Connect
← Return to Nanoknee, is it better or merely hype?
Discussion
Nanoknee, is it better or merely hype?
Joint Replacements | Last Active: 17 hours ago | Replies (63)Comment receiving replies
@steveinarizona Here are some reasons -
My ortho told me the robotic assistant, the training of doc and staff and all related equipment and technology take roughly 1500 operations to recoup the costs. So it is feasible in a major metro area, but a LOT of people do not live where such care is accessible,
The way health insurance ties people to specific networks, they are further limited in where they can seek care.
I recently read that nearly 2/3 of the people in the Midwest - Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, Nebraska, North and South Dakota - have "limited access" to care. In more rural states like Montana, Wyoming and New Mexico, these number can approach 80%. In states with high Medicaid coverage, travel for medical care is RARELY approved - this includes many states in the South.
Replies to "@steveinarizona Here are some reasons - My ortho told me the robotic assistant, the training of..."
Connect
@sueinmn
You make some good points. My brother, in Indiana, had a knee replacement about the same time as I did. His surgeon was the most highly rated one in the area but he was a traditionalist in his approach.
My surgeon is very experienced but at the cutting edge of technology.
My brother's surgeon used a tourniquet, cut the tendon, and installed an implant. My surgeon did a midvastus entry (muscle sparing), did NOT use a tourniquet, found my ACL was strong so he installed a bicruciate retaining implant (saves and protects both the PCL and ACL). and corrected my severe misalignment with a functional alignment.
My brother is in pain and on opiods and his flex is hovering around 100. I never took a pain pill, my flex was measured today at 122 and I have essentially no pain. On day 27 post surgery I intend to be on the first tee with my regular foursome playing golf.
I think a normal knee replacement can be done by an experienced surgeon without a robot assistant. The bicruciate retaining implant requires more complex surgery than one where the surgeon resects the ACL and PCL (posterior stabilized) or resects the ACL (cruciate retaining). I don't know how reasonable it would be to do that surgery without a robot. The same thing applies to functional alignment -- it requires soft tissue work and a robot is probably necessary. However, one doesn't need to have a bicruciate retaining implant and a good surgeon can probably do kinematic alignment without a robot.