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Complications of surgical treatment

General complications

Early rise after prothesis intervention

Thromboembolism: mainly observed in surgery of a lower limb. A routine LMWH prophylaxis is established, early mobilisation after surgery and wearing compression stockings.

Haemorrhage: postoperative blood loss may be significant and can be offset by self-transfusion.

Locoregional complications

  • Haemarthrosis and haematomas
  • Skin necrosis and disunity
  • Nerve paralysis
  • Vascular lesions
  • Infectious complications. This is a rare but serious complication that very often requires repeat surgery for cleaning and removal of prosthetic material and a prolonged antibiotic treatment.

Two clinical patterns can be observed: early post-operative septic arthritis or a latent infection, a prosthesis implanted in aseptic conditions may be the perfect location for secondary contamination from a source located at a distance (tonsillitis, dental infection, etc.).

Late complications

  • Joint stiffness, which it is possible to combat by early post-operative rehabilitation.
  • Post operative joint dystrophy: it sometimes appears early and may interfere with rehabilitation, leading to joint stiffness.
  • Prosthetic wear, an inevitable long-term complication.
  • Loosening of the prosthesis In case of early loosening after prosthetic surgery, it is imperative to search for an infection.

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