Computer Assisted Knee Surgery Using Navigation System

ABSTRACT

Navigation systems are currently being widely used in orthopedic surgery, and especially for total knee arthroplasty (TKA) or UKA. The mechanical axis alignment and component insertion can be judged accurately via a navigation system and this also helps in ligament balancing. A navigation system can also be used in ACL reconstruction and High Tibial Osteotomy (HTO). In open-wedge HTO, accurate multiplane measurements of the lower limb alignment can be made intraoperatively in real time, and alignment adjustments can be made as the surgeon desires. Navigation more accurately improves the postoperative lower limb alignment than the conventional cable-method, and it significantly reduces the radiation exposure time. Navigation for ACL reconstruction allows exact placement of the tibial and femoral tunnels and it prevents impingement, and it also significantly improves the results of isometricity of the femoral tunnel and the stability of the reconstructed ACL ligament. Using a navigation system in knee surgery provided useful intraoperative information about the anatomical placement that's done intraoperatively in real time. It helps perform accurate surgery, it improves the radiologically assessed implantation and it allows precise correction of a mechanical axis, and so we can expect improved clinical results.