Knee Arthroplasty – Primary (Knee Replacement)

Threshold

(1) This policy does not apply to referrals made for reasons of diagnostic uncertainty

(2) Standing X-rays should be used

Patients should be given support to ‘while you wait’ and be encouraged to manage and improve their health and well-being pre- and post-surgery.

Patients should be supported/encouraged to lose weight if applicable, advice given on healthy eating/diet, to stop smoking (for at least 8 weeks) prior to surgery and to become more active if possible.

These changes will help improve post-operative wellbeing and recovery for patients having hip/knee replacement surgery and with patients being supported to ‘wait well’, will recover quicker, often with longer term healthy behaviours established.

While You Wait – Norfolk & Waveney Integrated Care System (ICS (improvinglivesnw.org.uk)

Self-help – NoW MSK (norfolkandwaveneycommunityhealth.nhs.uk)

Cases for Individual Funding Consideration (Patients who do not meet the policy criteria)

On a case-to-case basis, patients might be eligible for this surgical intervention, in consideration of their exceptionality. The requesting clinician must provide information to support the case for being considered an exception, by submitting an individual funding request.

Individual Funding Requests – Non-Drugs – Knowledge NoW (nwknowledgenow.nhs.uk)