When a Patient is Unable to Walk
Stage 6 of Knee arthritis can be considered the final stage of the process. As explained earlier in this article, with all of the 5 stages of knee arthritis, it is generally accepted that a person’s quality of life is reduced. Clearly, as the symptoms reach an advanced stage, the patient will start to lose all confidence in walking for long distances. For example, when the children or even grandchildren want to take the afflicted family members out for a meal they will often feel the need to use excuses such as: the expense of going out, the meal being cooked insufficiently, or the restaurant appearing overly crowded. Often this is simply not the case. They are actually afraid of having knee ache and being a huge burden to the children, especially when they require extra support when visiting the restroom. In some cases, individuals can acquire knee arthritis at an unusually advanced age, as early as 50 years old. In these instances the patient’s general health is fine, but unfortunately their knees may have already given in. It is possible that they have now reached Stage 6 arthritis and that they are now unable to put weight on the impaired leg whilst walking.
This shows an elderly person with Stage 6 arthritis
The 2 main causes of stage 6 Knee Arthritis, as recognised by doctors and patients are: the inflammation of the knee joint and the weak muscle around the knee. More importance should be attached to the second cause in that, even after the High Tibial Osteotomy (HTO), where the tibia is straightened, or following a Total Knee Replacement operation (which cures the inflammation and knee ache), if a patient has existing weak muscles, the success of the operation is limited and results cannot be fully effective. Furthermore, usually the weak knee muscle continues without the patient being conscious of it; this is known as QMA (Quadricep Muscle Atrophy).
The demo of the computer- guided knee replacement operation
When looking further at the causes and symptoms of knee arthritis, it’s clear that not only does the knee ache when going up and down the stairs, additionally; the knee on the problematic side is without strength and cannot support the body’s weight to do various activities. The weak knee muscle can be seen at an early stage and it can also be the principle reason for the progression of the symptoms. An individual with weaker knee muscles can subsequently reach the last stage of knee arthritis at an accelerated rate, several times faster.
At this advanced stage, patients are usually unable to walk which can often cause a pressure wound at the hip area. The wound is persistent and can spread out to the extent that it reaches the bone. The patients can also easily contract a respiratory tract infection due to their decreased body movement. Moreover, the lungs expand less and the exhaustion of the bad air is reduced which, unfortunately, results in the germ being retained in the lungs.
A patient with stage 6 knee arthritis who is unable to walk.
If a patient reaches this final stage, they need to have Total Knee Replacement Surgery and muscle therapy, in order to recuperate the muscles and allow them to return to full strength so that they can perform daily routines sooner rather than later.
The wound of the knee arthritis surgery, with HTO method
The wound of the knee replacement surgery, with MIS + computer- guided method
Do you have this stage of knee arthritis? If not, it is advisable to take the necessary steps in order to find a cure before it reaches this stage.
Related Articles
Part 1 : Identifying the Early Stages of Knee Arthritis
Part 2 : The Development of Symptoms
Part 3 : The Effect on Living Standards
Part 4 : Pain Increases When Bending the Knee
Part 5 : When an Operation is Required
Part 6 : When a Patient is Unable to Walk