What are the most common complications of knee replacement? what kinds of complications most commonly occur during or after knee replacement, and how can i prevent them?

Common : Common complications include deep venous thrombosis ("blood clot"), infection, and inadequate motion. For DVT and loss of motion, cooperate fully with your doctor"s orders for getting out of bed and working with the physical therapists after surgery. Remind the hospital staff to replace any mechanical pumps that squeeze your legs or feet after they are removed for hygiene, etc.. Do your best to stay with the prescribed use of the "knee movement" machine you may have on your leg after surgery. It is important that you inform your surgeon if you have had a "blood clot" in the past or if there is an unusual family history of "blood clots." for infection, be sure to notify your doctor of any rashes or skin lesions you may have, get your teeth checked to make sure that you have no dental infections, ask about a nasal culture to make sure you are not a bacteria "colonizer" of mrsa, and notify your physician if you have any urine or bowel problems. If you are diabetic, work hard to follow your diet and take your medications to optimize your blood sugar control, and, of course, if you smoke, quit.

The : The medical complications that we (surgeons) worry about are things like infection, bleeding, blood clots. The surgical experience could uncover a medical problem we didn't know you had, or could make an existing problem worse. Surgical complications might include cutting important structures, breaking the bone, malalignment. In addition, about 10% of patients have persistent pain and/or stiffness even with a well-performed surgery. In terms of prevention, the best advice would be to keep your weight down (obesity makes everything harder, both for patient and for surgeon), get medical problems like diabetes or high blood pressure under control, stop smoking (interferes with wound and bone healing), and start an exercise program before the surgery. We also know that surgeons and hospitals who perform lots of knee replacements have a lower rate of complications. So ask about outcomes before you go forward. Basically, your goal is to reduce your risk of complications, even though it may not be possible to prevent all of them.