As the COVID-19 outbreak continues, what is the current situation if you’re due to have knee surgery imminently? At time of writing (30 March) the situation is as follows: Will coronavirus affect my knee operation? Private knee operations We operate from four Yorkshire hospitals:     >  BMI Duchy Hospital Harrogate     >  Nuffield Hospital Leeds     >  Spire Methley Park HospitalContinue Reading

Dave Duffy explains why going abroad for your knee replacement may not be quite the bargain it first appears. It won’t come as a shock to learn that private knee surgery costs money. So if you’re not insured, a procedure such as a knee replacement can present some issues. Do you wait for a longContinue Reading

If we are to charge patients thousands of pounds more for robot assisted knee replacements, surely we need to establish their value first, argues Prof. Nick London. *Image shown for illustrative purposes only. Like any private surgery, a knee replacement is a significant investment for a patient. Without insurance, they’ll pay around £11,500 for aContinue Reading

Prof. Nick London explores a brief history of the mysterious anterolateral ligament. *Photo courtesy of OnlineLibrary Every now and again a story resurfaces about an as yet ill-defined ‘ligament’ (inverted commas definitely intended) which was, so the media was quick to announce, supposedly discovered by Belgian knee surgeons in 2013. It wasn’t. in fact, theContinue Reading

Prof. Nick London looks back at November’s skills enhancement masterclass in Birmingham. Despite the considerable weight of evidence supporting partial knee replacement (not least the flagship TOPKAT study which reported earlier this year), there remain many more knee surgeons experienced in total replacements than partial. As they review the supporting literature and National Joint RegistryContinue Reading

Prof. Nick London reflects on one study which gained lots of media attention recently. Cloudy with a chance of pain. If you’ve been an orthopaedic surgeon for any length of time (and it’s fair to say I’ve been doing this a while) you’ll have lost count of the number of people who tell you theirContinue Reading

Jon Smith looks at a new reporting procedure that clearly shows the knee surgeons delivering the best patient reported outcomes. Last month, my colleague Jim Newman looked at the future of wearable tech and its application to patient recovery. In his piece, Jim spoke about the more subjective elements of PROMS (patient reported outcome measures)Continue Reading

It could take months for all pain and discomfort to disappear following your knee replacement operation. Jon Smith wants to have an honest conversation about expectations… There is a perception amongst many patients that, following a knee replacement, they’ll be back to normal within a few weeks. Look at the stories of patients who hadContinue Reading

Glucosamine and chondroitin are sold as a way of slowing the deterioration of cartilage and relieving osteoarthritis pain. But do they really work? Jon Smith looks at the evidence. Walk into any health store or supermarket and in amongst the vitamins and minerals you’ll find glucosamine and chondroitin. They’ve been around for a couple ofContinue Reading

As almost 42% of US knee replacement patients say they expect to be home same day, Jon Smith asks whether patient perceptions in the US are likely to become expectations in the UK. We’ve spoken about same day knee replacement quite regularly on these pages. My colleague Dave Duffy reaffirmed the collective Yorkshire Knee ClinicContinue Reading