Knee replacement surgery in Chattanooga
At Parkridge Medical Group, our knee specialists believe in preserving as much of your natural bone structure as possible to help you live without knee pain. Understanding the importance of being able to move freely means we'll always recommend the least disruptive procedure possible so you can have a fast recovery.
We have a high success rate in knee surgeries because of our commitment to research and extensive experience. Our physicians are pioneers in this space, working with leading medical device companies to create state-of-the-art, custom implants to provide the best outcomes for our patients.
To see if knee replacement surgery is right for you, schedule an appointment with an orthopedic knee surgeon.
What is knee replacement surgery?
Knee surgery is the most common type of joint replacement surgery, a key component of our joint care program. Often referred to as arthroplasty, this procedure is to repair or replace damaged joints from arthritis. Your orthopedic surgeon will remove the damaged parts of your knee joint and replace them with strong artificial pieces.
Is knee replacement surgery right for you?
Although knee pain may come and go at first, eventually it will get worse as your joints continue to wear down with osteoarthritis. You don’t have to suffer in pain. We recommend knee surgery if you’re experiencing the following symptoms:
- Severe knee pain or stiffness during your everyday activities
- Chronic knee pain while resting
- Frequent inflammation and swelling in your knee
- Misshapen knee that bows out from its natural position
Depending on your situation, we discuss your options for knee replacement surgery and help you choose the best option. From preparing for surgery to answering questions at follow-up appointment after you procedure, our entire care team works together to guide you through the entire process.
Types of knee replacements
We provide several knee replacement options for our patients. Your knee surgeon will discuss the options with you and recommend the best choice based on your condition and goals.
Knee resurfacing
Only the surfaces of the bones are replaced with metal implants that fit on top of the existing knee bones and are cushioned with a smooth plastic spacer to eliminate bone-on-bone grinding.
Total knee replacement
In this procedure, the surgeon removes all of the damaged bone and cartilage and replaces it with a new joint made of strong metal. If other treatments like anti-inflammatory medications, joint injections or physical therapy haven’t relieved your knee pain, a total knee replacement can be a solution.
Partial knee replacement
If only a few parts of your knee are affected by arthritis, this is a less invasive technique to exclusively replace the damaged section and leave the healthy parts of your knee joint. Knowing as much as you can about any type of surgery can help ease your concerns. Understanding the difference between partial and total knee replacements and what to expect can benefit you greatly in the recovery process.
Advantages of a partial knee replacement
There are several benefits to undergoing a partial knee replacement:
- Outpatient or one-night hospital stay
- Minimal blood loss
- 90 percent of patients do not require formal physical therapy after surgery
- Minimal amount of foreign material implanted, resulting in low infection rate and usually no need for antibiotics
- The anterior cruciate ligament and posterior cruciate ligament, important knee stabilizers, are preserved
- Following surgery, patients usually maintain a normal walking gait and rarely lose any flexibility
- Of those who've undergone both a total knee replacement on one side and a partial knee replacement on the other, 80 percent prefer the partial for its more flexible, natural feeling
Is a partial knee replacement right for you?
A partial knee replacement can be an option for patients with degenerative arthritis (osteoarthritis). When your quality of life is severely affected by joint pain, you could be ready for surgery.
- Do you have pain predominately on one side or the other of your knee?
- Have you been told that the cartilage is worn out in your knee?
We offer a free screening of your knee X-rays to see if you are a good candidate. You may bring them with you during your office appointment or mail them to us.
What can I expect with a partial knee replacement?
This minimally invasive procedure involves freehand sculpting and resurfacing of the weight-bearing half of the knee bone while leaving the other half untouched. Performed through a small incision that does not disrupt the quadriceps muscle, this technique is less disruptive to the rest of the knee and results in much easier recovery than total knee replacement. Replacing the damaged section of the knee, much of your natural joint is left intact.
A partial knee replacement procedure generally takes about 45 minutes to an hour — some patient spend the night with us after their surgery while others go home the same day. Physical therapy is an important part of the recovery process and begins very soon after surgery.
Within four to six weeks, we'll see you for a couple postoperative follow-up visits. By then, most patients are pretty mobile and doing almost everything they were prior to surgery, but we'll still be there for you to ensure you're progressing safely and naturally.
More About What to Expect From Partial Knee Replacement
Osteoarticular transfer system (OATS)
OATS is a procedure replacing damaged cartilage in the knee with healthy cartilage from another area of the joints, relieving pain and restoring movement and function to the joint. A mosaicplasty is the name for a general procedure that treats severe cartilage damage, and the OATS procedure is one type of mosaicplasty.
Although cartilage is essential to the smooth, painless movement of the joints, some areas have a more critical need for the support and cushioning provided by the cartilage. During the OATS procedure, small plugs of healthy cartilage are removed from areas of the joint that are not in critical need and transferred to the area of damaged cartilage.
The OATS procedure is ideal for patients with small areas of cartilage damage that can be easily repaired with a graft. Widespread cartilage damage cannot usually be treated with this procedure since there may be insufficient amounts of healthy cartilage available.
After the OATS procedure, patients will need to undergo a lengthy physical therapy program to restore range of motion and relieve pain and swelling on the joint. Most patients will be on crutches for six to 12 weeks after surgery before they can successfully bear weight on the joint again. Long-term follow-up care will be required to maintain the results of this procedure.
