Orthopedics Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Orthopedics, including details on chronic injuries, muscoskeletal disorders, surgery, reconstruction.

Comparison of operative time and accuracy using conventional fixed navigation cutting blocks and adjustable Pivotal cutting blocks.

Klima S, Zeh A, Josten C

Center for Orthopedics and Traumatology, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany. stefan.klima@medizin.uni-leipzig.de

Computer-assisted navigation in total knee arthroplasty has been shown to improve implant positioning and may lead to improved patient outcomes. The purpose of this study was to assess differences in time and accuracy using a navigation system with either a conventional (20 knees) or specially designed (20 knees) system of cutting blocks. The time needed for fixing and positioning the specially designed blocks averaged 2.9 minutes, compared to 6.4 minutes for the conventional blocks (p < 0.001). In the coronal plane, the mean angular difference between the instrument slot and the resected bone was smaller for the specially designed blocks than for the conventional blocks. This difference was significant for both the femoral (p = 0.007) and tibial (p = 0.028) cuts. These encouraging results show the need for further study of navigation in total knee arthroplasty.

Published 14 July 2008 in Comput Aided Surg, 13(4): 225-32.
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