obi plugs vs waiting 10 years for tkr

[rottenkid]

 My knee was damage do to accident at work on February 6th. I was hit by a truck while trying to change it's snowplow. After waiting for my MCL sprain to heal and swelling to go down and a two month course of pt I was cleared for surgery. Being that this is a workers comp case it took a few more weeks for everything to go through.(Okay months!!) I was finally scoped on July 12th. I suffered a meniscocapsular tear and a small part of the underside of my patella was fractured along with damage to the chondral. The trochlear injury measured 20mm x 17mm,the patellar chondral injury is 15mm x25mm and the lateral femoral condyle is 5mm x 10mm. These dimensions don't sound very big but trust me when I get to 118 degrees of flex it hurts. Because of my age 44 and condition of the damage my OS wants to preform a OBI TRU FIT plug on the femoral end and on the patella. He has only done a few of these procedures on the knee but has had success. Here is my problem first I only have seven years to go to retire second my work is self insured and there not to hopped up on this surgery and finally I haven't been able to get much info on the procedure. Is their anyone out there that has done this tru fit plug system? What are the odds to getting back to a somewhat normal life again? are sports now going to be just a fond memories? Am I going to be able to do my job I'm a heavy equipment mechanic kneeling squatting and a lot of lifting. Would delaying this procedure say by 6 to 9 month decrease the odds of a favorable out come? This would be caused by my work fighting the surgery and having to go in front of the Industrial Commission. If I can bare the pain would it be better for me to wait till I'm in my fifties and go with a TKR( I am going to have to probably have one anyways) I know this is a lot of questions and I have a ton more but if things go smooth my doctor wants to set a surgery date for early September. So I don't have that much time to prepare myself. Thanks for reading hope to hear back from some of you folks soon.

[Doc79316]

Hi,

I have different knee problem to you so I'm looking at this from a different perspective.
I am in my thirties (33) and have been told to wait until I'm at least 40 for a full TKR. In the meantime, so long as my wound heals, I've been offered a PKR. Right now, my pain is getting worse and if I can have a few years of not being in so much pain before the TKR then I'm going to snatch the opportunity with both hands.

I'm not saying you should go running into a surgery you're not happy with. But you can always ask your OS about the procedure. If he's had success, he should be able to answer all your questions. It's a hel of a lot easier than trying to find out about something on the internet. If you get the answers to your questions and you're still not happy, then find out about alternatives or ask for a second opinion.

Take care,

Laura x

[rottenkid]

The OBI plugs are no longer an option I guess they have been recalled by the new owner of the company. So my options are to wait as long as I can for a TKR or go ahead and do the Arthrosurface Hemi Cap PKR. I am leaning towards the hemi cap procedure. Looking for pain relief and possible sports again. Thanks for the reply. RoTTeN KiD