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OK so you may be a card-carrying baby boomer but
you're still active. The problem is that the old knees are
starting to give out sooner than your still robust energy level.
Partial knee replacement may be the answer.
A new procedure being performed by Waterbury
Hospital orthopaedic surgeons Michael Kaplan, M.D., Kristaps
Keggi, M.D. and John Keggi, M.D. actually replaces only the part
of the knee that is worn out, sparing patients the more medically
complicated and involved total knee replacement. "The typical
patient is 50-plus years old with considerable surface wear on one
side [of the knee]," said Dr. Kaplan. The other age group
benefiting from this procedure is the elderly who may not be well
enough to tolerate the risks of more involved surgery, including
blood transfusions and an extended hospital stay.
Among the advantages of the procedure, called
unicondylar arthoplasty is a dramatically shorter recovery period
due to less surgical trauma to the knee, along with less scaring
and fuller range of motion. "It's like filling a cavity rather
than crowning a tooth," said Dr. Kaplan, who has taught the
procedure to surgeons at a number of area hospitals, including
Hartford Hospital, Norwalk Hospital and Danbury Hospital. Dr.
Kaplan himself has performed over 60 of the procedures to date,
with encouraging results. For the younger patient, partial knee
replacement, "buys time," said the surgeon. "We're talking about
eight to 12 years before he or she might need a full replacement.
In the meantime, the patient may enjoy at least a decade of
increased activity with fewer symptoms.
"Click
here for more information regarding partial knee replacement
surgery |
