Does Robotic Knee Surgery Benefit a Patient’s Recovery after TKA Surgery Compared with Conventional Methods?

Introduction: Total Knee Arthroplasty (TKA) is a very common procedure in the treatment of painful osteoarthritis of the knee. However, despite this, up to 20% of patients report dissatisfaction with the outcome of their procedure. Robotic TKA has been developed to improve the accuracy of the surgical procedure and improve intra-operative ligament balancing, which may improve patient function and satisfaction. The aim of this study was to evaluate if patients that underwent robotic TKA are more satisfied and have improved patient reported outcomes compared to those undergoing conventional TKA methods in the short-term.

Methods: Oxford knee score (OKS) and patient’s satisfaction questionnaires were sent to 27 Patients who were approximately 6 months post robotic TKA surgery. The results from these surveys was compared with similar data obtained from a cohort of 20 age and sex matched patients who have had conventional non-robotic TKA surgery in the same hospital using the same implants. The data was then analysed to allow comparisons to be made regarding oxford knee scores and patient satisfaction between the 2 groups.

Results: Responses were obtained from 20 patients that underwent robotic TKA, which were compared with results from 20 patients that underwent conventional TKA. The average age in the robotic group was 73.6 with a range of 60 – 95 and the average age in the conventional group was 74.6 with a range of 56 – 90. The mean OKS was highest in the robotic group (32.3 vs 26.4). The difference in these values was statistically significant, p value = 0.039. A higher percentage of the robotic group had an oxford knee score > 30, (70% vs 40%) with a p value = 0.059. When analysing pain, 40% of patients for robotic knee surgery reported no pain, compared with only 5% of patients in the conventional group. This result was also statistically significant with a p value of < 0.01.

Conclusion: Robotic knee surgery does benefit a patient’s recovery postoperatively compared with traditional knee surgery. Overall, robotic arm assisted Total Knee Arthroplasty was associated with improved patient satisfaction, decreased pain and improved early functional recovery compared with Conventional Total Knee Arthroplasty.