The Dallas Limb Restoration Center has developed a new program that will allow patients undergoing minimally invasive hip and knee replacements to go home the next day. This is the only center in Dallas-Fort Worth to do such surgeries.
Dallas Limb Restoration Center Now Doing Overnight Hips, Knees
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The implant technology utilized for next day knees and the AMIS (anterior minimally invasive surgery) surgical approach for anterior hip replacement allow patients to be up and walking a few hours after surgery. Richard Buch, M.D., an orthopedic surgeon at Dallas Limb Restoration Center, utilizes use 3-D printing from a CT scan to create custom implants for each patient. Dr. Buch’s colleague, Victor Hakim, M.D., uses the AMIS approach, which allows patients to take less pain medication and eliminates the need for many post operative restrictions that are associated with traditional hip replacement.
Asked about ‘borderline’ cases, i.e., those that may or may not be appropriate for next day surgery, Dr. Buch told OTW, “Patients with significant obesity, severe heart disease, or multiple medical problems are not candidates for this…but even if they are operated on they can go home sooner 2-3 days (as opposed to normal knee replacements which take 4-5 days).”
“The biggest challenge is educating patients in what the experience involves and what they are expected to do”.
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This is a fascinating development. In my practice we've seen similar outcomes with the revised protocol. The key differentiator seems to be patient selection criteria. Has anyone else noticed the correlation with BMI thresholds?
Great point. I'd push back slightly on the conclusion, the sample size in the cited study is too small to draw population-level inferences. That said, the directional signal is compelling and worth a larger RCT.
We implemented a similar approach last year. Early results are promising but we're still gathering 12-month follow-up data. Happy to share our protocol if anyone is interested.
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