Knee Replacement in Central New York

What is happening inside the knee?

Knee arthritis is the loss or damage of the smooth cartilage that helps the joint move. Osteoarthritis is the most common type, but inflammatory and post-traumatic arthritis can also affect the knee.

Common symptoms

• Pain with walking, stairs or prolonged activity.
• Stiffness after sitting or first thing in the morning.
• Swelling, reduced motion, grinding or a sense of weakness or buckling.
• Symptoms and X-ray severity do not always match; treatment is based on the whole clinical picture.

How it is evaluated

• Your clinician will review symptoms, activity limits and prior treatment.
• The examination commonly includes motion, alignment, stability, strength, swelling and gait.
• Weight-bearing X-rays usually provide the most useful initial imaging. MRI is not routinely required for straightforward knee arthritis.

What treatment can do

• There is no single treatment that reverses established arthritis.
• The goal is to reduce pain, preserve movement and function, and help you remain active.
• Treatment normally progresses from appropriate nonsurgical options to surgery when symptoms and disability warrant it.

Start with the least invasive options that fit the patient

There is no required sequence that fits everyone. Age, activity, medical history, arthritis pattern and prior treatment all matter.

Movement and load management

• Shift from painful high-impact activity toward lower-impact options.
• Weight reduction can lessen stress on the knee when appropriate.
• Physical therapy can improve strength, motion, balance and confidence.

Supports and symptom relief

• A cane, sleeve or selected brace may improve comfort or stability.
• Heat or ice may help symptoms.
• Oral or topical medication should be chosen with a clinician because kidney, heart, stomach, bleeding and medication-interaction risks vary.

What to expect

• Nonsurgical treatments manage symptoms; they do not regrow lost cartilage.
• The best plan is the one that improves function with acceptable risk and burden.
• Failure of one option does not automatically mean that surgery is required.

Understand the purpose and limitations

An injection may be one part of an arthritis plan. Response varies, and no injection guarantees relief or restores normal cartilage.

Cortisone

• A corticosteroid injection is intended to reduce inflammation and may provide temporary symptom relief.
• Relief and duration vary. Repeated injections have risks, and timing matters when joint replacement is being considered.

Hyaluronic acid

• Viscosupplementation places a gel-like substance into the knee.
• Benefits are variable, routine use is not supported by every clinical guideline, and insurance coverage differs.

Platelet-rich plasma (PRP)

• PRP is prepared from the patient’s own blood and injected into the knee.
• Evidence continues to evolve. It should not be presented as cartilage regrowth or a guaranteed way to avoid surgery.
• Coverage is limited and treatment is often self-pay.

When symptoms are controlling daily life

Knee replacement may be considered when arthritis causes substantial pain or disability and appropriate nonsurgical care no longer provides acceptable function.

Reasons to discuss surgery

• Pain limits walking, stairs, work, sleep or important activities.
• Symptoms persist despite reasonable nonsurgical treatment.
• Examination and imaging support arthritis as the source of the problem.
• The patient understands the risks, recovery and realistic goals.

Partial versus total replacement

• Partial knee replacement may be an option when arthritis is confined to one compartment and other selection criteria are met.
• Total knee replacement resurfaces the damaged joint compartments and is used for more extensive disease.
• The appropriate operation can be determined only after an individual evaluation.

What surgery is designed to do

• The primary goals are pain relief and improved daily function.
• A replacement knee is not a normal knee, and outcomes, motion and recovery differ among patients.

Your recovery plan

Use only the rehabilitation protocol assigned by your care team. The procedure, repair size, graft choice, associated procedures, and individual orders can change your restrictions.