Knee replacement is an elective surgical procedure intended to provide patients with relief from severe or debilitating knee pain. In the United States, knee replacements are placed in over 500,000 patients each year, according to the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. Complications with a knee replacement are rare, but patients should discuss these potential issues with a doctor before having surgery.
Joint Stiffness
After surgery, tough scar tissue can build up around the prosthetic knee replacement. If this occurs, patients can find it difficult to fully extend or bend the treated knee, the University of Washington School of Medicine explains. Stiffness involving a knee replacement can be uncomfortable and may lead to instability while a patient stands or walks. Patients who experience severe or prohibitive knee stiffness after undergoing knee replacement surgery should contact a doctor. Additional surgery may be necessary to resolve joint stiffness complications.
Joint Loosening or Dislocation
Knee replacement surgery allows a surgeon to remove damaged or diseased bone tissue and replace it with prosthetic or artificial structures composed of high-grade plastic or metal. Unfortunately, the implanted knee replacement can loosen over time and may pull away from surrounding bone structures in the knee. If this occurs, patients are at an increased risk of developing knee dislocation as a complication with a knee replacement, MedlinePlus warns. Knee dislocation can be painful and requires medical intervention to replace the prosthetic knee joint in its proper position.
Joint Infection
Patients can develop an infection around the implanted knee joint as a complication of knee replacement. MayoClinic.com warns that symptoms of a knee replacement infection can arise several years after surgery and include knee joint inflammation, a fever that exceeds 100 degrees F, chills and unusual drainage from the surgical incision site. Patients who develop symptoms of a knee replacement infection should consult a doctor immediately. Surgery may be necessary to remove the infected knee prosthetic to ensure the infection is completely eradicated. After the infection clears the body, patients could undergo additional surgery to have a new prosthetic knee replacement implanted.
