Knee prosthesis surgeries can relieve pain and restore function in severely diseased knees. With knee prosthesis surgery, the damaged bone and cartilage in the joint are cleaned and replaced with a prosthesis made of special metal alloys and other components.
What is the purpose of Knee Prosthesis?
The purpose of knee prosthesis surgeries is for the patient to have a painless and mobile joint. and to ensure that the quality of daily life is at a high level.
Who can undergo Knee Prosthesis?
Those who have pain and deformity in their knees, whose knee pain does not go away despite the application of rest, medications and physical therapy methods, who cannot walk or climb stairs. Total knee prosthesis is applied to patients whose daily living activities are severely restricted and who have severe damage to the joint cartilage on radiography. It is preferred that the patient is over 65 years of age. In some rheumatological diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, prosthesis surgery can be performed at an earlier age.
In Which Diseases Do Knee Prosthesis Require?
Degeneration (calcification) occurs in the knee joint for various reasons. Calcifications that develop in the knee joint are called Gonarthrosis (Knee Calcification). Most gonarthrosis occurs spontaneously with aging. Being overweight increases degeneration. Degeneration may also develop in the knee joint due to reasons such as fractures, meniscus injuries and surgeries, rheumatological diseases, infectious diseases, and traumatic cartilage lesions. Knee prosthesis surgery is performed in patients whose knee joints are severely damaged by all these diseases. If there is an active infection in the knee joint, knee prosthesis cannot be performed.
What are the Treatment Stages?
First of all, the patient who will undergo knee prosthesis must have applied non-prosthetic treatment options (medication, physical therapy, etc.) and must be at a stage where they will not benefit from them. . Knee damage is easily seen on x-rays. After the decision for surgery, anesthesia preparation is made. The presence of tooth decay, wound or any infection focus in the body should be carefully investigated before the surgery, and it is very important to treat it if found. The surgery can be performed using local anesthesia from the waist down or general anesthesia. Although the duration of the surgery varies depending on the patient, it is approximately 1 hour. It takes 5 hours. The day after the surgery, the patient can stand up with the help of crutches and meet his personal needs. Performing the recommended exercises after surgery is very important in terms of gaining joint range of motion. Patients can return to their normal daily lives approximately 6 weeks after the surgery.
What are the risks of knee prosthesis surgery?
There are risks during the surgery, in the early and late periods after surgery. There are risks related to anesthesia during surgery, which are present in every surgery. Apart from this, temporary or permanent injuries may occur in the vessels and nerves in the surgical area during the application. A complication that may occur in the early and late postoperative periods is infection. This is the most important complication affecting the survival of the prosthesis. It can be easily avoided by paying attention to infection foci before surgery and careful wound care. Another late-term complication is loosening of the prosthesis. In this regard, it is important for the patient to lose weight and do knee exercises regularly.
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