Computer assisted surgical navigation has played an increasingly central role in total knee arthroplasty (TKA). Given the recognized importance of subtle component position changes in knee function, navigation has emerged as a promising tool for reducing the occurrence of significant malalignment. The ability of this technology to reliably measure multiple parameters intraoperatively allows analysis to possibly identify a correlation between intraoperative computer assisted surgical navigation data and functional outcomes of patients undergoing elective total knee arthroplasty.

Intraoperative navigation data was collected for 121 patients undergoing cemented, posterior stabilized TKA. Three forward stepwise regression analyses were performed to associate intraoperative coronal alignment correction, tibiofemoral external rotation, and alignment under varus and valgus stress with one year outcomes, including range of motion, Oxford and SF-36 scores.

The amount of alignment correction and the maximum flexion achieved intraoperatively were significantly correlated (p <0.05, R-sq = 13%) with clinically measured maximum flexion at one year. Maximum flexion achieved intraoperatively, external tibiofemoral rotation and maximum varus under stress were also significantly associated (p < 0.05, R-sq = 31%) with the physical component of the SF-36 outcome score.

Analyses of computer navigation in TKA to date have primarily focused on precision of sagittal plane correction. Alternatively we have identified four intraoperative parameters that correlate with functional outcome at one year. Correct intraoperative interpretation of navigation data may allow surgeons to make subtle changes in real time to produce superior short-term outcomes for patients.