KNEE PROSTHESIS SURGERY
WHEN WILL A KNEE PROSTHESIS BE PLACED?
An artificial knee is placed in case of severe damage to the knee joint. The cause of this damage is usually osteoarthritis or a rheumatic condition. This causes pain and malfunctioning. The damage can be seen on an x-ray of the knee and has to be confirmed by functional tests.

WEAR OF THE CARTILAGE IS CALLED OSTEOARTHROSIS
In some people wear is faster. Causes of this are abnormal load, an accident, or shape deviations of the knee joint.
There is certainly also an important family predisposition. Wear is not always due to a specific cause.
Such wear causes pain. When the pain can no longer be remedied by other means, a knee prosthesis will be proposed.

THE KNEE PROSTHESIS
There are two types: the total and half knee prosthesis. The most commonly used is the total knee prosthesis, which replaces all the cartilage of the femur and tibia.

The knee operation is no small matter and the recovery requires a lot of willpower and effort, but through proper preparation you can save unnecessary tensions and disappointments.

THE KNEE SURGERY
During the procedure, you will receive antibiotics to reduce the risk of infection. The surgery takes about 1.5 hours. During the knee operation the knee is opened at the front by a vertical cut of about twenty cm. The surgeon removes the affected joint surfaces. With special instruments the bone is adapted to the shape of the prosthesis, so that a good anchoring is possible. Synthetic material is placed between the metal parts of the prosthesis which ensures that the knee pivots smoothly.
Generally no kneecap prosthesis is placed, because special treatment of the own kneecap ensures that hardly any complaints of the kneecap remain. Experience in the United States of America has shown that artificial knee caps have a complication risk in the short and long term. Therefore, a kneecap prosthesis is only placed on indication. These indications are: (serious) rheumatism or severe kneecap arthrosis.