FRANKLIN

To grow in one’s profession periodically requires learning new information, new practices. This might mean having to attend classes, which stretches the mind to fully grasp and apply the knowledge. Such has been the case for Dr. James Lee Jr. of Glen Ridge, New Jersey.

The orthopedic surgeon, learning of the “jiffy knee” technique developed by Dr. Manish Patel at Southampton Memorial Hospital, came to the site on Monday. There, Lee got “a bird’s-eye view” as Patel performed what he called “a full day of cases” — six operations on people who had asked for the aforementioned operation.

Back home, Lee could maybe take a course using cadavers. He mentioned that apparently no one in New Jersey or New York has been using the jiffy knee procedure on a regular basis. So, Lee could possibly become a new practitioner in that area.

What makes this surgery notable is that it’s less invasive than conventional practices when it comes to knee replacement. The traditional method is to cut into the muscle and tendon, replace the knee, then stitch everything back. The uniqueness of his operation, which Patel has dubbed “the jiffy knee,” is that he cuts into the skin at an angle and lifts the muscle and tendon to make the replacement.

As the doctor stated in an earlier interview, “Rehabilitation is significantly faster.”

Patel, who also specializes in sports medicine, said he teaches nationally, and even set up www.jiffyknee.com for people to learn more.

Lee is connected to his teacher in two interesting ways. While studying medicine at Temple University in Philadelphia, Patel was doing his residency there. Further, it turns out that Patel’s college roommate is Lee’s neighbor.

The visiting physician is also the son of an orthopedic surgeon. He followed that path after having closely observed the “joy of the outcome” after his father’s surgeries. The challenge of learning the sciences necessary to medicine also urged Lee on to become a fellow physician.