Robotic-assisted Knee Replacement
Robotic-Assisted Knee Replacement uses infra-red technology and a robotic arm to assist the surgeon in the surgery.
The infra-red detects trackers which are placed onto the knee during surgery, and this lets the software have an accurate understanding of the knee anatomy. The robotic arm ensures very accurate cuts of the bone surfaces.
Robotic-Assisted TKR by Centurion Orthopaedic Centre's Dr Ang
Dr Ang is on the right side of the picture. He is holding a probe in his right hand and there are trackers positioned on the knee. Dr Ang is looking at a monitor (not in the picture) that displays real-time information of the knee. In the middle of the picture, there is a gun-like device. This is the robotic-arm which Dr Ang will control to cut the bone surfaces.
One common misconception may be that the robot does the surgery in place of the surgeon. This is not the case. The robotic arm does very precise cutting of the bone surfaces, but it is still controlled and guided by the surgeon.
Example of a TKR done using Computer Assistance.
The left image shows the front view and the right image shows the side view of the implants.
Benefits of doing a TKR with Computer Assistance
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Computer Assistance helps surgeons put the implants into the knee with very accurate positioning. This has been shown by medical studies. Accurate positioning of the implants will improve the longevity of the implants, as good positioning reduces uneven mechanical loading on the implants.
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