Meet the Physicians Using the Mako Robot!
HOW DOES THE MAKO SYSTEM WORK?
The Mako System creates a 3D model of the patient’s knee from which your surgeon will develop a pre-surgical plan for positioning the implant(s) based on that patient’s unique anatomy.
The surgeon can test and fine-tune the surgical plan before operating by moving the leg through different ranges of motion. The Mako System provides measurements and visualization, and the surgeon adjusts the plan as needed.
The finalized surgical plan is programmed into the Mako System. The Mako System creates a safety zone for bone removal. While the surgeon guides the robotic arm and is in control of it at all times, the Mako System ensures that bone removal stays with the safety zone of the surgical plan, providing auditory, visual and tactile feedback, stopping the robotic arm if necessary before bone can be removed outside the planned area. Once the bone preparation is complete, the implants are placed in the knee.
New Technology
This is Mako, a robotic-arm assisted technology that helps surgeons provide patients with a personalized surgical experience. A 3D model of your hip or knee will be used to pre-plan and assist your surgeon in performing your joint replacement surgery. Dr. Ham performs this procedure at Northwest Regional Surgery Center.
Robotic-Arm Assisted Technology For Total Knee Replacement
We understand that making sure you know what to expect from your joint replacement experience is important to you. As you are reading through this material, if you have additional questions please reach out to us to discuss.
Who Is A Candidate For Robotic Total Knee Replacement?
Each patient is unique, and can experience joint pain for different reasons. It’s important to talk to us about the reason for your knee pain so you can understand the treatment options available to you. Pain from arthritis and joint degeneration can be constant or come and go, occur with movement or after a period of rest, or be located in one spot or many parts of the body. It is common for patients to try medication and other conservative treatments to treat their knee pain. If you haven’t experienced adequate relief with those treatment options, you may be a candidate for Mako Total Knee replacement, which may provide you with relief from your knee pain.
How Robotic Arm Assisted Knee Replacement Works
Mako Robotic-Arm Assisted Total Knee replacement is a treatment option for adults living with mid to late-stage osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee. Mako provides you with a personalized surgical plan based on your unique anatomy. First, a CT scan of the diseased knee joint is taken. This CT scan is uploaded into the Mako System software, where a 3D model of your knee is created. This 3D model is used to pre-plan and assist your surgeon in performing your total knee replacement.
In the operating room, your surgeon follows your personalized surgical plan while preparing the bone for the Triathlon Total Knee implant. With over a decade of clinical history, Triathlon knee replacements are different than traditional knee replacements because they are designed to work with the body to promote natural-like circular motion.1-4
The surgeon guides the robotic-arm to remove diseased bone and cartilage within the pre-defined area and the Mako System helps the surgeon stay within the planned boundaries that were defined when the personalized pre-operative plan was created. In a laboratory study, Mako Technology demonstrated accurate placement of implants to a personalized surgical plan.5
It’s important to understand that the surgery is performed by an orthopaedic surgeon, who guides the robotic-arm during the surgery to position the implant in the knee joint. The robotic-arm does not perform surgery, make decisions on its own, or move without the surgeon guiding the robotic-arm. The Mako System also allows your surgeon to make adjustments to your plan during surgery as needed.
Important Information
Is The Robotic Arm Manually Controlled During Total Knee Replacement?
Knee Replacements
General indications: Total knee replacement is intended for use in individuals with joint disease resulting from degenerative, rheumatoid and post-traumatic arthritis, and for moderate deformity of the knee.
Contraindications: Knee replacement surgery is not appropriate for patients with certain types of infections, any mental or neuromuscular disorder which would create an unacceptable risk of prosthesis instability, prosthesis fixation failure or complications in postoperative care, compromised bone stock, skeletal immaturity, or severe instability of the knee.
What Are The Risks Of Knee Replacement?
As with any surgery, knee replacement surgery has serious risks which include, but are not limited to, peripheral neuropathies (nerve damage), circulatory compromise (including deep vein thrombosis (blood clots in the legs)), genitourinary disorders (including kidney failure), gastrointestinal disorders (including paralytic ileus (loss of intestinal digestive movement)), vascular disorders (including thrombus (blood clots), blood loss, or changes in blood pressure or heart rhythm), bronchopulmonary disorders (including emboli, stroke or pneumonia), heart attack, and death.
Implant related risks which may lead to a revision include dislocation, loosening, fracture, nerve damage, heterotopic bone formation (abnormal bone growth in tissue), wear of the implant, metal sensitivity, soft tissue imbalance, osteolysis (localized progressive bone loss), and reaction to particle debris. Knee implants may not provide the same feel or performance characteristics experienced with a normal healthy joint.
The information presented is for educational purposes only. Speak to your doctor to decide if joint replacement surgery is right for you. Individual results vary and not all patients will receive the same postoperative activity level. The lifetime of a joint replacement is not infinite and varies with each individual. Your doctor will help counsel you about how to best maintain your activities in order to potentially prolong the lifetime of the device. Such strategies include not engaging in high-impact activities, such as running, as well as maintaining a healthy weight. Ask your doctor if the Triathlon knee is right for you.
Stryker Corporation or its other divisions or other corporate affiliated entities own, use or have applied for the following trademarks or service marks: Mako, Stryker, Triathlon. All other trademarks are trademarks of their respected owners or holders.
Benefits of Mako™ robotic-arm assisted technology include:
- Implants designed for natural, normal movement
- Less pain and a quicker recovery than traditional joint replacements
- Personalized surgical plans based on your anatomy for longer-lasting joints
- Reduced risk of complications
Outpatient Partial Knee Replacement with Mako Technology
Not every patient with knee osteoarthritis needs a total knee replacement. For some patients, replacing only part of the knee joint is the solution to their pain. This procedure is called “partial” or “unicompartmental” knee replacement and is now a popular and scientifically supported method of resolving the arthritic pain of the knee, preserving much of the structural integrity of the remaining knee. With partial knee replacement, only the damaged area of the knee joint is replaced, which may help to minimize trauma to healthy bone and tissue making partial knee replacement less invasive than traditional total knee replacement surgery.
There are three types of Partial Knee Replacement
- Unicondylar Knee Replacement is a procedure that replaces only the single affected compartment of the knee, either the medial or lateral compartment.
- Patellofemoral Knee Replacement is a procedure that replaces the worn patella (the kneecap) and the trochlea (the groove at the end of the thighbone).
- Bicompartmental Knee Replacement is a procedure that replaces two compartments of the knee, the medial and patellofemoral compartments.
However, partial knee replacement can be a challenging procedure to perform accurately on a consistent basis using manual techniques. To answer this challenge, Stryker has developed the Mako® Robotic-Arm Assisted Surgery System. Mako Robotic-Arm Assisted Surgery is the most consistently reproducible, precision joint replacement installation system available in the world today that allows certified surgeons to optimize knee implant sizing, tracking, and ligament balance enhancing implant function and longevity.