Educate: Partial Knee Replacement
A partial knee replacement is a surgical option for patients who have damage to only one area of the knee. This section will provide clarity on what to expect before, during and after procedure. Understanding the surgery and expected recovery can help make patients make informed choices about their treatment options.
Understanding Partial Knee Replacement
The knee can be divided into three sections: the medial (inside), the lateral (outside), and the patellofemoral (knee cap) compartments. A partial knee replacement only addresses the area of the knee that is damaged. This typically means a smaller surgery, less pain and a faster recovery. Patients often report a partial knee feels the most like their normal knee after surgery.
​How is a Partial Knee Replacement Performed?
The procedure is very similar to a total knee replacement, but we only replace the arthritic portion of the knee, usually on the inside (medial). We make small cuts off the ends of your bone, cutting away arthritic bone and leftover degenerative cartilage, usually only 7-10 mm or so around each surface of the femur (thigh bone) and tibia (shin bone). Personalized sizing is then determined and any bone deformities corrected.
Titanium components are then fixed to your bone with bone cement and a plastic liner is placed in-between. This plastic liner is your “new cartilage”. This provides a friction free, painless surface for you to walk and move your knee around.
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What is Recovery like after a Partial Knee Replacement?
On average, most patients are on a walker for 2-3 days, then transition to a cane for a an additional 2-4 days. After that they are able to walk without any walking aids. Keep in mind that everyone recovers at different speeds, and these are averages. Some people take longer and that is OK! As a rule of thumb, it can take approximately 4-6 weeks to return to 80% “recovered” and you can continue to improve up to about 1 year after surgery.
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How Painful is a Partial Knee Replacement?
While pain levels vary from person to person, most people have significant pain for 3-4 days, then see improvement in their pain over the next 2-3 weeks.
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Why is a Revision surgery more common after a Partial Knee Replacement?
A revision knee surgery, sometimes called a "redo" surgery is more common after a partial knee replacement than after a total knee replacement. This is because a partial knee replacement only addresses the damaged area and later on in life the other areas of the knee may become arthritic and painful. When this happens, your surgeon can do a "redo" surgery where they take out your partial knee replacement and perform a total knee replacement.
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What are the Potential Surgical Complications?
Partial knee replacement surgery is primarily designed to relieve pain; however, it may not eliminate all discomfort, and patients might still experience residual stiffness and swelling. Although complications are relatively uncommon, occurring in about 1-2% of patients, there remains a risk of serious postoperative issues. These complications can include life-threatening conditions such as heart attacks, strokes, pulmonary embolisms, and kidney failure.
Infection, which affects around 1% of patients, is one of the most debilitating complications and often necessitates prolonged antibiotic treatment and multiple additional surgeries to resolve. Another common complication is the development of blood clots in the leg, which typically requires the use of blood thinners after surgery to minimize the risk. Complications during surgery like blood loss, transfusion and blood clots tend to be less with a partial replacement.
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More Information
To watch a video of a partial knee replacement, click here. Warning! This is an actual partial knee replacement filmed in an operating room, and contains graphic images of skin, blood and bone. If you prefer information in written form, click here.
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