In the treatment of knee osteoarthritis there are no reports using bi-unicompartimental implants and many orthopaedic surgeons are sceptical about this demanding surgical procedure despite its theoretical advantages in terms of less invasive surgery. The bi-unicompartmental approach also offers the potential advantage of maximal preservation of normal anatomy, with benefits for functional aspects such as gait, muscle activity, and proprioception.Computer-aided knee replacement surgery has been gaining popularity and an improvement in limb alignment and kinematics has been demonstrated in several studies. During the procedure the surgeon can check both implant position and ligament balance during the full range of joint movements, which helps to reduce the complications traditionally associated with failure in the past. The authors present a computer-aided technique for performing bi-unicompartimental knee replacement which permits a less invasive alternative for knee replacement surgery.
Copyright 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.