A knee that needs replacing rarely announces itself overnight. It starts as an ache after climbing to the second floor, becomes a limp on the way back from the market, and ends with you planning your day around how far you will have to walk. By the time most patients in Kolkata reach an orthopaedic surgeon, they have already spent years on painkillers, oils and knee caps.
Dr. Pradyumna Chakraverty performs total and partial knee replacement at his South Kolkata practice. His MS in Orthopaedics is from KPC Medical College, Jadavpur, and he serves as an Assistant Professor of Orthopaedics — which means the techniques he uses in the operating theatre are the same ones he teaches and defends academically.
Not every painful knee needs an implant, and a surgeon who reaches for the scalpel first is answering the wrong question. Dr. Chakraverty's assessment starts from your function, not your X-ray: how far can you walk, can you manage stairs, does the pain wake you at night, and what have you already tried?
Where the joint still has usable cartilage, he will say so — and treat the knee with medication, physiotherapy, weight management or injections instead. Knee replacement is recommended when osteoarthritis or inflammatory arthritis has destroyed the joint surface and non-surgical care no longer returns you to a life you recognise. That threshold is different for a 55-year-old schoolteacher and a 78-year-old who walks to the para tea stall — and the advice reflects it.
In a total knee replacement, the worn surfaces of the thigh bone and shin bone are resurfaced with metal components separated by a medical-grade polyethylene insert. The ligaments and muscles around your knee are preserved and balanced so the new joint moves the way your own knee is meant to.
Where damage is confined to a single compartment — most often the inner side of the knee — a partial (unicompartmental) replacement may be appropriate. It replaces only the damaged surface, preserves both cruciate ligaments, and typically means a smaller incision and quicker rehabilitation. It is not suitable for every knee; the decision rests on examination and imaging, and Dr. Chakraverty will tell you plainly which category you fall into.
Patients usually stand and take supported steps within a day or two of surgery. The first fortnight is about wound healing, swelling control and restoring the knee's straightening and bending. Most people move from walker to stick over the following weeks, and back to independent walking as the muscles recover. Kneeling, squatting and sitting cross-legged — movements that matter in Bengali households — are discussed honestly at consultation, because implant design and your joint's condition both affect what is realistic.
Follow-up is not an afterthought. Dr. Chakraverty reviews the wound, the X-ray and your physiotherapy progress at set intervals, and remains available to his post-operative patients between visits.
Modern implants commonly remain functional for fifteen to twenty years or more, depending on weight, activity and bone quality. Younger patients may eventually need a revision — a factor discussed openly before any recommendation.
When arthritis pain limits walking, stairs or sleep, and medicines, physiotherapy and injections no longer give adequate relief. The X-ray alone does not decide the operation — your symptoms and function do.
Most patients stand with a walker within a day or two. Independent walking follows over the coming weeks as physiotherapy progresses; timelines are set individually.
If arthritis is confined to one compartment and the ligaments are healthy, a partial replacement that preserves more of your natural knee may be suitable. It depends on examination and imaging.
Infection, blood clots, stiffness and, rarely, implant-related problems. These are explained honestly at consultation, along with the precautions taken to reduce them.
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