The purpose of a knee replacement (or knee arthroplasty) is to help patients enjoy greater mobility, reduced knee pain, and improved stability in their knee. Replacement also helps prevent further damage. Wear and tear affecting your knee could result from overexertion, including exercising too frequently. Lifting heavy items could also have an impact. Trauma, whether from an auto accident or from a different kind of accident, can result in fractures which may then go on to cause issues. These are only a few of the factors that may cause you pain leading to a knee operation. Knee surgery can be a game-changer for those dealing with chronic knee issues.
Overview of The Orthopaedic and Pain Practice
Our orthopaedic surgeon offers both clinical and surgical orthopaedic services and manages the entire process from the different stages of diagnosis, intervention (if any) and rehabilitation. The practice philosophy is that, whilst achieving a diagnosis is important, this is often relatively straightforward and a great deal can be obtained simply by listening to the patient. He manages every patient as an individual and, as everyone has widely different lifestyles and activity levels, believes that treatment is truly individual and exercise programs need to be separately tailored. The pace and type of therapy depends on the patient’s motivation, expectations, and fitness level. Unlike other practices, hypnosis is also available for the anxious patient prior to injections or surgery. Knee replacement is often recommended for severe arthritis or injury that hasn’t responded to other treatments.
The Orthopaedic and Pain Practice is a unique, specialist orthopaedic practice in Singapore which specializes in the management of hip and knee problems, many of which are amenable to modern, minimally invasive surgical procedures. We believe pain relief is of prime importance and will first aim to achieve pain control via medication and injection routes. Therapeutic exercise under the supervision of experienced physiotherapists (we will provide training and physiotherapy protocols) is then the next goal and aims at functional restoration. Many patients successfully resume normal daily activities using these two approaches. Finally, for certain conditions in which a significant structural abnormality exists (for example, large tumor, unstable meniscal lesion) and these symptoms cannot be resolved with conservative methods, and when the patient is an appropriate candidate for surgery, we can offer the latest minimally invasive orthopaedic surgical techniques to these patients.
Understanding Knee Conditions
The knee is an unusual hinge joint in that the two relatively long lower bones are held together only by a number of ligaments because the end of the femur and the top of the tibia do not fit together very accurately. These ligaments are under constant stress to hold the joint secure and also, at the same time, permit its bending to various degrees. The knee also has another pair of C-shaped cartilages or menisci, which serve as the shock absorbers for the knee joint. There is also a bursa, which is a fluid-filled sac, located between the patella and the tibia so that the patella can glide smoothly when the knee is in motion. When you experience pain or discomfort in the knee, it is usually the result of an injury to one of these parts of the knee. To make matters even more complex, the knee is also prone to the development of arthritis, which, in contrast to an injury, tends to affect the joint as a whole.
The knee is a complex diarthrodial (or freely movable) joint in the body that is constantly under great stress and is at high risk for injury and the potential for debilitating conditions. It consists of the convergence of three major bones – the lower end of the femur (the thigh bone), the upper end of the tibia (the large bone of the lower leg), and the patella (the kneecap). During the bending and straightening movement of the leg, these three bones work together as a hinge.
Common Musculoskeletal Conditions Affecting the Knee
Knee replacement surgery can significantly improve mobility and quality of life. Seeking treatment at our clinic in Singapore and consult our orthopaedic surgeon can help you get the right care and relief. Common conditions in the knee that limit your mobility include a bruised bone (i.e. bone bruise, stress fracture), growth plate injury (i.e. Osgood Schlatter disease, Sinding Larsen Johansson disease), internal damage to the cartilages (i.e. meniscus injury), internal damage to the ligaments and tendons (i.e. jumping cruciate injury, nursing ligament injury, patellar tendinopathy), insufficient flap of the cartilages (i.e. cartilage plug, full thickness chondral defect, partial thickness chondral defect), degenerative changes to the cartilages (i.e. osteoarthritis, osteochondritis dissecans), deficiency of the ligaments and tendons which support the joint (i.e. ligament disruption, meniscal cyst, muscle spasm, patellar dislocation, pes anserine bursitis, pes anserine tendinopathy), and water on the knee (i.e. bursitis of the knee, synovitis).
