Certified Maximum-Care Center for Joint Replacements at Krankenhaus Düren

Walks become shorter. You wake up at night due to joint pain. You gradually become less mobile. Climbing stairs become difficult. Painkillers only provide temporary relief. Fortunately, there are many ways to help. In addition to targeted physical therapy, braces, walking aids, and a pain management plan tailored to your individual needs, one thing is particularly important: movement. After all, if you rest, you rust.

When mobility is so severely limited that quality of life suffers, and movement is no longer possible, a joint replacement surgery may be appropriate. Such a procedure can be performed on all major joints, though it is most commonly done on the hip or knee. With this surgery, we give patients renewed mobility and provide significant relief from pain.

Do not be afraid of pain after the surgery. We apply high-quality standards and train all involved staff to provide you with the best possible care. Our hospital hygiene team pays meticulous attention to cleanliness and sterility. In this area, we have already been awarded multiple prestigious quality seals.

Physiotherapy ensures rapid mobilization. Specially trained staff will support you in applying for your subsequent rehabilitation program. And of course, we are always there for you after the surgery as part of our consultation hours – whether you have questions right after your rehab stay or only years later. We walk this path together with you.

The surgical robot is used in joint surgery for the implantation of an artificial knee joint. It allows for a highly precise, patient-specific placement of the prosthesis. Unlike other systems currently on the market, CORI does not use a saw – but a computer-controlled milling tool to remove bone material. A digital 3D representation of the bone structures also enables the surgeon to review and adjust each step of the procedure at any time.

The surgeon-guided robotic tool performs precise bone preparation and improves the positioning of the implants, as well as their alignment in both axis and rotation. The CORI system not only considers the bony axes but also incorporates the assessment of the ligament structures required for a successful operation into the planning algorithm. This allows the surgeon to better evaluate whether corrective measures would exceed the anatomical limits of the knee joint, thus preventing overloading of the patient’s ligaments. By linking both processes, the prosthesis is optimally implanted according to the natural movement of the knee joint. Additionally, the CORI technique is radiation-free, and unlike older methods, a preoperative CT scan is not required.

Absolutely yes! The instrument works similarly to a CNC milling machine and immediately shuts off if it moves outside the preplanned surgical area. This technology prevents deviations from the planned surgical steps and minimizes the risk of injuring soft tissues.

The surgeon can always rely on the proven implant technology. This means that the implants used in both conventional freehand and robot-assisted techniques are identical. In the highly unlikely event of a robot system failure, the operation can be switched back to the original surgical technique at any time.

For hospitals using this advanced technology, high investment and maintenance costs arise, which are currently not covered by either private or statutory health insurance. Our clinic, however, covers these costs for all patients, regardless of insurance. As a result, widespread availability of robot-assisted technology in Germany is not expected in the foreseeable future.

High-quality long-term studies with large patient numbers that can prove better clinical outcomes for patients are not yet sufficiently available for the entire field of robot-assisted knee surgery. As with many other medical innovations, it will take several more years. However, scientific research, particularly from the USA and Australia, is already showing promising results.

A successful operation requires highly trained personnel. A specialized team of surgeons, surgical assistants, and operating room technicians at our clinic has been working with robot-assisted technology for a long time. These staff members have participated in numerous training programs both nationally and internationally, enabling them to seamlessly integrate the new technology into the surgical workflow.

We view robot-assisted surgery as an important complement to the already successful surgical techniques at our clinic, which have been in place for many years. This is reflected in our steadily increasing patient numbers as well as in the quality indicators of health insurance providers and the German Endoprosthesis Registry.

We currently see the benefits of robotic technology particularly in patients with significant axis deviations, such as bow legs (O-shaped) or knock knees (X-shaped), as well as in those with ligament instability and bone changes resulting from injuries. These patients are identified during the preoperative examination, which takes place several weeks before the planned procedure. This allows us to optimally prepare both the patient and our team for the surgery.