Total Knee Arthroplasty And Thromboembolism: A Comparison Between Two Surgical Techniques

In patients undergoing total knee arthroplasty, thromboembolism is a common occurrence,
especially following tourniquet deflation. The resulting cardiopulmonary emboli can
potentially lead to hypoxemia, hypotension, hemodynamic collapse and post operative
cognitive dysfunction due to emboli. The standard surgical technique involves placing an
intramedullary rod in the femur to determine the angle and degree of resection from the end
of the femur. A new surgical technique utilizes computer navigation system to perform the
desired cuts in the appropriate position. The investigators hypothesize that the avoidance
of intramedullary instrumentation in computer assisted total knee replacement will result in
fewer thromboembolic events compared with the standard technique using manual
instrumentation in the femur. The present study will test this hypothesis by quantifying
the extent of thromboembolism during both surgical techniques.