Minimally Invasive Knee Replacement
Total Hip Replacement and Total Knee Replacement are very successful surgical treatments for arthritis of the hip and knee respectively. Over the past several years we have witnessed advances in both instrumentation and technique which allow us to perform these procedures in a less invasive fashion.
Specifically with respect to total knee arthroplasty, we now utilize muscle sparing, less invasive approaches to preserve more quadriceps function in the immediate postoperative period which can expedite rehabilitation protocols.
In addition, we also utilize perioperative pain control modalities which have been shown to minimize a patient's postoperative discomfort. These protocols include use of multi-modal analgesic medications both pre-operatively and post-operatively. Femoral nerve block catheters are inserted at the beginning of the procedure and continued for up to 48 hours after surgery in most patients.
By utilizing these multimodal pain management schemes coupled with early mobilization, we have been able to make patient's postoperative stays much more comfortable while expediting their time to reach the discharge rehabilitation goals.
