaged part of your knee. microfracture – where small holes are made in the surface of the bone to help new cartilage grow.
The first alternative to knee surgery most physicians try is lifestyle modification. This may include weight loss; avoiding activities such as running and twisting, which can aggravate the knee injury; modifying exercise to no- and low-impact; and other changes in your daily routine to reduce stress on your knee.
You may NOT be a good candidate if:
Your knee symptoms are not related to joint disease. Your weight is too much for the artificial joint to support. You have fragile skin or poor skin coverage over your knee. You have a severe illness or infection.
A knee replacement is a common and safe procedure. However, as with any operation there are risks. Your doctor will explain these to you. Most people who have a knee replacement have no complications.
Severe knee cartilage loss makes walking, sitting, standing, squatting, and going up and down stairs extremely painful. People with a total loss of knee cartilage can benefit from joint injections. In many cases, surgery including a total knee replacement is needed to treat no cartilage in the knee.
In a healthy joint cartilage aids in the congruency of movement of the joint between the two bones. Thus if someone has a joint which is “Bone on Bone” it suggests the amount of cartilage on the bones in the joint is reduced and inflammation present. Some research has found a correlation between knee pain and OA.
TKA patients begin rehabilitation during the seven-day bedrest period, with the goals of decreasing swelling, increasing ROM, promoting normal leg control and promoting normal gait with an assistive device.
When quantifying how much pain there is after surgery, it is relative to the patient. The pain after a knee replacement is typically no worse than one of your worst days before you had surgery. However, you can feel this way for the first two to three weeks after the day of surgery.
The majority of patients expect to be able to kneel after TKR,2,4,5 however, these expectations are frequently not met,1,6 with between 50% and 80% of patients reporting that they have difficulty kneeling or do not kneel in the months and years after TKR.
There is a range of accepted weight ranges, but the current standard is that anyone obese (greater than 100 pounds over ideal weight or a BMI of roughly 40-45) should not consider joint replacement.
A total knee replacement is considered a major operation, and may be indicated when other treatments (weight loss, exercise and physical therapy, medications, injections, and bracing) have failed to relieve the pain, which must be significant and disabling.
Age alone is no bar to surgery. Older and younger people benefit equally, as long as they are generally healthy to start. However, people under 60 are encouraged to delay total knee replacement if they can.
Knee arthroscopy is a very common minimally invasive surgical procedure. Minimally invasive procedures require smaller incisions (cuts) than traditional surgery. The incisions are about the size of a keyhole. To treat injuries or structural problems, your healthcare provider inserts tiny tools through another incision.
There is no cure for arthritis of the knee. It's a lifelong condition. But the good news is treatment can relieve some of the symptoms. Treatment might even slow down or stop the disease from getting worse.