To have PKR or not?

MartinaV

Hi all,

I’m new to this community which I think is fantastic! I’ve been diagnosed with OA in both knees, one knee severe and the other one moderate.

I’m in pain with my knees pretty much since I was a teenager and mainly struggling when I have to walk stairs, squat or have to sit for a long period. I’m now in my 50’s and my orthopaedic surgeon has suggested for me to consider a patellofemoral knee replacement.

My question to the community is “When did you know the time was right to have PKR surgery done?” I’ve done my research and understand the pros and cons but still sitting on the fence.

Many thanks

chrisb

Hi @MartinaV

Welcome to the versus arthritis forum.

You have OA in your knees and have been offered a knee replacement. You’re undecided as to whether or not to proceed with the operation and would like to hear from any forum members who can offer advice as to when the time is right to proceed with the surgery.

Whilst you await some feedback, you may find this article of interest:

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

Also, there are numerous discussions on this subject in the forum which you may wish to join in with. For example:

https://community.versusarthritis.org/discussion/60450/knee-replacement

I hope you receive some valuable feedback which help your decision making.

Best Wishes

ChrisB (Moderator)

MartinaV

Thank you so much Chris, the article is really helpful to decide if I go for surgery now or wait as long as possible.

stickywicket

Hi there,

Unfortunately, we don't get a lot of PKR people on here and, when they cme, they don't tend to linger. Here are some former threads on it though. https://community.versusarthritis.org/search?domain=all_content&query=partial%20knee%20replacement&scope=site&source=community

I've had both knees replaced very successfully - full tkrs, though. I think when to go in for surgery depends mostly on the surgeon (if NHS. Private ones are much happier to operate earlier) and partly on the patient.

I had to smile at the mention of squatting. I'm sure there was a time when I could, and did, but, if this is going to be important to you post-op, do check with your surgeon to see how likely it is that you'll be able to.