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Knee Replacement SurgeryWhether it be that you blew out your knee playing football, severe arthritis has deteriorated your cartilage, or an unfortunate accident has injured your knee, we’ve all heard stories of how crippling the pain and frustration can be. The most common culprit is severe osteoarthritis, of which are most noted in elderly patients, and the surgery can provide an immense relief to those in need and aid you through many years. Simply taking those nice, refreshing walks can cause pain and the utmost discomfort. Even sitting, or lying down, can cause knee pain and result in major pain and frustration. While medication can be useful, it usually just covers the pain and can lead to an even worse state of your knee because of the disillusionment of being pain free. If you still experience pain while using walking supports with no relief and have changed your activity levels, you may want to consider total knee replacement surgery. By replacing the damaged and worn surfaces of the knee, it can relieve pain, correct leg deformity and help resume normal activities. With surgical procedures rapidly advancing in favor of the quick and easy pain relief, in 1968 the first knee replacement was then performed. With it being one of the most important orthopedic surgical advances of the twentieth century, improvements in surgical materials and techniques since then have greatly increased its effectiveness. Approximately 581,000 knee replacements are performed each year in the United States. Arthroplasty, also known as the “go to” procedure for procuring pain relief in severe arthritis patients, is commonly referred as knee replacement surgery. This 2 hour surgery can help relieve pain and restore function in severely diseased knee joints. During knee replacement, our orthopedic surgeon uses an artificial joint made of metal alloys, polymers, and high-grade plastics that are put in place of the damaged bone and cartilage from your thighbone, shinbone, and kneecap. Once you are under general anesthesia , spinal, or epidural anesthesia, an eight- to twelve-inch cut is made in the front of the knee. The injured part of the joint is removed from the surface of the bones, and the surfaces are then molded to hold a metal or plastic artificial joint. The artificial joint is attached to the thigh bone, shin and knee cap either with cement or a special substance. When fit together, the fixed artificial parts form the joint, relying on the nearby muscles and ligaments for support and function. Minimally invasive surgery (MIS) has revolutionized knee replacement surgery as well as many fields of medicine. Its key attribute is that it uses specialized procedures and instrumentation to allow the surgeon to perform major surgery without a sizeable incision. MIS knee joint replacement necessitates a much slighter incision, three to five inches, versus the standard method and incision, which is typically eight to twelve inches. The smaller, less invasive tactics result in less tissue trauma by permitting the surgeon to work between the fibers of the quadriceps muscles instead of requiring an incision through the tendon. It can lead to less pain, decreased recovery time and improved motion due to less scar tissue growth. Currently this less invasive technique is accomplished by only a minor fraction of orthopaedic surgeons in North America. Because this kind of surgery remains relatively new, research has been introduced to establish how the immediate and long-term results will compare to traditional surgery. Knee replacement surgery is very successful, but the
success of the practice is partially due to the
rehabilitation phase that follows the surgery. For patients
anticipating a beneficial result from knee replacement
surgery, they must be an active rehab participant.
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