NAVIO™ robotics-assisted knee surgery

Knee replacement surgery is an operation to treat knee pain. The procedure involves removing damaged parts of your knee joint and replacing them with artificial elements, also known as implants or a prosthesis.  

Knee replacement surgery helps restore function to your knee and reduce or even eliminate knee pain, significantly improving your quality of life. Usually, knee replacement surgery is recommended when less invasive treatments, such as steroid injection therapy or physiotherapy, have not helped reduce your knee pain.

If you're suffering with knee pain, you've landed in the right place. Knee replacement surgery (both traditional and robotic knee replacement surgery) can help significantly reduce your knee pain and improve your quality of life.

This page focuses specifically on robotics-assisted total and partial knee replacement surgery using NAVIO™. You'll also find lots of relevant information on our specific pages about rotating knee replacement surgery, total knee replacement surgery and partial knee replacement surgery.

The NAVIO™ surgical system is an advanced surgical system that allows your consultant to perform knee replacement surgery with greater accuracy and precision than is possible with traditional techniques.

What is a robotic knee replacement?

Although it sounds like science fiction, robotics-assisted surgery is an established practice. Robots have been helping surgeons perform orthopaedic procedures since the early 1990s.

The idea of ‘robot surgery’ may sound daunting, but a robotic total knee replacement is still carried out by surgeons. The technology is there to help doctors – not replace them – and is still guided by their hands. Your consultant does not respond to demands made by the robot. They control it.

In the case of knee replacement surgery, the technology allows for more accuracy and precision than conventional methods. The NAVIO™ tool is a hand-held system that moves as your surgeon moves, combining innovative technology with the skills and expertise of your consultant. The system also uses bone-surface mapping to collect tailored information about your knee, which helps build a customised 3D digital model of your knee to determine the right size of implant for you. 

At Circle Health Group, our consultant orthopaedic surgeons use the NAVIO™ robotics-assisted-knee-surgery system because it offers patients a faster recovery time from knee replacement surgery, as well as long lasting results.

The benefits of knee replacement surgery with a robot compared to traditional methods can include:

1. No need for a CT scan

The NAVIO™ surface-mapping technology creates a 3D model of your knee without the need for a CT scan.

2. Less pain

The advanced technology could lead to a less invasive procedure, meaning you could be in less pain in the days and weeks following surgery.

3. Faster recovery times

One study showed that patients undergoing robotics-assisted partial knee replacement were able to return to sports an average of six months faster than with traditional surgery.

4. A more natural feeling knee

The system allows surgeons to offer partial rather than full knee replacements in more instances. This can result in a more natural feeling knee.

5. Lower chance of revision

Studies suggest robotics-assisted knee replacements leave patients more satisfied and can lower the chance of repeat surgery being needed.

The benefits through the eyes of a consultant

Consultant orthopaedic surgeon Mr Winston Kim from The Alexandra Hospital shares advice on the advantages of the surgical system.

He says: "In my experience I have found that the technology reassures my patients about their surgery. This can allow them to focus on rehabilitation and exercises, which are crucial after partial and total knee replacement.

"The robotic technology guides the implantation of the prosthesis, allowing for improved precision and accuracy. This can offer benefits including less pain after the operation, a reduced hospital stay, a quicker return to day-to-day activities and a faster return to work. The technology has the potential to reduce early and late complications and improve the likelihood of a normal feeling knee after surgery."

Consultant orthopaedic surgeon Mr Adam Hoad-Reddick from The Alexandra Hospital explains the differences between conventional and robotics-assisted surgery.

He says: "Robotics-assisted surgery allows surgeons to be more personalised when choosing and implanting a prosthesis, which can significantly aid our accuracy. Instead of using predetermined angles and measurements to plan the procedure, the advanced software helps surgeons pinpoint the correct placement for your individual joint.

"We hope that this accuracy will improve long-term patient satisfaction after knee replacement surgery. With traditional methods, up to one in five patients have been somewhat dissatisfied with conventional knee replacement surgery. The reasons for this are not fully understood. They may be related to changes in the way that the knee moves, the alignment of the knee, the rotational profile or subtle changes in ligament balance.

"With robotics-assisted knee replacement surgery, we hope that patients will feel that the new knee is more like their own, more comfortable and natural feeling with an improved range of movement in comparison to historical knee replacement systems."

Every individual’s knee replacement recovery time looks slightly different. It will be affected by factors including:

• How active you were before having knee replacement surgery
• Your usual everyday activities
• The nature of your job (i.e. whether you have an active job or a desk job)
• Your age

A robotic knee replacement recovery timeline will look slightly different to a traditional knee replacement recovery timeline. Your orthopaedic surgeon will understand your personal circumstances and health better and be able to advise what your personal knee surgery recovery timeline looks like.

You can find more details on our knee replacement surgery page.

Complications can occur during any surgery. Potential complication during any surgical procedure include:

• Pain
• Infection in the surgical wound
• Excessive bleeding
• Scarring
• Blood clotting
• Chest infection
• Heart attack
• Stroke

Specific complications that can occur during a knee replacement surgery (traditional and robotics-assisted surgery) include:

• Pain
• Swelling
• Stiffness
• Fracture
• Damage to your nerves
• Damage to blood vessels
• Infection in your knee