Abstract
Objective
This study focuses specifically on patients undergoing medial unicompartmental knee arthroplasty (UKA) and aims to investigate the relationship between radiographic alignment and component position and their effects on midterm outcomes and functional capacity.
Materials and Methods
This study examined patients who underwent medial UKA due to medial osteoarthritis in our hospital between 2016 and 2021. 61 knees of 45 patients were examined. The mechanical tibiofemoral angle (MTFA), varus-valgus angle, and flexion-extension angle of the femoral and tibial implants were measured postoperatively in coronal and sagittal planes for each patient. The arrival times, patient age, sex, and body mass index (BMI) were recorded for the follow-up examinations. Scores for the Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) knee score, Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), and Timed Up and Go (TUG) test were obtained and compared with individual radiographic measurements.
Results
The follow-up time ranged from 2 to 6 years (mean 3.8 years). It was found that MTFA and component position had no significant impact on HSS knee score and VAS score. The patients whose sagittal plane tibial component inclination was closer to the neutral values (mean 7.1°) had significantly higher functional capacity and range of motion.
Conclusion
This study found that postoperative radiographic alignment differences had no significant impact on clinical outcomes and functional capacity in patients who underwent medial UKA. However, functional capacity significantly increased when the tibial component is placed near the neutral tilt in the sagittal plane.