Total Knee Replacement Surgery

The surgical procedure. A total knee replacement is a surgical procedure where the diseased knee joint is completely replaced by artificial materials that resemble the original knee joint. The orthopedic surgeon removed the end of the femur and the end of the tibia by using metal pieces and sawing the bone, to ensure that he removes the right amount of bone. The end of the femur bone is replaced with metal and the end of the tibia bone is replaced with plastic and metal. A plastic piece was added under the patella because the surface under the patella was damaged as well. These artificial materials, called prosthesis, have smooth surfaces so when they rub against each other, it does not cause damage and is pain-free. The purpose of this surgery is to remove the diseased portions of the joint and replace it with artificial materials to prevent further deterioration and eliminate pain, stiffness, and decreases in function that were caused by the osteoarthritis.

A total knee replacement (TKA) is the most common joint surgery performed in the United States (Turner, 2011, pp. 27-32). Each year, over 650,000 Americans undergo this surgery (Wittig-Wells, 2015, pp. 45-49). It is an invasive surgery that involves an incision on top of the knee and replacing damaged parts of the knee with artificial parts that are either metal, ceramic or plastic. Someone would get a total knee replacement for damage of the joint, osteoarthritic, posttraumatic, or inflammatory arthritis. The cartilage is damaged, wears away and then you develop bony deformity and contracture of ligaments but it starts out with specific defects or wear of cartilage. The top nursing priorities for a total knee arthroplasty is to “prevent complications, promote optimal mobility, alleviate pain, and provide information about diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment needs” (Doenges, 2014, pg. 627). A possible nursing diagnosis from the patient who is undergoing a TKA might be ‘impaired physical mobility related to pain and discomfort as evidenced by reluctance to attempt movement.’ Another one could be ‘acute pain related to chronic joint disease as evidenced by reports of pain’ (Vera, 2014).

The knee is a hinge joint which is needed for movement. The joint is made by the femur and the tibia, and also contains the patella which acts as a shield for the joint. In knees with osteoarthritis, the cartilage on the ends of the bones deteriorates, causing the bones to rub against each other. X-rays can be used for the diagnosis of osteoarthritis; the images would reveal damage and other changes related to osteoarthritis. With osteoarthritis of the knees, the patient would experience progressively increasing pain, stiffness, and they would

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a degenerative joint disease, highly prevalent in African Americans. African Americans men are 3 times more likely then Caucasians men to have involvement of all three compartments of the knee (Jordan, 2015). Total Knee Replacement (TKR) is a cost-effective treatment. Nonetheless, TKR rates are lower in African Americans.

In Kindred Rehabilitation, the patient had a total knee replacement due to osteoarthritis. Osteoarthritis causes degenerative changes, within the joints causing bone stiffening and reactive inflammation. My patient was admitted on 10/21/11 with osteoarthritis and a left total knee replacement. Her PT and INR were a concern because she had developed mild thrombocytopenia which resulted in the elevation and potential bleeding. The physician had to take her off of Lovenox and switch her to an oral anti-coagulant Xarelto at 10mg once daily. During her care I was educated by the interdisciplinary teams managing mobility, safety, and the more

Your health care provider will rotate your leg into the correct position and apply pressure to pop it back into the knee

Remove the femoral head and replace it with a prosthetic ball and stem secured into the top of your femur.

Physical therapy, for strengthening purposes, and bracing the joint for stability is also an option when muscle strength is not adequate enough to support the needs of the joint. There are also many types of medications, supplements, or even cortisone injections that may be prescribed by a physician to halt or reverse the symptoms of osteoarthritis (Palo Alto Med Foundation 2014). Surgical options will depend on the severity of the disease and the mechanisms affected. Focusing on treatments for osteoarthritis of the knee, surgical options include cartilage grafts, a synovectomy, and partial or total knee replacements. These processes either remove or replace damaged tissue and cartilage in order to ease symptoms or completely negate the effects of the disease (American Academy of Ortho Surgeons

As stated earlier, the patient admitting challenge was right total knee replacement related to history of osteoarthritis as evidenced by unrelieved pain. Osteoarthritis (OA) is a disease that “results from cartilage damage that triggers a metabolic response at the level of the chondrocytes” (Lewis, Dirksen, Heitkemper, Barry, Goldsworthy & Goodridge, 2011, p. 1881). As it progress, it causes the cartilage to become “dull, yellow, and granular” instead of being “smooth, white, translucent” (Lewis et al., 2011; Gulanick & Myers, 2014, p. 1881).As a result, it eventually becomes softer, less elastic, and less capable to resist wear during heavy use. Moreover, as the “central cartilage becomes thinner, cartilage and bony growth increases at the joint margins … that results to uneven distribution of stress across the joint” that contributes to a decrease in motion. (Lewis et al., 2011; Gulanick & Myers, 2014, p. 1882). According to this patient, OA has been giving her pain for about two years that lead her to the decision of having the knee replacement.

It also could be tender when someone touches it. There are some ways to prevent this disease from your body, accrue the proper body mass, don’t weigh more or less than you should. Also always stretch before any activity, warm up with and god hot shower. Prevent any extension of the leg, such as extending the knee in the sitting position against resistance. Treatment for this disease consistence of anything that is recommended by your doctor, ice, stretching exercises, strengthening exercise or even pain medications. Activities such as kneeling, jumping, squatting, stair climbing and running should be avoided while of in the process of heling. Ice should defiantly be applied soon as you figure you’ve had it for at least 15-20 min to the effected knew every2-3 hours as needed to help reduce inflammation and pain. And heat packs can be used for when you’re wanting to do actives. Your doctor can set up exercises for you that you could do at home, set just for you, its best that you do them twice a day and don’t anyone use them, because what could be your healing process can possibly hurt the person that’s not in

Total knee replacements are known as the most effective orthopedic procedures in the world. These surgeries are most often preformed on geriatric patients. Over time, because the knee is one of the lowest joints in the body, it is typically more prone to wear compared to joints holding less body weight. In the United States, the overall amount of total knee replacements exceeds over four times the overall number of total hip replacements. In the year of 2015, the estimated number of total knee replacements was predicted to be about 719,000 ("Inpatient Surgery." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention). Ordinarily knee replacements are used to ease pain and disability caused by arthritis or other joint problems, while preserving movement.

What were once considered high-tech, joint replacements are now a common operation. Surgeons replace more than a million hips and knees each year in the U.S. Studies show joint replacements can significantly relieve pain and increase mobility in about 90% of people who get them. Feature, R. Morgan, Griffin WebMD. “Should You Have Knee or Hip Replacement Surgery?” WebMD. WebMD, 30 Dec. 0089. Web. 21 Oct. 2013. What symptoms should tell a person that it is time for a hip replacement? The first and most important sign is pain and

A torn ACL is one of the most serious and common knee injuries. Many aspects play a role in the treatment and rehabilitation of this injury. This paper will discuss the anatomy of the knee, describe a torn ACL, and the rehabilitation.

People undergo total knee replacement when arthritis or injury erodes the joint's natural cushioning to the point where it's hard to walk even short distances without severe pain.

DN is a 68 year old Caucasian male who lives in Pomona, Missouri. On September 14, 2009, DN underwent a scheduled left total knee arthroplasty at Baxter County Regional Medical Center. A consultation appointment about a total knee arthroplasty was scheduled when DN had increasing pain in his knees while doing chores and working on his dairy farm. The increasing pain DN was having been due to a history of osteoarthritis and the wear-and-tear on his joints throughout his life, no specific injury was noted. Depending on the outcome of the left knee, DN was consulted on having his right knee done in the future