Vascular injury following revision knee arthroplasthy: A case report

Abstract

Acute arterial occlusions are uncommon complications in total knee arthroplasty (TKA). This complication is seen more in TKA revision surgery, and when appropriate treatment cannot be made, amputation may be necessary. The present case is here presented of a patient applied with TKA revision because of instability following a simple fall one year after primary TKA, and popliteal artery occlusion developed in the early postoperative period. The patient was a 70-year old female not actively working. In the patient history there was deep vein thrombosis in the ipsilateral lower extremity after primary TKA and associated with that, pulmonary embolism. The diagnosis of popliteal artery occlusion, which formed after the revision surgery, was diagnosed with advanced tests in the 3rd hour postoperatively, and in the 4th hour, exploration was made. No arterial active bleeding had been observed intraoperatively. Popliteal thrombectomy were applied of popliteal artery trombosis. Acute arterial occlusion is a rarely encountered complication, but it requires emergency intervention. To prevent the development of acute occlusive disease in revision knee surgery, preoperative evaluation of arterial status is recommended, especially in patients with a history of surgery.