Knee Replacement Your Guide

History of Knee Replacements

Scientists have tried to replace diseased knees since over 130 years. In 1890, Themistocles Gluck, a German Surgeon,  implanted the first Knee Replacement in human history. He implanted a hinge joint made of ivory in a 17 year old boy with Tuberculosis of the knee. Till the 1960s, all further attempts to replace knees consisted of hinge joints and they were not very successful as our knee is not a  hinge. In the 1960s, Frank Gunston devised a Knee Replacement that was shaped like the natural bone of the knee. He had separate implants for the inner and the outer side of the knee and these implants were cemented in the bones. Although more successful than the hinge joints, these operations were very difficult to perform as it involved implanting 4 different implants in 1 knee and the concepts and principles of the operation were not yet fully understood. From the 1970s, the condylar knees were designed wherein the outer and inner sides of the knee joint were replaced by a single bi-condylar component. This has brought on the modern era of Knee Replacements.  Hence, when you undergo a Knee Replacement in 2020’s, the collected successful scientific experience of over 70 years in the fields of biomaterials, cementing technology, surgical technique, patient selection, pain management etc. is utilized to ensure that you get an optimum outcome.