title: Primary total knee arthroplasty in patients with fixed valgus deformity.
abstract: Ninety-nine knees in 81 patients evaluated from two to ten years and having enough valgus deformity to require specific soft-tissue release were studied. They were also compared to a control group of 40 knees in 31 patients with no angular deformity greater than 5 degrees, who were matched for age and diagnosis. All procedures were performed using a minimally constrained, posterior-cruciate-ligament-sparing prosthesis. Pre- and postoperative axial alignment was measured on weight-bearing long-standing roentgenographs. Analysis included examination for lucent lines in postoperative fluoroscopically positioned roentgenographs and clinical data summarized using the 100-point scoring systems developed by The Knee Society. Knees were classified as having Type I, II, or III valgus deformities: Type I was defined as valgus deformity secondary to bone loss in the lateral compartment and soft-tissue contracture with medial soft tissues intact; Type II was defined as obvious attenuation of the medial capsular ligament complex; and Type III was defined as severe valgus deformity with valgus malpositioning of the proximal tibial joint line after overcorrected proximal tibial osteotomy. Only cases of Type I and Type II were represented in the 99 knees reported. Type I patients were treated with lateral soft-tissue release, and Type II patients were treated with medial capsular ligament tightening (i.e., ligament reconstruction procedures on the medial side). The Knee Society postoperative knee score was 87.6 (+/- 10.6) and mean postoperative functional score was 52.3. Alignment was well corrected and knee scores for the Type I and II groups were almost identical as were the functional scores. The results were grouped as 72% excellent, 18% good, 7% fair, and 2% poor. Notably, the control group was 39 of 40 patients excellent, and only one poor. Ligament stability was satisfactorily established by lateral release in Type I and with the combined medial plication in the Type II patients. The ligament-tightening procedures were on the average 40 minutes longer than those for the Type I or the control groups. The controversial nature of the simultaneous ligament reconstruction method is recognized, but good experience is reported.
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Johns Hopkins University, School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland.
authors.forename: K A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Krackow
authors.forename: M M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.forename: S M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Teeny
authors.forename: D S
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Hungerford
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001172:Arthritis, Rheumatoid / Q000150:complications; D001178:Arthroplasty / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D016916:Joint Deformities, Acquired / Q000145:classification / Q000209:etiology / Q000601:surgery*; D007719:Knee Joint / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery*; D007720:Knee Prosthesis; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010003:Osteoarthritis / Q000150:complications; D011859:Radiography