The Oxford® Partial Knee Replacement

Remember when simple routine tasks were something you took for granted?

If knee pain is changing your lifestyle, then you need to know this: The new concept in joint replacement surgery is to only replace the worn out portion of the arthritic joint. A large number of people with osteoarthritis of the knee have worn out only one of the three compartments in the knee. If this is the case, the individual may only require a partial replacement. The Oxford® Partial Knee Replacement is the first implant that can accomplish this task with proven long term results of 95% at 15 years and beyond.¹. For this reason the Oxford® makes a whole or total knee joint replacement NOT necessary in many cases.

The xray in the middle photograph below represents bone on bone osteoarthritis. This occurs due to degeneration or "wear and tear" of the articular cartilage, and degeneration or surgical removal of the meniscus. Once this situation develops, the individual usually has severe pain. An Oxford is perfect for this situation. The xray photograph on the right demonstrates the appearance after an Oxford has been placed. One can see that the bone on bone rubbing condition has replaced by the Oxford with it's meniscus replacement bearing (the white horizontal line between the metal). The model in the left photograph portrays how the implant actually sits between the bones and cruciate ligaments (white ropes in the middle of the knee) and the medial collateral ligament (white rope one the right side of the knee). A total knee replacement is not necessary for this situation.

The Oxford® Unicompartmental Knee System offers these advantages:

At 15 years following surgery, 95% of implants are still functioning well.

More normal motion of the human knee

Only a portion of the knee is replaced, making this procedure available to a younger population

Minimally invasive - a small incision is utilized

Less pain due to a smaller operation

Outpatient, or one or two nights in hospital

Quicker recovery - discontinue crutches as fast as one desires

Covered by Insurance and Medicare

No other partial knee replacement has the proven success rate and longevity of Oxford. Until Oxford came along most orthopedists in the United States did not do partial knee replacement because of the high failure rate of these earlier implants. Many orthopedists today still do not recommend partial knee replacement for their patients because they are not familiar with Oxford or qualified to do it. If your orthopedist tells you "partial knee replacement does not work", you need to get another opinion. If your orthopedist tells you a different brand of partial knee replacement has the same success rate of Oxford, ask him to show you the scientific paper or data supporting his opinion.

The Oxford® Partial Knee Replacement prosthesis allows for better range of motion of the knee by virtue of replication of the function of the menisci and allows for more normal motion of the human knee. With the Oxford partial knee replacement, only a portion of the knee is replaced. In performing an Oxford, the anterior cruciate and posterior cruciate ligaments are always preserved. In performing a total knee replacement, the anterior cruciate ligament is always removed; sometimes the posterior cruciate ligament is removed as well. In some cases, this prosthesis may be applicable to individuals who were previously considered too young to undergo a total knee replacement. The Oxford® implant utilizes a minimally invasive procedure in which patients may experience less pain and a quicker recovery time than experienced with a total knee replacement.

The picture above shows the typical "bowleg" deformity that develops when a person gets severe osteoarthritis of the inner portion of the knee. This occurs because when the inside of the knee wears out, the pad, or articular cartilage that wears away may have been as thick as one-half inch before the arthritis began. With this tissue now worn away, the inside of the knee is shorter, so a bowlegged appearance develops. The Oxford corrects the bowleg deformity because the Oxford gives the patient a new pad with the height of the inside portion of the knee restored to the pre-arthritic state. The picture below shows the bowleg deformity corrected. Go to the "Oxford Testimonial" button above and read this man's story (D.L from Kerrville, Texas).

To be qualified to implant an Oxford, the United States Food and Drug Administration requires an orthopedic surgeon to attend a special training course. This training is required because the implantation technique for this procedure is very precise and the operation must be done correctly. Dr. Likover attended one of the first training courses. As of June 3, 2008, Dr. Likover has implanted 488 Oxfords, which means he has more experience in this procedure than most every orthopedic surgeon in the United States. You should consider coming to Houston to have Dr. Likover do your surgery for this reason.

I recently have had several inquiries about "Makoplasty". The Mako procedure has no long term success rate reported in the orthopedic literature. The Mako involves placing a fixed bearing implant, which is similar to the Ripici knee implant, with computer guidance and a robot arm. The Ripici implant had a high failure rate. It has not been proven that placing this type of implant by a change in technique improves the success rate.

If you have substantial pain in your knee, you should schedule and appointment with Dr. Likover for a complete evaluation of your knee pain problem. You may only require an arthroscopic surgery, you may need an Oxford, or you may need a total replacement. Most substantial knee pain problems can be helped or cured by modern orthopedic surgery.

Please read the testimonials about Oxford - Click Here

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1 Price A J., Svard U. The Oxford Medial Unicompartmental Knee Arthroplasty Fifteen-Year Survival Results From an independent series B.O.A. Meeting 2000, London