Should Younger Patients Ever Have Knee Replacement Surgery?
Should Younger Patients Ever Have Knee Replacement Surgery?
A lot of promising research on repairing or regenerating knee cartilage is under way, which is another reason why Dr Bert vigorously opposes doing UKAs or TKAs in younger patients with unicompartmental knee osteoarthritis.
"Newer transplant techniques with stem cells, platelet-rich plasma, or other biologic approaches may allow us to salvage the joint surface, thus postponing a knee replacement for many, many years. Doing a UKA or TKA in younger patients means they will no longer have an opportunity to benefit from any of these emerging technologies," Dr Bert says.
Dr Bert concludes by repeating his concern that younger patients who undergo UKA or TKA may need multiple revisions in their lifetime, with each procedure having a worse outcome than the last. "We should be trying to preserve the natural joint for as long as possible, and HTO can help us do that," he says.
Promising Research on Knee Cartilage
A lot of promising research on repairing or regenerating knee cartilage is under way, which is another reason why Dr Bert vigorously opposes doing UKAs or TKAs in younger patients with unicompartmental knee osteoarthritis.
"Newer transplant techniques with stem cells, platelet-rich plasma, or other biologic approaches may allow us to salvage the joint surface, thus postponing a knee replacement for many, many years. Doing a UKA or TKA in younger patients means they will no longer have an opportunity to benefit from any of these emerging technologies," Dr Bert says.
Dr Bert concludes by repeating his concern that younger patients who undergo UKA or TKA may need multiple revisions in their lifetime, with each procedure having a worse outcome than the last. "We should be trying to preserve the natural joint for as long as possible, and HTO can help us do that," he says.