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Revision Total Knee Replacement: Safe, Successful and Minimally Invasive

By Dr. Simon Thomas in Orthopaedics & Joint Replacement , Robotic Surgery

Jun 04 , 2025 | 2 min read

Movement is the essence of life. As we live longer, we strive for mobility for a long time. With increasing age, issues of joint degeneration and arthritis crops up. This may significantly reduce functional mobility and compromise quality of life due to pain and deformity. That's why more and more people are getting knee replacements to alleviate pain and live and move gracefully.

Knee replacement surgery was a bit late in being adopted in India compared to Western countries. But now that patients have seen and tasted success, primary knee replacement is catching up fast. As more and more primaries are being done at various centres, across the country, the demon of 'failure' is rearing its ugly head.

People are often scared that if a knee replacement fails due to any reason, be it loosening or infection, then nothing can be done and the knee is doomed for life. But no longer! With technical advancements and surgeon experience, failed knees can now be salvaged and treated, offering a much-needed ray of hope to suffering patients.

It is important to recognise failure early. Patients whose replaced knees are failing often have more than usual pain, stabbing pain, difficulty in walking, a limp, the feeling of instability while walking, abnormal sound from joints, the feeling of grating, decreased movements, and sometimes oozing from the stitch line. Patients with such problems must consult a revision joint replacement specialist early to diagnose the condition. Your doctor shall advise radiographs after a thorough examination. If something abnormal is detected or it feels that the joint is failing, you may have to undergo more blood tests and sometimes special imaging to know the reason for failure. Accordingly, a revision joint replacement may be suggested.

Usually, patients try to delay surgery, as this is the general tendency. But delay can sometimes prove to be costly. If the implant is loose, it keeps on toggling inside the host bone, leading to bone loss. The more bone loss, the more reconstruction it requires during surgery. If there's an infection and it is ignored, the joint gets damaged with time. So, time is important for bone conservation, and early intervention is crucial for achieving pristine results.

Experience in revision surgeries and access to technology are critical for the success of revision knee replacements. With better implants, robotic technology, advanced surgical techniques, and surgeon expertise, this is now a reality.

Most knees can be revised in a single stage, and recovery is as predictable as any conventional primary total knee replacement. Backed by robotic technology, we ensure lesser bone loss, smaller incisions, faster recovery with reduced pain, minimal blood loss, shorter hospital stay, early return to function, and longevity. Revision Total Knee Replacement, backed by robotics, now has the potential to provide a joint that is very close to a natural joint, where patients can resume their previous activity levels very quickly.