Antony White

When ongoing knee problems caused Antony White to frequently stumble and lose his stability, he was advised to have both cruciate ligaments replaced.

His symptoms stemmed from a serious collision at the age of 18 when a driver fell asleep at the wheel and veered into the path of Antony’s moped. This resulted in a multitude of injuries including a compound fracture in both femurs, a broken tibia and fibula and multiple fractures to the left foot.

Both kneecaps were removed, which led to Antony being unable to lock his right knee due to a 15 degree lag. Over the years, he underwent extensive operations but was warned that he would develop arthritis in the joints and knees later on in life.

Several years ago, Antony’s knee began to give him problems and started to click regularly, so he visited his GP who referred him to The Horder Centre. He saw Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon Andrew Armitage who carried out a total replacement of the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and posterior cruciate ligament (PCL), with ligaments from a donor.

“I have been through about 15 operations, so you get a feel for it. I felt very confident with what they (The Horder Centre) suggested. They explained everything in detail and were very clear. Even after the operation they told me what to expect and advised it would be six months recovery.”

Antony’s recovery started with a five-day stay at The Horder Centre, where he waited for the swelling to go down before starting physiotherapy. Upon being discharged home, he continued the physiotherapy exercises but unfortunately had to return to Mr Armitage twice due to infections that were quick to resolve.

Despite subtle arthritis in both knees as predicted by doctors over the years, Antony has regained his stability and is now able to go to the gym and cycle regularly.

He said: “I was shown the before and after photos and the results are amazing. The two ligaments in question are X-shaped and are quite sturdy and thick. Mine were like pieces of string, resulting in me stumbling.

“Prior to surgery, I was falling over a lot. The operation gave me so much stability and gave me the confidence to walk down the street.”