Minimally Invasive Subvastus (Sub V, Quadriceps Sparing) Knee Replacement Surgery

 

The image above shows the different ways surgeons cut into the knee joint to remove the arthritis and put in the implants necessary during knee replacement surgery.  The image on the left shows by far the most common approach to the knee called the median parapatellar approach.  This approach involves cutting the quadriceps tendon and repairing it at the end of the procedure. Naturally, this causes a lot of pain and weakness of the quadriceps muscle after surgery while it is healing. 

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The image to the right depicts the subvastus (subv) approach to the knee which Dr. Weidner is now offering for his knee replacement patients.  This approach involves going underneath the quadriceps muscle and moving the entire extensor mechanism to the side to access the knee joint.  There is no tendon damage and minimal muscle trauma.  This allows for less pain and a quicker recovery because you are not relying on tendon and muscle healing after the surgery to regain strength of the quadriceps muscles.  Patients with a subvastus muscle sparing knee replacement can expect to regain motion more quickly and likely require less postoperative physical therapy.