Partial Right Knee

Chris

Hi i am just enquiring, after suffering with terrible right knee for the past 3 - 4 years due to arthritis brought on by damage to my medial meniscus cartilage i saw a specialist last July who examined all my MRI scans and Xrays he recommended i undergo a partial knee replacement. I was put on the waiting list there and then. Hopefully this will happen in the first six months of next year. I am a little apprehensive about the procedure but frankly i will try anything to be rid of the horrible pain and stiffness from the inside of my right knee. Do you know of anybody else who has had this procedure? and what was their outcomes?

Kind regards

Chris

Anna

Hi @Chris

I see that you’ve posted to the Helpline Team but they’re out of the office until 4 January - I’m sure they’ll respond when they return.

Meanwhile, you might find it useful to have a look at the Versus Arthritis information page on knee replacement surgery, which gives some idea of what to expect:

https://www.versusarthritis.org/about-arthritis/treatments/surgery/knee-replacement-surgery/

You might like to post in the Living with arthritis forum - on the right hand side of the page - and I’m sure other members will share their experiences with you.

Do let us know how you get on.

Anna : )

helpline_team

Hi Chris

Thanks for your post to the Helpline. Sorry to hear that you are having problems with your knee.

We don't have a team member who's got that kind of life experience I'm afraid. Instead you might try posting on the Living with arthritis forum, and put something like 'experiences of a partial knee replacement ?' in the heading.

The national joint registry Home (njrcentre.org.uk) has some patient blogs on different types of surgery, and the Royal College of Surgeons has some excellent information on pre and post surgery - the series of booklets are called Get Well Soon. Knee Surgery - Total Knee Replacement — Royal College of Surgeons (rcseng.ac.uk) (I can't find any information on partial knee there, however.)

If you are unsure about a partial knee vs a total knee, you might ask your surgeon about the pros and cons, and what it is about your knee that takes them in that direction. You can ask about the longevity of the procedure and how many they perform each year. A good option might involve meeting one of the physios who supports your surgeon's patients with their post-surgical recovery. They can sometimes have more time to answer questions - and can offer advice about keeping moving now, which can help your surgical outcome.

If you are unconvinced, you might consider a surgical second opinion. That can involve seeing a specialist in a totally different hospital, so that you are not seeing a colleague of the surgeon you've already seen. Do bear in mind, that some hospitals can be in the same Trust - so teams can spread wider than you think.

All the best

Guy

Helpline Team