What To Expect From Knee Replacement Surgery

Do you need knee replacement surgery? In this video, consultant orthopaedic surgeon Sherif El-Tawil from The Clementine Churchill Hospital shares important information about what to expect from a knee replacement.

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– CHAPTERS --
00:00 - 00:55 - Introduction
00:55 - 01:36 - Conservative Treatments For Knee Pain
01:36 - 03:25 - Anatomy of the Knee and Types of Replacement
03:25 - 04:08 - During Your Consultation
04:08 - 05:30 Before Surgery
05:30 - 07:56 During Surgery
07:56 - Recovery After Surgery


It's important to mention that you don't always need surgery to relieve chronic knee pain. Sometimes joint pain can be managed with medication, weight loss, physiotherapy or various injections: These injections can include hyaluronic acid which acts as a nourishing lubricant, steroids to reduce inflammation, or even PRP which stands for platelet-rich plasma which in essence comes from your own blood. You may have already have tried some of these. If these sorts of treatments don't give you enough relief over time, then you might find yourself considering a partial or total knee replacement depending on your condition.

The knee joint is formed where the lower end of the thigh bone (femur) meets the top of the shin bone (tibia). Each ends are coated with magical smooth cartilage which allows smooth gliding & movement. This cartilage is worth more than gold as we have no way to bring this back if it erodes away as in arthritis, which is why we must replace these surfaces altogether with metal, placing a plastic insert in between, to allow smooth movement; that is a knee replacement. Here is the kneecap which also has cartilage behind it which can suffer from arthritis. Some surgeons also replace this routinely and others don’t.

Some patients have a pattern of arthritis that only affects one part of the knee; and in these patients I would tend to recommend partial knee replacement to replace just that one part, rather than a total knee replacement. The advantage is that recovery is faster and overall satisfaction and function is better than replacing the whole knee; many of my patients are back to high level skiing and tennis, which may not have been possible if the whole joint was replaced.


If you have decided to have a knee replacement, the best thing you can do to prepare is get your knee as strong as possible through exercise and physiotherapy; strong muscles mean you will recover faster after your surgery. Patients often ask how this can be done with a painful knee and the answer is simple; through non-weightbearing exercises such as swimming and cycling! Taking painkillers an hour or so before the exercise will also help. Losing any extra weight will also pay dividends, both in reducing the risk of complications of surgery, and also speeding up your recovery.

You won't feel any pain at all during your procedure as you will receive an anaesthetic. This can either be a spinal anaesthetic or a general anaesthetic. We generally encourage a spinal anaesthetic as you are likely to recover better following it, but the final decision will be between you and the anaesthetist -who will see you on the day of surgery. It is important to note that with a spinal anaesthetic, you can still be fully asleep with sedation and you will not be aware of the surgery. Not all patients can receive a spinal anaesthetic, but if it is possible, I’d certainly recommend it for longer lasting pain relief and faster mobilisation after surgery.

If you have any of the symptoms outlined in this video, seek professional medical help immediately.

Do you want to hear more about knee pain, or other orthopaedic conditions? Leave a comment below and we will plan future videos on suggested topics.

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