Has your Doctor recommended that you have knee replacement surgery?
Here is a scenario for you: your doctor stands over you with a brochure and tells you that you need knee replacement surgery. The brochure is very colorful and informative. The doctor reassures you that your surgery is “routine” and that your rehabilitation will be no problem. Is it ethical to make such claims? He may have even suggested that you have both knees done at the same time. Let me translate the exchange that just occurred between you and your doctor. Your doctor believes that he has just given you an option for your knee joint pain. You believe that your doctor has just given you your only option for your knee pain. Do you see the discrepancy here? Did you think to ask your doctor for any other options?
Has your doctor thoroughly examined the symptoms of your knee pain by asking you questions about it? Odds are he hasn’t. So here is what you should be asking yourself, because in most circumstances, your doctor won’t be asking you these logical questions.
- Does your joint hurt all day every day?
- Does it hurt to a lesser degree on some days?
- Are there days when it doesn’t hurt at all?
Only after these questions have been answered can you choose the correct course of action that best suits you.