Knee replacement is for people who suffer from especially degenerative joint diseases such as arthritis. Patients with articular fracture, cruciate ligament tear or knee dislocation may also be candidates for joint replacement. During the surgery, the damaged section of the bones and cartilage is removed from the joint. Knee arthroplasty surgery can be performed as a partial or a total knee replacement. Partial knee replacement provides many potential benefits for patients, including smaller incisions, fewer blood transfusions and shorter hospitalization time. Total knee replacement is considered for patients with damaged or worn out cartilage of the kneecap's joint caused by arthritic disorders such as rheumatoid, trauma or degenerative joint diseases.
Arthroscopy
Knee arthroscopy uses keyholes or tiny incisions that allow surgeons to see the interior of the joint with a fiber optic telescope, called an arthroscope. The images are projected on an external television monitor for the magnification of the surgical elements. When knee arthroscopy is used to carry out a surgery, it is termed as arthroscopic surgery or arthroscopic meniscectomy, which is an outpatient surgical procedure to repair torn meniscus cartilage in the knees. Meniscus can become torn as a result of high impact sports or accidental twisting of the knees. Physical therapy is useful to regain full function of the knee following a surgical operation.
Osteotomy
Knee osteotomy is a surgical procedure that repositions or reshapes the thick, flat, triangular and movable kneecap, or patella bone, of the knee. This procedure can only be applied when just one area or side of the knee has arthritic damage. The surgeon removes a portion of the bone of the joint of either the bottom of the femur, or lower thighbone, or the top of the tibia, or upper shinbone. This helps shift the body weight from a damaged part of the knee to a normal or less damaged one.
Fusion
An arthrodesis is the surgical immobilization of a joint so that the bones--namely the femur, or thigh bone, and the tibia, or shin bone--grow solidly together, creating one long bone that stretches from the hip socket to the kneecap. The leg is not completely locked at the knee, but all the side-to-side motions are virtually eliminated from the knee. This condition is known as stiff-legged gait.
References
- American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons: Total Knee Replacement
- MedlinePlus: Knee Replacement
- Orthopedic Surgery and Sports Medicine at the University of Washington: Unicompartmental Knee Arthroplasty
- Orthopedic Surgery and Sports Medicine at the University of Washington: Arthroscopic Meniscectomy
- MedlinePlus: Knee Arthroscopy
