Noncemented tibial components:  does a stem help?
A prospective, nonrandomized study was conducted in an attempt to determine if the addition of a stem to the tibial component in noncemented total knee replacement reduces the incidence of sinkage.  A stemmed tibial component was used in 125 cases and an identical artificial knee without a stem was used in 307 cases.  Follow-up was two to six years.  Sinkage occurred in 0.8% of the cases with stemmed tibial components and in 3.5% of the nonstemmed tibial components, among which two (0.8%) required revision.  The clinical results for both groups were similar.  A small group of 34 patients who had a stemmed tibial component on one side and a nonstemmed component on the other also were examined.  Fifty percent of these patients preferred the stemmed component knee.  The results of these studies suggest that the addition of a stem to the tibial component in noncemented total knee replacement is of value in preventing tibial sinkage.
Departments of Surgery, Pathology, and Engineering, University of Toronto, Canada.
H U
HU
Cameron
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007720:Knee Prosthesis / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000295:instrumentation*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011474:Prosthesis Design; D011475:Prosthesis Failure; D016019:Survival Analysis