Knee Replacement Complications

Being one of the largest joints in human body, knee joint and its surgery is a major treatment. Modern techniques of treatment have minimized the pain and the complications of the knee surgery but patients can experience knee replacement complications at any stage of the surgery or after the surgery has been conducted. Hence the patient should indulge in a thoughtful and fruitful discussion with his/her orthopedic surgeon before the actual surgery.

Being a major surgery, knee replacement complications are very common and doctors have various ways to eradicate these complications. The patient however needs to follow the instructions given by the doctor. The patient should understand and discuss the potential risks involved in any knee replacement surgery. Arthroscopic knee surgery is a modern technique of operating a knee joint but the surgeon is never sure about the post operative complications.

Swelling after knee replacement

Swelling is the most common knee replacement complication experienced by the patients. This swelling however is not a serious issue for doctors and it remains for at least four to six months after the surgery. Swelling could be avoided by following a strict medication and health regime.

Blood clotting after knee replacement

Blood clots in veins occur due to the immovability of the operated leg. Blood clotting is also a common knee replacement complication. Blood clotting could be minimized by taking blood thinning medications. Doctors try and give these blood thinning medications continuously for several weeks after the knee replacement surgery. Modern techniques and medications have proved to be very helpful in reducing these knee replacement complications. Doctors can give compression stockings to the patient so as to keep the blood circulating. Blood clotting could also be avoided by early mobilization after knee surgery.

Stiffness

Stiffness in the operated leg is again one of the common knee replacement complications. After any surgery conducted on the human body, the body starts making scar tissues. These scar tissues can cause the soft tissues to assemble around the knee. This happens after the knee replacement surgery and the patient finds it difficult to bend the knee or sitting in a chair. This stiffness in the knee could only be avoided by following knee and leg exercises after the surgery. The role of the physical therapist becomes very important in this case.

Bacterial infections

Bacterial infection is a very serious knee replacement complication. This infection may occur after a few days of the surgery or may occur after few years of the surgery. In some cases, the bacterial infection may also necessitate the complete removal of knee implant. Doctors give detailed instructions to patients to avoid these types of knee replacement complications. One of the advises could be to take antibiotics before any dental treatment. Bacterial infections could be easily avoided by following the instructions given by the doctors.

Loosening or failure of the replaced implant

In most of the cases, the knee replacement implants last for an average of twenty years. In some cases it could be less than ten years and in some cases it could be more than thirty years. The failure or loosening of the knee implant is commonly observed knee replacement complications which could be treated by operating on the knee joint again.

The patient however do not need to worry about most of these knee replacement complications as these are temporary and could be treated easily with the help of medications.