The effect of axial rotation of the anterior resection plane in patellofemoral arthroplasty

Abstract

Background: Patellofemoral arthroplasty (PFA) has a small but definite place in replacement surgery of the knee, especially in young patients. The main surgical considerations in PFA are the patient's anatomy, the type of prosthesis and the surgical technique. The surgical technique and PFA success rely heavily on the anterior resection. In this study we investigate the effect of axial rotation of the anterior resection plane.

Methods: We tested the outcome of PFA fit based on resection footprint measurements, axial and coronal groove angles, and lateral trochlear inclination (LTI) angle in a virtual PFA model. The range of anterior resection plane axial rotations was from five degree internal to five degree external with an increment of one degree.

Results: Axial rotation of anterior resection plane changes the resection footprint dimension, which leads to coronal rotation of the femoral component. External rotation of the resection plane results in valgus rotation of the trochlear groove and decreased LTI after PFA and the opposite was observed for internal rotation.

Conclusion: Our study showed that by changing the axial rotation of the anterior cut, the coronal groove of the prosthesis can be altered to lie more closely with the native groove line without compromising the prosthesis-cartilage transition.

Keywords: Alignment of femoral component; Anterior resection plane rotation; Axial rotation; Femoral component positioning; Patellofemoral arthroplasty; Trochlear groove alignment.