The knee prosthesis or knee arthroplasty is based on a surgical technique which is performed when the cartilage of the knee joint has disappeared as a consequence of the passage of time, as it can be due to the affectation of osteoarthritis, or when it has been damaged by trauma.
The application of a knee prosthesis can be of partial or total way, according to if part of the articulation or the totality of this same one is changed. Partial knee prostheses allow to keep part of the joint of the person, being this treatment in a more conservative way and the patient’s recovery is usually faster. Dr. Rodrigo García Crespo, Traumatologist and Expert in Knee Prosthesis, Knee Arthroscopy, Hip Prosthesis, Anterior Cruciate Ligament, Prosthetic Replacements and Biological Therapy, performs this type of interventions on a regular basis.
When to proceed with an operation for a knee prosthesis
Knee prostheses require open surgery, although in some people they can be performed using minimal incision techniques, such as MIS Techniques. Currently many of the prostheses are performed with the assistance of a computer, working with a specially indicated software, which can be analyzed by means of navigated or computer-assisted surgery, which helps to make the placement of the prosthesis more accurate.
The person who undergoes knee prosthesis surgery needs to be admitted to a medical center for two to five days, and may be discharged walking with crutches.
Risks that can exist by the knee surgery
The knee prosthesis is the surgical process, through which the knee joint is replaced by a piece of synthetic material, by means of a surgical operation.
The greatest risk involved in this type of surgery is the possibility of infection and/or rejection, which can occur in between 1% and 3% of cases. Infections usually occur in people who suffer from diabetes or have a poor medical condition; these people require a new operation to clean the prosthesis of the knee joint.
Currently, the knee prosthesis is one of the surgical techniques most commonly performed by orthopedic surgeons around the world due to the good results obtained, and the benefit it brings to the lives of people with a worn knee.