Bennett Orthopedics & Sportsmedicine

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Minimally invasive Total Knee Replacement-Quadriceps Sparing

The minimally invasive approach to Total Knee Replacement Surgery is defined as having a skin incision as 14 centimeters or less. The standard approach to Total Knee Replacement may be twice as long or more. More importantly, however, the Quadriceps sparing approach is one which allows the implant to be placed in the knee without cutting into the quadriceps tendon allowing for early ambulation without cane, less blood loss, less pain and quicker recovery.

	Quad Sparing/Minimally Invasive	Standard
Ambulation-No Cane	Average 2 weeks	Average 2-3 months
Blood Loss	Average 2-3 mgs/ml Hemoglobin	Average 5-6 mgs/ml
Blood Transfusion	Never*	possible
Pain	Less -VAS Scale and less Narcotics
Stand One Leg	Average 10 days	Average 2 months
Physical Therapy	Average 2 months	Average 4-6 months
Hospital Stay	Average 2 days	Average 4 days
*Could occur

Most of the benefits of this approach, as opposed to a standard approach, occur during surgery and in the early weeks and months following surgery. At 6 months this is no clinical difference, necessarily with the approach utilized.

This approach requires an evolution by the surgeon to maximize outcomes; special courses and training and special instruments to place the components are needed and ordered for surgery, respectively. The actual implant is the same as would be in the “standard” approach.