What makes up a knee?

A knee is formed by the lower end of the femur (or thigh bone) and the upper end of your lower leg bone, also know as your shin or tibia. The bone ends of a joint are covered with a smooth layer of cartilage, and each joint is enclosed by a fibrous tissue capsule with a smooth tissue lining called the synovium. This produces fluid that reduces a joint's friction and wear.

When is a Repicci unicondylar knee implant helpful?

The joint surface has a "tread" that acts like the tires of a car, absorbing the "rough road" of walking and other daily activities. When the tread of one part of the knee joint wears away, the exposed bone rubs against more bone, becoming very painful. However, the tread has only worn away on one part of the bone, leaving the other three parts still intact.

A knee implant may be needed when a person 55 or older has pain when standing, when walking short distances, when changing positions (such as from standing to sitting or vice versa), has persistent swelling of the knee or when the knee locks or gives out and the knee has not responded to other medical treatments.

Dr. Davis will have your knee x-rayed while you are in a weight-bearing position to see if there is a complete loss of joint cartilage in one weight-bearing area.

How is the uni-knee implant performed?

Dr. Davis will insert implants which are self-aligning metal and plastic "retreads" via an extended arthroscopic procedure. The incision is about three inches long and is much smaller than the 8” incision required for a total knee replacement. Only about 1/4" of bone on one compartment of the knee is removed to properly fit Repicci II implants. In total knee replacement all knee surfaces lose up to 1/2" of bone on each of the three compartments. Since Repicci II implants preserve bone, future total knee replacement procedures may be easily performed if necessary.

What is the recovery process?

Dr. Davis will encourage you to use your "new" joint shortly after your operation. Usually, you'll begin standing and walking the day after surgery, using a walker, crutches or a cane.

Most patients have some temporary pain the the replaced joint due to the weakness of the surrounding muscles that were inactive and from the tissues that need to heal. This pain should go away in a few weeks or months. Exercise is important and Dr. Davis will discuss an exercise program for you to follow after surgery.

Eventually, you may be allowed to play golf, walk or even dance, but more strenuous sports such as tennis or running may be discouraged. The motion of your new joint will generally improve after surgery, but the extent of improvement will depend on how stiff your joint was before the operation.