J Korean Knee Soc.  2006 Jun;18(1):67-73.

The Effect of Lateral Retinacular Peeling in Total Knee Arthroplasty

• Kim HC
• Roh JY
• Lee CW
• Lee CW
• Tak HC

Abstract

PURPOSE
The aim of the present study was to investigate if a lateral retinacular peeling helped decrease the amount of lateral patellar tilt in total knee arthroplasty (TKA).
MATERIALS AND METHODS
The lateral tilt angles were measured in tangential radiographs made preoperatively and postoperatively, with the knee in 100 degrees of flexion, in an earlier series of 38 TKAs(Group 1) and a series of 53 TKAs (Group 2) that included lateral retinacular peel and partial facetectomy.
RESULTS
The mean preoperative patellar tilt angle was 9.1+/-4.5 degrees in the group 1 and 9.5+/-5.2 degrees in the group 2. The mean postoperative patellar tilt angle was 12.8 +/-6.2 and 11.0+/-7.1 degrees, respectively. The implant tilt angle was 6.3+/-7.3 and 5.5+/-6.1 degrees, respectively. The differences between two groups were not statistically significant.
CONCLUSION
The patella would tilt laterally following total knee arthroplasty. A lateral retinacular peeling had no discernible effect on the postoperative lateral tilt of the resurfaced patella.

Keyword

Total knee arthroplasty; Lateral retinaculum; Peeling

MeSH Terms

Arthroplasty*
Knee*
Patella