Knee pain is a common problem in the community. Whether you suffer from episodes of knee pain which occur for a few days, weeks, or months does not matter as much as the number of recurrences, or what you can do to get rid of the pain, how often and how severe the pain becomes, and what you are losing because of the pain and suffering. How bothersome symptoms are differs from person to person. While pain is the most obvious, you may also describe the swelling, locking, catching, giving way, and weakness of the knee. Clearly, these symptoms can be further aggravated when other parts of the knee such as the bones, joints, menisci, tendons, and ligaments are inflamed, injured, or are degenerated themselves.
Knee Replacement Surgery
Knee replacement surgery, also known as knee arthroplasty, can help relieve pain and restore function in severely diseased knee joints. The procedure involves cutting away damaged bone and cartilage from your thighbone, shinbone, and kneecap and replacing it with an artificial joint (prosthesis) made of metal alloys, high-grade plastics, and polymers. The success of knee replacement is very high. Even though up to 90% of people who undergo knee replacement experience a significant reduction of knee pain and are better able to perform common activities, knee replacement may not be for everyone. There are potential risks as well as benefits associated with all types of operations. It will take several weeks for you to recover from surgery, and rehabilitation may well be challenging, but with time and commitment, the overwhelming majority of patients achieve excellent outcomes with their new knee. They will be able to read more comfortably, enjoy normal walking, and perform day-to-day activities with significantly less pain.
What is Knee Replacement Surgery?
Knee replacement, or knee arthroplasty, is a surgical procedure where a damaged knee is replaced with an artificial joint, or prosthesis. It requires the orthopaedic surgeon to remove the damaged areas, such as cartilage and bone, of the thighbone (femur), shinbone (tibia), and kneecap (patella), and then fit a prosthesis made of metal and plastic in their place. The top and lower parts of the prosthesis also replace the articulating surfaces, which are the areas of bone where these three bones meet. Assuming that you still have full medical, dental, and hospital benefits, knee replacement surgery is usually covered by most Medisave-approved insurance policies. At the same time, required hospital and Medicare co-payments are usually covered by various insurance plans so long as these are not under “basic” or “economy” policies. To enjoy possible financial benefits, it is wise for you to check with your insurance provider directly, or through your employer’s insurance administrator, so that you can ascertain what is exactly covered by your Medisave and other insurance plans.
Benefits and Risks of Knee Replacement
When knee replacements are performed on individuals with chronic discomfort that is not brought about by a worn-out joint surface, the patient’s original pain continues to present after surgery, which is a result that is all too common. A strategy discussed during initial consultations that is very critical is to be sure that the knee pain is caused by physical changes. Addressing the pain by fixing the surface can likely offer little help, and when that is the case, you want the patient to be well aware of that likelihood. There is a small likelihood of an allergic reaction after surgery, as well as a slightly higher risk of heart attacks or strokes. These procedures necessitate anesthesia, and the potential for infections increases after undergoing such a procedure.
Knee replacement is not without risks, since it is a major surgical procedure. While the potential for risks may be lower for knee replacement than for other invasive treatments, the risks are nonetheless present. Knee replacements may actually not actively improve some knee pain that some patients possess. The ability to stand, sit, and walk with more ease and the confidence that comes from a new knee significantly impacts patients’ lives. Many people report that their new knee is spectacular even within the first days of recovery from knee replacement surgery.
Even when medical risks are present, patients often feel that the promise of pain relief and improved function is worth the possibility of medical complications. Knee replacements have the ability to transform a patient’s quality of life, providing greater mobility, reduced pain, reduced inflammation, and a generally enhanced overall outlook.
Advantages of Knee Replacement Surgery
Currently, there is no known treatment that can truly delay the time of serious knee arthritis, which is a common problem with ordinary arthritis treatments such as medication, physiotherapy, injections of steroids, or hyaluronic acid, use of a cane or a walker, and even more extreme methods such as arthroscopy for arthritis. In sum, these advantages of knee replacement surgery vastly outweigh its limitations. With advancements in its procedures, getting your knees replaced is becoming easier than ever before and more and more people are moving beyond the pain and taking action for a healthier future.
One of the main advantages of knee replacement surgery (TKA) is the improvement to patients’ quality of life. Patients have reported that they experience greater pain relief after the surgery and that it aids in their movement and functionality. Hip or knee replacement surgery can help to eliminate the discomfort that a patient feels while lying down, which is generally more difficult to treat. For these reasons, patients who undergo TKA typically have a better overall general health, including their mental and physical wellness compared to patients who choose not to go through with the surgery or are unable to.
