Arthritis of the knee is the world’s leading cause of disability. Arthritis causes severe pain, swelling, inability to walk, reduced bending of knee and deformity.

Total knee replacement is a well-known treatment for advanced knee arthritis. Knee replacement surgery provides excellent results to the patient, relieving him from pain. The surgery also improves walking ability and allows pain-free knee bending. Most importantly, it improves the quality of life of the patients.

However, conventional knee replacement surgeries do not restore complete flexibility of the joint. Flexion is the action of bending a joint, such as your knee or elbow. The opposite motion is extension, which is the straightening of a joint. Generally, conventional knee replacements accommodate flexion up to 110 degrees and have not been designed to allow the patients to squat and kneel which require higher flexion. Many daily activities require a higher range of motion: gardening, golfing or activities such as kneeling for prayer and sitting cross-legged can demand up to 130-150 degrees of bending.

Recent innovation of knee design (High Flexion Rotating Platform Knees) has led to a breakthrough where complete flexion up to 155 degrees could be achieved. Desire for high flexion may be dictated by a patient’s favourite activities or cultural background. Many daily activities require the ability to flex the knee beyond 120 degrees.

The fixed bearing conventional knee provides 110 degrees of flexion. For most patients, this is not enough. The rotating platform knee is specially designed to safely accommodate up to 155 degrees of flexion in patients who had a good pre-operative range of motion. This means that with appropriate rehabilitation a patient can resume an active lifestyle after total knee replacement, such as deeply bending the knee for recreation or day to day activities, which may include prolonged kneeling and squatting. Even sitting cross-legged is possible.

Such innovations not only give the patient relief from pain, but also provide greater flexibility. Patients no longer need to hesitate before going in for knee replacement surgeries.