What Are Things You Can’t Do During and After Partial Knee Replacement Surgery?

​Knee arthritis can be limited to a single knee area or the whole knee joint. In almost every single activity that a person does which involves their legs, the knee is most certainly going to be involved. When an individual has injured the entire knee or just a part of it, those movements can be difficult, if not impossible. Knee cartilage which protects the bones of the knee, can also be worn down over time through normal wear and tear or the development of osteoarthritis.

When you feel serious pain in the knee, you may need specialized care from an experienced orthopedic surgeon such as ours at Atlanta Bone & Joint Specialists. Our professional team can evaluate your knee and determine the severity of your injury or knee arthritis. From this evaluation, we can then develop a customized treatment plan to help you return to as normal of a life as possible, pain-free. This may mean that you will need a partial knee replacement (also called a unicompartmental knee replacement) or a total knee replacement, depending on your knee pain and the seriousness of arthritis.

What Is a Partial Knee Replacement?

Before we discuss what is done for partial knee replacement patients, we should first describe the compartments of the knee so that the description makes sense. The knee is divided into three major compartments: medial, lateral, and patellofemoral. These three parts work together to keep the knee in good condition.

When osteoarthritis has advanced to an extreme level but is limited to only one compartment (unicompartmental knee arthritis), surgeons may be able to treat only that area with a unicompartmental knee replacement. For instance, our surgeons can perform a patellofemoral knee replacement if that area is the only one affected. The partial knee replacements work to ensure the patients are back on their feet sooner rather than putting our patients through the pain and recovery of a total knee replacement.

Differences Between Partial and Total Knee Replacement

As we mentioned already, the primary difference is that only a portion of the knee is operated on during the partial knee replacement compared to the total knee replacement surgery. Another big difference is the type of incision that is needed. During partial joint replacement surgery, the required incision is far smaller than the one necessary for traditional knee replacement surgery.

Some other important advantages of partial knee replacement over total knee surgery include:

• Faster recovery time
• Less pain
• Less blood loss
• Lowered risk of infection and deep vein thrombosis (blood clots)
• More of a natural feel to the knee
• Better bending ability

If you think that a partial knee replacement may be the best surgical procedure for you, contact our surgical specialists at Atlanta Bone & Joint Specialists to discuss your knee cap and joints.


Things You Should Not Do With Your Knee Joint After Partial Knee Replacement Surgery

After you have gone through the partial knee replacement or partial knee resurfacing procedure, there are several activities that you should avoid during your healing process. These things include:

• Not taking your prescribed pain-relieving medications as ordered by your surgeon - treating the pain you feel after surgery is not just to make you feel more comfortable. It has a healing effect because it can help your body heal and recover more quickly.
• Putting too much weight on your knee too quickly - you will certainly want to start putting some weight on the knee after surgery but only as described by your physical therapist.
• Not using the crutches, walker, or cane - you may not want to use these medical devices for assistance, but they are designed to help you gain more comfort and stability during your recovery. Avoiding them may hinder your ability to heal.
• Avoiding physical therapy and rehabilitation exercises - getting and maintaining your range of motion after surgery is essential in the healing process. Physical therapy will provide you with the best exercises designed for your specific treatment to get you back on your feet and feeling normal as soon as possible.
• Forgetting to make follow-up visits - your surgeon will want to see you post-surgery at regular intervals. These are designed to check your healing and recovery process and ensure that there are no post-op complications that need to be addressed.

As long as you avoid these activities following your partial knee replacement procedure, you should be feeling better and on the road to recovery quickly.

Contact Atlanta Bone and Joint Specialists For Premier Orthopaedic Surgeons

If you have pain in your knee or have been diagnosed with osteoarthritis in your knee, you may be a candidate for a partial knee replacement procedure in Atlanta, GA. You must make an appointment with an orthopedic specialist such as ours at Atlanta Bone & Joint Specialists to ensure that your condition has been properly diagnosed and you are receiving the best possible treatment plan for your needs.

At Atlanta Bone & Joint Specialists, our team is a high-volume group, which means that we are doing close to 1000 knee and hip replacements each year. Because of this, we have superior outcomes, and our patients can heal and recover quickly. We focus on using the best possible and most advanced technology and up-to-date procedures so that our patients get consistently great care. With our minimally invasive approach to procedures and the level of experience each of our surgeons has, you can rest assured that your partial or total knee replacement procedure will be done effectively.
​
No one should have to deal with the pain of knee osteoarthritis, and if our surgeons at Atlanta Bone & Joint Specialists can do something to help you with that pain, we certainly will. Contact us today to schedule your appointment. We are happy to take your call or fill out this online form.