Partial knee replacements gaining ground

Surgeons in the city are recommending partial knee replacement to patients as an alternative for pain relief. What is more, they say that one could get a minimally invasive surgery on a weekend and get discharged the following day.

Dr Neelam V Ramana Reddy, Orthopaedics specialist, Star Hospitals says, “The patient would be able to walk within six hours of the surgery. Partial knee replacement is recommended as a bone conserving joint replacement surgery for patients suffering from early osteoarthritis/ unicompartmental osteoarthritis where only one of the knee compartments is affected.”

Dr Phil Hirst, a leading orthopaedic surgeon from Manchester, United Kingdom, who is in the city said, “Fixed bearing knee technology that prevents motion in multiple directions or spin -off, which is seen in the case of mobile-bearing technology. This helps in reducing wear rate and increasing life of implant.”

According to Dr Reddy the key benefits for patients of partial knee replacement include, “Preservation of all ligaments as none of these at the knee joint are released during surgery; more natural movement of patella than that after a total knee replacement surgery, which enables patients to kneel, squat or sit cross-legged; these are difficult to achieve with total knee replacement.” Thanks to increased awareness, many are opting for partial knee replacement.