Dr. Peter Bonutti of Effingham served as chairman of a recently held national orthopedic course titled ‘Advances in Primary Hip and Knee Arthroplasty’. Dr. Bonutti assembled the national faculty and chaired the course. Discussion covered new directions in hip and knee surgery. The course was at the Hyatt McCormick Center in Chicago, IL. This is the first time that a St. Anthony’s Memorial Hospital staff member has chaired a national course.
Also in attendance was local surgeon Dr. Daniel Dethmers who presented a paper discussing recovery results when both knees have surgical procedures done at the same time with a minimally invasive technique. The report was titled ‘Simultaneous Bilateral Minimally Invasive Total Knee Replacement’.
The complete course included talks on primary hip and knee arthroplasty, advances in technology and arthroscopic intervention for degenerative joints. Dr. Bonutti was involved in several panel discussions including Minimally Invasive Hip and Knee Arthroplasty. He also moderated actual live surgery broadcasts from around the country. In addition, Dr. Bonutti spoke on Selecting the Best Approach for TKA, and Computer Assisted Navigation for TKA: Pros and Cons.
Dr. Dethmers reported on a study completed by the Bonutti Clinic who has performed operations on 278 patients over four years repairing both knees at the same time using the minimally invasive technique. The Clinic goals are to get people off pain medication, get people walking, and get people back to normal function.
The study results showed 57% of the patients were walking without a cane or walker in two weeks. The entire 100% were walking without aid in four weeks. Patients tend to recover much quicker than standard procedures. Dr. Dethmers reported that huge strides have been made, but there is still more to go.
The purpose of the conference was to provide orthopedic surgeons with clinical and technological updates in managing patients who require primary hip and knee arthroplasty, or hip fracture repair. Orthopedic surgeons seek educational opportunities to assess clinical and technological advancements that can improve patient outcomes in hip and knee reconstruction and hip fractures. Minimally invasive surgical techniques, navigation and enhanced implants offer the surgeon new surgical choices that require educational updates.
