The Influence of Alignment on Midterm Outcome after Total Knee Arthroplasty in Patients With Marked Coronal Femoral Bowing.

Huang, Tsan-Wen; Lee, Ching-Yu; Lin, Shih-Jie; Lee, Mel S; Hsu, Robert Wen-Wei; Shen, Wun-Jer · J Arthroplasty · 2015

retrospective_cohort · Level III

Where this comes from

Abstract

Whether the mechanical axis should be restored to neutral remains controversial when the patient has marked coronal femoral bowing. Eighty-four total knee arthroplasties were retrospectively reviewed. In the neutral-aligned group A the immediate postoperative mechanical axis of 179 ± 1° held stable (P = 0.841). The postoperative mechanical axis decreased from 176 ± 1° to 173 ± 1° (P = 0.024) in the outlier group. Progressive varus in the outlier group at follow-up was probably due implant instability and ligament imbalance as well as excessive polyethylene wear. At a mean follow-up of 75.8 months, no statistically significant difference was detected between the two groups. Long-term follow up will be needed to determine if the maintenance in radiographic results translates to better clinical outcomes.

Medical subject headings

Anatomy