Many Americans need joint replacement surgery on their knees. In fact, 4.4 million Americans have received total knee arthroplasty surgery and this number is increasing every day.

One popular knee replacement system is the Exactech Optetrak system. However, issues reported with the Exactech knee replacement has concerned both doctors and the patients who have been implanted with them.

Exactech is a joint replacement manufacturing company that is based in Gainesville, Fla. but has offices in six other countries around the world. According to the Exactech website, their products are distributed in 35 countries.

Exactech specializes in joint replacement devices and manufactures many different products including knee and hip replacement systems, shoulder replacement devices and various components in each of these categories.

Even with Exactech’s success, early device system failures with their Optetrak knee systems have raised concerns in the medical community.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has received reports that Exactech’s Optetrak knees were failing prematurely because of what should be normal wear and tear caused by the tibial insert. On at least two occasions in 2011, reports of design or labeling irregularities led the FDA to announce an Exatech knee replacement recall affecting dozens of devices.

Exactech Optetrak Knee Study

The journal Orthopaedics & Traumatology: Surgery & Research published a study looking at the Exactech Optetrak and how it was performing over time in patients who’d undergone total knee arthroplasty surgery.

The study looked at 106 patients and 110 Exactech knee replacements systems at the two year mark after the patients’ initial surgery. It found that 15% of the patients were either disappointed or dissatisfied with their Exactech Optetrak knee replacement.

Twenty-two percent of those participating in the study said that they were in pain requiring at least daily painkillers, and 22 percent also said that they were beginning to suffer from tibial implant loosening. Also, over one-fifth of the participants reported patellofemoral instability.

Of the 106 patients, 13 needed revision surgery to repair patellofemoral instability, patellofemoral pain or tibial loosening. Researchers in the study found that patients were experiencing tibial loosening at the place where the cement and tibial implant meet.

Fragmentation and wear of the plastic insert of the Exactch Optetrak knee system also caused problems, researchers found.

Other problems with Exactech Optetrak knee replacement systems include pain, mobility issues, instability problems, swelling, infections, fractures, inflammation, disassociation or loosening of implant, patella tracking issues and more.

Problems like this often necessitate early revision surgery. Revision surgery is often riskier and more wrought with complications than the original total arthroplasty surgery. It can come with risks of infection and fracture, blood clots, pulmonary embolism and dislocation.

Revision surgery often takes longer to heal, increasing recovery time, and may cost patients greatly due to lost wages and increased medical bills.

If you or someone you love has had an Exactech knee replacement system, you may benefit from speaking to an experienced attorney.

Get a Free Knee Replacement Case Review

If you or a loved one suffered from complications caused by an Attune knee implant, an Arthrex knee implant, or an Exactech knee implant, you may have a legal claim. In general, knee replacement surgery lawsuits are filed individually by each plaintiff and are not class actions. Get help now by filling out the form on this page for a FREE case evaluation.

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