Short-Term Outcomes of Robotic-Arm-Assisted Patellofemoral Arthroplasty in Four Patients with Isolated Patellofemoral Arthritis: A Retrospective Surgical Case Series.

Abstract

Patients with isolated patellofemoral osteoarthritis (PF-OA) have limited surgical options when conservative management fails. The emerging robotic-assisted patellofemoral arthroplasty (RA-PFA) technique can help attain precise implant positioning, which may result in satisfactory surgical and functional outcomes for PF-OA patients. We retrospectively reviewed routinely collected clinical data of patients who underwent consecutive RA-PFA at a quaternary care center, between January 2018 and October 2022. We describe their preoperative and postoperative clinical profile, their radiological and functional outcomes at the end of a median 54-month follow-up-like patellar tilt (PT), Caton-Deschamps Index (CDI), Visual Analog Scale (VAS), Oxford Knee Score (OKS) and Kujala score (KS). Outcomes were reported as median (range). We retrospectively analyzed the outcomes of four patients (three females and one male) aged 50-71 years who underwent RA-PFA on six knees (two bilateral). All four patients had an improvement in their postoperative patellar tilt [- 2.5° (- 7° to 8°) to 3.5° (2°-6°)], CDI [0.93 (0.7-1.3) to 0.89 (0.75-0.98)], VAS [7.5 (7-8) to 1 (1-2)], OKS [20.5 (15-24) to 39.5 (36-44)], and Kujala score [53 (48-69) to 79 (76-83)]. None of the patients suffered a postoperative adverse event or needed revision procedures. As the first report from India, RA-PFA seems to be an effective intervention for isolated PF-OA. However, considering the costs incurred, its superiority over conventional PFA in surgical precision or patient outcomes is yet to be established. The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s43465-025-01500-8.