Computer-Assisted Knee Replacement

When a knee is so badly damaged by arthritis or injury that walking, and even sitting or lying down, is painful, and medications, exercise, weight loss, and walking supports don’t help, knee replacement surgery may be the answer.

Knee replacements, in which surgeons remove the damaged cartilage and bone and replace them with new metal and plastic joint surfaces to restore the knee’s alignment and function, can last from 15 to 20 years. Orthopaedic surgeons use different techniques to replace knees.

The Cooper Bone and Joint Institute is using a new technique - computer-assisted knee replacement with the Stryker® Knee Navigation System - which enables surgeons to precisely align knee replacements.

Cooper is the only center in South Jersey, and one of a few centers in the Delaware Valley, that regularly uses computer-assisted knee replacement. Orthopaedic surgeons believe that the long-term durability and function of computer-assisted knee replacement outweigh the potential short-term gains of minimally invasive knee replacement. Minimally invasive knee replacement uses a smaller incision than traditional surgery and is marketed as a procedure with less pain, minimal scarring, and faster recovery time. owever, surgeons don’t know whether minimally invasive knee replacements last as long or work as well as traditional knee replacements.

“At Cooper, we recommend the computer-assisted knee replacement technique for patients having first-time knee surgery because it combines the proven method of traditional surgery, which has the highest success rate, with computer-aided accuracy,” says Dr. Hume. “The ladder of success with traditional surgery is 95 percent,” added Dr. Austin.