SAGITTAL PLANE ALIGNMENT OF THE FEMORAL COMPONENT IN TKA CAOS VS MANUAL

Abstract

Unexpected findings were sometimes observed such as hyper extension, oversize of femoral component, or anterior notching of anterior femoral cortex in total knee arthroplasty (TKA) using computer system. We conducted this study to evaluate these findings by a virtual simulation using ORTHODOC and then confirmed them on real patients with TKA.

Virtual simulations of distal femoral cut in 50 patients using ORTHODOC system were made by way of being perpendicular to mechanical axis (CAOS way) and to intramedullary guide (manual way) in the same knee and measured the difference of sagittal cutting planes. We compared the maximum AP dimensions of femoral condyle parallel to distal cut plane. We also compared sagittal alignment and size of the femoral component in 30 bilateral TKAs, one side using ROBODOC (CAOS way) and the other side using IM guide (manual way).

On virtual simulation, distal femoral cut was more extended (3.1±1.6°) in CAOS than in manual way and anteroposterior size of the femoral condyle in CAOS way was also larger than in manual way (p=0.001). Radiographic sagittal alignment of femoral component performed using CAOS way was slightly more extended than those using manual way, showing a significant difference (p=0.024). The larger femoral components were required in six patients on CAOS and in two patients on manual way, whereas twenty-two patients showed same size on both side.

CAOS can provide more accurate sagittal cut perpendicular to mechanical axis than manual system, which may lead to slightly extended position or larger femoral component.