With todays’ lifestyle, we are seeing an increasing number of middle-aged and younger patients developing joint problems. Every attempt should be made at preserving this natural joint and delaying onset of arthritis, rather than straightaway jumping at the last option of replacing it.

Joint Preservation Surgeries are a suitable option for patients with avascular necrosis (AVN), cartilage defects, Osteochondritis (lack of blood supply to the bone), Chondromalacia (weakening of the cartilage), limb mal-alignment and early arthritis. These surgeries can prolong the natural life of the joint and may also eradicate the need for undergoing joint replacement in the future. Some of the common Joint Preservation Procedures are described below.

High Tibial Osteotomy (HTO)

Improper alignment of the limb is a cause of joint pain, cosmetic distress and can also accelerate the process of arthritis. If recognized early, correcting the alignment has the potential to prevent degenerative arthritis and hence avoid joint replacement in the future. This can be done by HTO, in which the bone is repositioned in the correct alignment with the help of a plate, screws or external fixator device.

Once the alignment is corrected, pressure and weight gets evenly distributed across the natural joint. This leads to pain relief, better joint function and improves efficiency of the muscles around the joint.

Proximal Fibular Osteotomy

This technique involves removing a small piece of the fibula bone (thin bone of leg), which leads to redistribution of forces across the knee joint.

This simple, safe and straightforward procedure has a short recovery time and can provide excellent relief from arthritic knee pain. Another advantage of this surgery is that the knee joint itself is not meddled with. Hence if knee replacement is needed in the future it can be done in an uncomplicated manner.

Partial Knee Replacement Unicondylar Knee Replacement (UKR) Joint Resurfacing

The knee joint is made of 3 compartments. In Total Knee Replacement all three compartments are replaced. Partial Knee Replacement was developed specifically as a treatment option for patients with early arthritis where arthritis was restricted to only one compartment.

In this, only the arthritic part of the knee is resurfaced, leaving the rest of the natural joint undisturbed. This has the advantage of giving a more natural feel and swifter recovery than a total knee replacement. With this option, younger patients with arthritis in one compartment need not go for a total knee replacement straight away. Amongst joint preservation options, UKR has one of the most predictable outcome for pain relief.

Arthroscopic Debridement Loose Body Removal

Arthritis of a joint can be loosely equated to ‘wear-and-tear’. This leads to formation of cartilage flaps, extra soft tissue and loose pieces of bone or cartilage. These can themselves be the cause of pain and locking-sensation in the joint. Cleaning up the joint from within via key-hole (arthroscopy) can be a suitable option in these cases