Total Knee Replacement: Understanding the Procedure and When It’s Recommended – Call us on: 261 0735/ Emergency: 57702926
Total knee replacement, also known as total knee arthroplasty, is a surgical procedure designed to alleviate severe knee pain and improve mobility. It involves removing the damaged surfaces of the knee joint and replacing them with artificial components.
When Is a Total Knee Replacement Recommended?
This surgery is most commonly recommended for individuals suffering from severe osteoarthritis of the knee. Osteoarthritis, a degenerative joint disease, causes the cartilage in the knee to gradually wear away. As the cartilage thins or disappears, bones may rub directly against each other, leading to pain, stiffness, and the formation of bony “spurs” around the joint edges.
You might be advised to consider a total knee replacement if you experience:
- Severe knee pain that significantly limits your daily activities, such as walking, rising from a chair, or climbing stairs.
- Moderate to severe pain even at rest, or pain that wakes you up at night.
- Chronic knee inflammation and swelling that doesn’t improve with rest or medication.
- Failure to find pain relief from other conservative treatments like medications, injections, or physical therapy.
- A bow-legged knee deformity.
Diagnosis
Your doctor will diagnose osteoarthritis based on a comprehensive medical history, a thorough physical examination, and X-rays. X-rays are particularly useful as they typically show a narrowing of the joint space, a key indicator of cartilage loss in an arthritic knee.