infection

[eagle6]

what type of test is used to tell if there is infection? What can be done if infection is detected after knee replacement?

[knight_of_knee]

They could probably do a blood test and see if your white blood cells are high (the cells that fight infection).

I don't much about knee replacements though.

Good luck,

Sid  

[Heather M.]

In addition to the test for white blood cell count, to truly get to the bottom of things it's often helpful to draw tissue from the knee and try to culture it to see if bacteria are present.

Also, a CRP and Sed rate test can pick up stuff missed by the other tests.  They are considered the definitive tests for infection, whereas the White Blood Cell test isn't 100% accurate...or anywhere close.