High tibial osteotomy with fixation of Giebel blade plate for the treatment of osteoarthritis of the knee / 中华骨科杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective To evaluate the results of treatment with the high tibial osteotomy and fixtation with the new Giebel blade plate for osteoarthritis of the knee, and to discuss the indication for this technique. Methods Seventy patients(108 knees), 14 male and 56 female, with an average age of 59.6 years (range 38-76)were reviewed. The average postoperative follow up was 12 months (from 6 to 20 months ). Pain was complained chiefly in the medial aspect of the knee joint and the majority of patients had slight degree of genu varum. This new Giebel blade plate acts as a tension band when it is placed on the site for fixation, the proximal tibial fibular joint was not exposed during surgery so that the fibular head was well preserved, avoiding common peroneal nerve injury. The periosteum opposite to the incision position was left intact for the sake of the stability and acted as a hinge around which the wedge osteotomy was closed. AP and lateral radiography of knee joint was taken pre and post operation for comparison. Results During the follow up, the patients show satisfied pain relief, improvement of joint function, correction of the deformity either genu varum or valgum. Earlier rehabilitation exercise should be carried out and the complication was rare. Conclusion The characteristics of this method are its convenient application, the stable fixation and the well preserved joint function. The advantage of high tibial osteotomy was shown sufficiently by the use of Giebel blade plate.