Knee pain can make life hard. When even simple day-to-day activities like walking, climbing stairs, sitting, and sleeping become painful, your orthopaedic doctor may suggest knee replacement surgery.
Although total knee replacement surgery boasts high success rates, a lot of patients hesitate in making this life-changing decision. Common reasons include fear of stitches, surgery, and recovery. What patients may not comprehend is – Delaying a knee replacement can lead to unexpected problems.
Here, we highlight 10 dangers of delaying knee replacement surgery.
1. Pain Gets Worse Over Time
Be it arthritis or any other joint issue, it does not usually heal on its own. In fact, it often worsens with time. The patient may experience more severe and regular pain. A study revealed that approximately 55 out of 100 patients experienced increased joint pain after putting off their knee replacement surgery.
2. Muscles Become Weaker
Because of knee pain, patients are not able to engage in physical activity. Over time, this leads to weakening of muscles around the knee, especially hamstrings and quadriceps. When these muscles that support the knee joint and keep it stable, lose strength, there is an increase in instability and discomfort. This further reduces physical function.
According to studies, delaying knee surgery for too long impacts muscle strength so much that recovery after knee surgery becomes slower and harder.
3. Knee Joint Damage Worsens
The more you wait for the surgery, the more your knee joint gets damaged. The cartilage, responsible for providing cushioning to the bones, deteriorates due to which bones start rubbing against each other. This leads to wear-and-tear of bones. They may even get deformed – turning inwards (bowlegs) or outwards (knock knees). As such, surgery may be more complicated, negatively affecting surgical outcomes.
4. Recovery at a Slower Pace
Delayed surgery not only worsens joint damage but also impacts post-surgery recovery. Recovery is likely to take longer and it may be more difficult too. This happens because weakened muscles take time to regain strength and movement after surgery.
Needless to say, longer recovery means you cannot get back to your normal activities as you may have expected. You may take more time than other patients who get their knees treated in a timely manner.
6. Obesity Issues
Knee pain restricts your mobility, making you less active. You put on weight, as physical activity is necessary to avoid gaining weight. The extra weight puts more stress on the already stressed and worn-out knee. For every kg of weight, knees have to bear 4X more weight.
A vicious cycle sets in – decreased activity leading to weight gain, and vice-versa. Besides, excess weight can compound surgery-related risks and hamper recovery.
7. General Health May Suffer
Reduced activity due to knee pain can lead to weight gain and loss of muscle mass, both of which put you at risk of cardiovascular issues. It can also give rise to problems like hypertension, diabetes, and higher cholesterol levels.
Besides, as pain increases, patients tend to take more pain medications. Increased doses of pain killers are associated with side-effects like adverse impact on liver and kidneys.
When your overall health is poor, surgery may be riskier, and recovery slower.
8. Emotional and Mental Health Impact
A healthy mind lives in a healthy body, and vice-versa. However, when one is in constant knee pain, which affects one’s mobility and freedom, one may become vulnerable to mental health issues too. It is because living with persistent pain often causes frustration, irritability, anxiety, and even depression. Social activities and hobbies may become a thing of the past. This emotional toll can be just as serious as the physical pain.
9. Poor Posture
Knee pain affects the way you stand, walk, and sit. It happens slowly and you may not even notice it. Your posture suffers, putting more strain on your damaged knees. This further aggravates the pain over time. You are not mindful when your posture alters but it may lead to new conditions, such as back and hip problems, further affecting your compromised movement.
5. Higher Complication Risk
Every surgery carries some risk of infections, blood clots, and also heart issues. Delayed total knee replacement (TKR) surgery raises the risk of these complications. Poor physical condition and health are the reason behind this increased risk. Surgery may become harder, and so may recovery.
It is because when the body has to deal with constant pain, it stops working at its best. This impedes the speed of recovery.
10. More Risk of Revision Surgery
The longer you postpone your knee surgery, the more complicated it will be when it is finally done. Research suggests that delayed knee replacements are linked to an increased probability of revision surgery, and that too within just a few months.
It means you may have to go through the entire hassle once again – another complex surgery, rehab, recovery. It’s something anybody would want to avoid.
Taking the Next Step
If knee pain is disrupting your daily life and your doctor has recommended knee replacement surgery, but you are fearful about it, do talk openly to your doctor about it. They will give you insights into aspects like how the surgery is performed, pain management, and expected recovery time.
You should also ask them about newer advanced techniques such as minimally invasive robotic-assisted knee replacement, which generally entails less pain and quicker recovery.
Apart from that, you can seek a second opinion from another qualified surgeon to be doubly sure about your decision.
Conclusion
Delaying a knee replacement surgery when you actually need it, often leads to exacerbated pain, restricted mobility, joint deformity, weaker muscles, and a slower recovery. It can also harm your overall health and independence.
Getting surgery at the right time helps you avoid the above-mentioned complications. With robotic knee surgery, most patients recover within 1-1.5 months as against 3-4 months for regular knee surgery.
Meet the best knee replacement surgeon in Chandigarh. Look forward to getting your knees replaced well in time, and becoming young once again.