 Diagnosis & Therapy |
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 A Patient’s Story |
A Patient’s Story
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Jon Wilkie |
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I’ve always been a very active man and involved in sports all my life, running, climbing, skiing and squash being among my favourite pursuits. As early as my mid-thirties I noticed that my knees were beginning to show signs of wear and tear and after a days skiing they would swell and stiffen up. By my mid to late forties, I had to give up skiing and even walking could occasionally be very painful from a bad skiing fall in 1972.
By the time I reached 55 in 1995 I was in a fairly bad way and had given up all forms of sport and walking any distance was painful. The quality of my life had deteriorated to such an extent that I was referred to an orthopaedic consultant in England, who said I was suffering from advanced osteoarthritis but was far to young for replacement knees in spite of the fact that the cartilage in both knees had worn away completely in the inside or medial compartment and the two leg bones were rubbing on each other. The uneven wear was due to the fact that like many people, my legs were quite markedly bowed outwards.
The consultant initially recommended a wash out of both knees to remove any loose tissue and debris and said this might help for a year or two. In fact it seemed to make very little, if any, difference at all. I was still in a great deal of pain when walking and any form of sport was out of the question.
A year later, he suggested an osteotomy on both legs to straighten the axis and said that this should keep me going until I was old enough for replacement knees. Of course I had to wait about a year because of the length of the NHS waiting list. The operations were finally done in successive years in 1997 and 1998 and seemed to help somewhat but I still had an occasional very sharp unexplained pain in my right knee and within a couple of years I was back where I was before the operations.
By 2001 my condition was worse than ever. Normal family life was becoming fairly difficult and my work was suffering. I asked my GP to find me the best man in the UK for knees and was referred to the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital in Stanmore, where I was again told that the only solution was replacement knees but I was still too young and any of the new techniques for cartilage regeneration were not suitable for someone of my age. I was told to continue taking pain killers, or non specific anti inflammatory drugs, as they known, with all the nasty side effects they have on the digestive system and I was just going to have to live with the pain and poor quality of life. This was very depressing to say the least from supposedly one of the best hospitals in England.
Then in 2002, I heard about the Alpha Klinik and the specialist minimally invasive operations they offered for knee and spine problems. I read about it on the Internet, did a lot of research and learnt that they had treated many people from all around the world, including many well-known names, with a high success rate. I felt I really had nothing to loose by having an assessment to see what could be done to give me my life back.
I made an appointment and when my wife and I arrived in Munich, we were immediately impressed with the clinic and the friendliness and professional approach of the staff, most of whom speak excellent English. The tests on both knees were amazingly thorough and included high resolution MRI scans, several X-rays and ligament strain tests followed by consultations with several of the doctors including the Chief Executive and Principal Knee Surgeon, Dr Toft.
To my amazement and joy, Dr Toft said to me, “You do not need replacement knees Mr Wilkie. I can treat your knees with a minimally invasive technique called abrasion arthroplasty, which will allow the cartilage in the knee to be re-grown. After a few years it will be indistinguishable from the residual original cartilage. Unfortunately you will need additional osteotomies on both knees, because the axis correction done in England was insufficient. We’ve also discovered the reason for your occasional violent pain in the right knee. There are two other problems probably the result of your fall while skiing. You have a badly torn meniscus, which is catching between the bones and your kneecap is not running in its groove, so you’ve got uneven wear to the cartilage behind it. We can easily correct these problems as well.”
None of this had ever been diagnosed in England. It seems incredible that all I had ever heard about in England as a cure was replacement knees. In fact, because the knee is the most complicated joint in the body, we know several people including my mother-in-law for whom this has not worked very well at all and, of course, once it’s done its irreversible, whereas abrasion arthroplasty can be repeated years later, if necessary. It seems that while the UK may be ahead in some areas of medicine, it certainly isn’t in the treatment of chronic knee osteoarthritis.
We were so impressed with the Alpha Klinik and with the diagnostic techniques and the optimism of Dr Toft, who must be one of the most experienced knee surgeons in the world – he has operated on more than 27,000 knees – we decided to go ahead on the spot. The first operation was in November 2002 and by November 2004 and another four operations, the treatment was complete.
I have nothing but praise for the Alpha Klinik and the way I was looked after. The clinic has its own physiotherapy department and fitness centre to offer advice. The private rooms are beautifully fitted out with modern entertainment and communications and the food and post-operative instructions to ensure the best possible result on the journey back to full mobility and the enjoyment of life are excellent.
Now, two years on in November 2006, I have my life back and am fully active once again. I can walk for miles without any pain or discomfort. I cycle a lot and I’m even considering trying some gentle skiing this winter – unthinkable for me five years ago. The post operative MRI scans and X-rays show a very healthy looking cartilage over the surface of both bones in both knees.
I would be happy to share my Alpha Klinik experiences with anyone suffering from knee osteoarthritis at any stage of this debilitating and painful disease.
Jon Wilkie
jonwilkie@dynacom.co.uk
00 44 (0)1932 839970
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More articles:
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 VI. Snow Arena Polo World Cup Kitzbühel
10.01.2008. For the first time Prof Toft and his team were present as sponsor at the unusual and enthralling spectacle of the Snow Polo Tournament that took place in the luxurious Kitzbühel valley in Austria. |
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Back to the mountains
26.09.2007. Professor Juergen Toft helps 70-year-old Terrence White to go back to his passion of mountain climbing after surgery three years ago that preserved his knee joint through biological repair known as abrasion arthoplasty with osteotomy. Three years after this procedure Mr Terence White climbed Mount Grossglockner, Austria’s highest mountain. |
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Orthopaedics International Today
04.07.2006. The international orthopaedic magazine provides from prominent orthopaedic leaders news and reviews their preferred treatments and surgical approaches to common conditions in the knee shoulder and hip. |
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Arab Health 2006
11.01.2006. Prof. Juergen Toft and his team at the Arab Health Dubai -2006 |
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Emirates national team soccer player
17.08.2005. Emirates national team soccer player given the green light to return to full activity after successful anterior cruciate ligament replacement only five months ago |
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Marwa's story
31.03.2005. Marwa comes back to Alpha klinik for a full check up and gets the thumbs up for her health and her courage to face life with a smile |
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A Knee Patient's Success Story
24.03.2004. Rob Lindeman, an avid runner, recounts the encouraging story of his surgery at Alpha Klinik and subsequent full recovery. |
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Dr. Alcy Vilas-Boas joins the Alpha Klinik
01.06.2003. Talented surgeon Dr. Alcy Vilas-Boas joins the Alpha Klinik as our second knee surgeon. He has many years of experience in minimal-invasive surgical techniques |
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Four new high-tech ORs inaugurated
03.02.2003. As part of extensive expansions to the Alpha Klinik premises that are currently being carried out we recently inaugurated our 4 new high-tech operating theatres. |
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