The Gender Solutions™ Knee

According to more than 20 years of follow-up data from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), total knee replacement is a highly successful surgery that provides substantial improvement in pain, functional status and overall health-related quality of life for approximately 9 out of 10 patients. Total knee replacement involves the removal of a portion of bone that is damaged, due to deterioration of cartilage, and the use of metal and plastic implants to resurface the knee. Of the 400,000 annual knee replacement patients, nearly two-thirds are women.

Although most women are happy with the results of a knee replacement, some still experience residual pain in the front of the knee or around the kneecap, or the artificial knee does not function the way their own did when it was healthy. Knee replacement implants have historically been designed based upon an average between the size of women's and men's knees, and numerous studies have shown that the discomfort that women experience is due to the significant shape difference that exists in men's and women's knees.

The Gender Solutions™ Knee, developed by Robert Booth, MD, Chief of Orthopaedic Surgery at Pennsylvania Hospital and a team of orthopaedists, was designed based on three distinct and scientifically documented shape differences between men's and women's knees, and a highly detailed map of the joint using three-dimensional imaging. The goal of this new implant is an overall better fit to alleviate joint pain and increase mobility.

The three differences include:

• Thinner Profile – The bone in the front of a woman's knee is typically less prominent than in a man's knee. When a traditional implant is used, the joint may feel “bulky”, which may cause pain and decrease optimal function. The Gender Solutions™ Knee is thinner in shape in the front, so the knee replacement more appropriately fits the natural female anatomy.

• More Natural Tracking – The angle between the hip and the knee affects how the kneecap tracks over the thigh bone when the knee is in motion. Women tend to have a different angle than men due to their specific shape and contour. The Gender Solutions™ Knee was designed to accommodate the different tracking angle and function more like a woman's natural knee.

• Contoured Shape – Typically, women's knees are narrower from side to side, and are more trapezoid-shaped. An implant that fits a woman's knee from front to back will often be too wide from side to side, possibly causing pain. The Gender Solutions™ Knee is proportionally contoured to the entire bone to provide a more precise fit.
  
  

  Shape of a Traditional Knee Implant vs. Contoured Shape of the Gender Solutions™ Knee

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