CFTK Replacement FAQs
These FAQs, documents and links are provided by Main Line Orthopaedics as informational resources to patients of Main Line Orthopaedics. They do not constitute nor do they substitute for medical advice. Please read our disclaimer and privacy notices.
Q: What is total knee replacement?
A: Conventional total knee replacement is a common surgical procedure to relieve the pain associated with knee arthritis. It is a major surgical procedure that requires the following:
- General or spinal anesthesia
- A hospital stay of several days
- Commonly a stay at a rehabilitation hospital is needed after discharge.
Q: How successful an operation is total knee replacement?
A: The success rate for total knee replacement surgery is in the 95-98% range. Approximately 500,000 knee replacements are performed yearly in the United States.
Q: If conventional total knee replacements are so successful, why consider Custom Fit total knee replacement surgery?
A: Modern knee replacement surgery has had a high success rate, but patients sometimes do not regain the expected range of motion, or say that their knee feels “tight” or unnatural after surgery. Plus, Custom Fit Total Knee replacement usually involves less time under anesthesia, faster surgery, more rapid recovery, and a more natural feel to the knee after recovery.
Q: I’ve heard that large portions of the knee bones are removed during total knee replacement surgery. Is that true?
A: No, in total knee replacement surgery only small portions of the bones are removed, not large areas as some patients believe.
Q: What is the difference between conventional and Custom Fit total knee replacement?
A: Conventional knee replacement surgery requires that all of the surgeon’s most important measurements and calculations be made during surgery while you are under anesthesia, and your surgeon has opened your knee.
With Custom Fit Total Knee replacement technology, measurements and calculations are made with preoperative MRI Shape-Matching™, before you enter the operating room. Again, this means more accuracy, less time under anesthesia, faster surgery—which may lessen the risk of infection.
Q: What is the difference between intraoperative computer-assisted total knee (navigation) and Custom Fit total knee replacement?
A: There are several important differences. Intraoperative computer assisted total knee total knee replacement still requires the surgeon to open your knee and make measurements and calculations in surgery, while you are under anesthesia. CFTK replacement surgery’s cutting measurements and calculations are all done weeks prior to your surgery. In addition, the six different angles and rotations to be accounted for on each bone are not all addressed with navigation-assisted surgery. Only one or at best, two of the six can be controlled with navigation. All six are controlled and calculated with CFTK surgery. Computer-navigation has been shown to be ineffective when trying to adjust proper rotation of the implants. Finally, navigation-assisted surgery has never shown significant difference in post-surgical outcomes, whereas early CFTK studies show a much faster recoveries.
Q: Are CFTK computer matching measurements more accurate than the doctor’s visual approximations?
A: The custom patient specific guides are accurate to within several tenths of a millimeter. They take into account rotation and alignment in six different planes and rotations. The result is a fit that is much more precise than we have been able to achieve with conventional surgical measurements—even in the best hands.
Q: Measurements and calculations aside, are there actual differences between conventional total knee replacement surgery and Custom Fit total knee replacement surgery?
A: Conventional knee replacement surgery often completely removes a major ligament—the posterior cruciate ligament. Custom Fit total knee replacement surgery saves the posterior cruciate ligament because it is so well-balanced and functional after the implant is placed that we no longer have to remove this ligament. In addition, the alignment rod, associated with a possible increase in postoperative lung problems, is not needed with CFTK surgery. The clinical results have been up to 20% better, 3 months sooner when compared to patient results in the current orthopaedic literature.
Q: How does preserving that posterior cruciate ligament help me?
A: Preserving the ligament most likely enhances your knee’s natural stability and may help to enhance the more normal-feeling knee that patients with CFTK experience.
Q: What’s the best way to communicate with my surgeon about my knee surgery?
A: Main Line Orthopaedics distributes the Notebook for Knees to our Bryn Mawr Hospital surgery patients. This “Knee Notebook” is a patient guide and personal diary that serves as a good basis for discussion and progress reporting during your office visits. In addition, we do a full comprehensive “surgical discussion visit” at our office before each surgery. Bryn Mawr Hospital also offers preoperative knee replacement instructional classes for patients to further educate them about their upcoming surgery.
Patient Resources
Total Knee General Information
The Total Knee General Information document describes what to expect before, during and after total knee replacement surgery. You can download it here.
This document requires the free Adobe Acrobat reader which is available at this link.
Custom Fit Total Knee Replacement
(Under Revision, Coming Soon!) The Custom Fit Total Knee Replacement Summary document was written by Dr. Vernace to help inform his patients about the Custom Fit Total Knee Replacement surgery technique and its benefits. You can download it here.
This document requires the free Adobe Acrobat reader which is available at this link.
Knee Surgery on the Web
Knee surgery topics. This is an external link to the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons website which offers a compendium of resources about knee surgery and other orthopaedic topics.
Patient Privacy
This is a downloadable version of the privacy notice found on our websites as required by The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (“HIPAA”). You can download it here.
This document requires the free Adobe Acrobat reader which is available at this link.
Other Useful Links
