Alternative to knee replacement surgery

Knee Salvation Procedure (KSP)

This is a unique combination of three procedures which offers a solution to chronic knee pain and osteoarthritis. In isolation these procedures offer moderate pain relief and improve joint function, but in combination these act synergistically and act as an alternative to Knee Replacement. 

This procedure is safer, simpler & offers similar benefits of a knee replacement. It can be done as an Outpatient procedure, wherein patient can go home and resume normal activities on the same day.

Components of this procedure are:

1. Arthroscopic Lavage 

2. PRP/Stem cell Injection 

3. Proximal Fibular Osteotomy

1. Arthroscopic Lavage

Arthroscopic lavage is a medical procedure done to wash out any debris, blood, fluid or loose body from joints. It is commonly used to treat osteoarthritis. Osteoarthritis of the knee can cause pain, stiffness, swelling and difficulty in walking. An arthroscopic washout is often combined with debridement, synovectomy, abrasion chondroplasty, micro-fracture decompression of worn out bony surfaces. In isolation, arthroscopic lavage contributes to about 20% of pain relief.

2. PRP/Stem Cell Injection

Those who suffer from arthritis know the feelings of discomfort, pain, and stiffness all too well. Arthritis can decrease your quality of life and make it harder for you to do things you once loved, but stem cells and PRP injections could help. Stem cells are the body’s raw materials. They are cells that all other cells are generated from, while PRP, or platelet-rich plasma, is a combination of platelets and growth factors, which occur naturally in the body. PRP works to provide messages to cells, signaling them to help stem cells flourish and develop into new cartilage. Stem cells are harvested from bone marrow. These cells are then injected into the damaged joints. The stem cells can change into specialized cells to heal the affected arthritis areas. The stem cells transform into cartilage cells, which in turn produce new cartilage. PRP have shown to prevent scarring and reduce inflammation so the healing process is accelerated.

3. Proximal Fibular Osteotomy

   Compared with knee replacement, PFO is a simpler surgical procedure, effectively relieves knee pain and also corrects the deformity for patients with medial compartment knee osteoarthritis (OA). PFO is performed by removing a 2 to 3 cm length of fibula bone at a site 6 to 10 cm below the knee. Full weight bearing and free mobilization are allowed after surgery. PFO relieves pain & corrects medial joint space by off-loading the weight bearing axis on the knee, thereby decompressing the medial compartment & loading the normal lateral compartment. PFO is a simple, safe, fast and affordable surgery to relieve pain and improve joint function and the medical joint space in human knee osteoarthritis. PFO is a promising alternative in most developing countries because of their financial and healthcare delivery limitations. It may also constitute a promising alternative surgery for osteoarthritis of the medical compartment of the knee, especially for patients who cannot undergo TKA because of certain medical comorbidities. Furthermore, these patients can still undergo TKA in the future if it becomes necessary.