Education and Rehabilitation of the High-Performance Knee Arthroplasty Patient

Rehabilitation is essential to the success of any total knee arthroplasty (TKA). The following is an aggressive TKA protocol divided into four phases: Phase I, Early Mobilization Phase; Phase II, Work Phase (routine daily activities, walking, golf); Phase III, Power Phase (closed kinetic chain activities, low impact sports); Phase IV, Return to Functional Level (limited open-chain kinetic sports). The goals of this program are achieving early and maximal range of motion and strength, while minimizing stresses at fixation sites until sufficient bone ingrowth takes place. It consistently results in improved scores on all functional tests and fulfills patients’ rehabilitation needs.