Gender specific knee launched in TN hospital

Chennai, Apr 27 (UNI) A high flex knee replacement implant specially designed for women has been introduced for the first time in south India at the Bharathiraja Speciality Hospital.

Consultant Orthopedic Surgeon of the hospital Dr A K Venkatachalam told newsmen here yesterday the patient, a 43-year-old housewife from south India, had been suffering from bilateral knee osteoarthritis.

Women like her constitutes two third of patients undergoing knee replacement. Until now, the implant used in total knee replacement were designed from average measurements of men and women's knee.

The gender specific knee was unique as it had been developed to conform the anatomy of female knee, he claimed.

Osteoarthritis of the knee was widely prevalent in India.

Obesity, injuries, aging and infections were the main causes for the condition.

A rough estimate shows about 13,000 patients undergo knee replacement every year in India, increasing 25 per cent each year.

Awareness of the benefits of joint replacement and increasing lifespan is leading to the wider acceptance of total knee replacement.

Knee replacements are extremely beneficial for those suffering from painful osteoarthritis. Nevertheless, some women who had undergone a knee replacement were not entirely satisfied. They complained the knee was bulky and did not move naturally, he added.

Some of the anatomical differences between knees of men and women have been incorporated into the latest implant design.

The prosthesis is implanted by the highly successful minimally invasive surgery in which the scar is about 4-5 inches only. It also offers maximum flexibility as the user can bend the knees to 155 degree.

Hence, it has been called gender specific high flex knee replacement.

This implant was introduced in US last May and had since seen one lakh successful procedures being undertaken, he claimed and said he was the 'first Indian surgeon to perform the operation independently in south India.' UNI RV GM DS RAI1208