Constrained Condylar Prostheses for the Treatment of Charcot Arthropathy: A Case Report and Literature Review.

BACKGROUND: Neuroarthropathy of the knee or Charcot knee, leading to chronic joint destruction, is a rare disease that is difficult to diagnose. The treatment of this condition is difficult and controversial. CASE PRESENTATION: A 74-year-old Asian woman has had bilateral knee pain for 22 years and deformity for 10 years, which has been aggravating for 2 months. Physical examination showed bilateral knee varus deformity greater than 15°, and -20 to 90° range of motion. X-ray revealed bilateral varus deformity with massive free body hyperplasia. Combined with medical history as syringomyelia, the patient was diagnosed with bilateral Charcot knees and bilateral joint replacements were performed using Legacy Constrained Condylar Knee prostheses (LCCK; Zimmer, USA). The patient reported satisfactory treatment outcomes, pain relief, and improved range of motion in both knees, without postoperative complications or prosthesis loosening at 2 year after operation. CONCLUSIONS: Total knee arthroplasty (TKA) may be considered a viable option for treating the Charcot knee. The use of constrained condylar prostheses can produce satisfactory results. Attention should be given to survival risks, complications, and other potential determining factors associated with TKA when devising a treatment strategy for the Charcot knee.

Multifocal Neuroarthropathy of the Knee and Foot Induced by Physical Training of the Lower Extremities in a Patient With Latent Autoimmune Diabetes in Adults.

Charcot neuroarthropathy is a progressive arthropathy associated with neuropathy. In patients with diabetes, Charcot neuroarthropathy mostly affects the foot. In the present case, we encountered a rare presentation of Charcot neuroarthropathy of the knee and foot in a patient with latent autoimmune diabetes in adults. The patient, who may have developed the disease as a result of inappropriate physical exercise, was treated with total knee arthroplasty.

Arthroplasty of a Charcot Knee in a Patient With Congenital Insensitivity to Pain.

Hereditary sensory and autonomic neuropathies (HSANs) include hereditary disorders that cause congenital insensitivity to pain. Moreover, patients diagnosed with such disorders are known to have genetic mutations that alter their deep pain sensation, making them more prone to developing bone and joint complications such as repetitive fractures, joint swelling, and Charcot arthropathy. Neuropathic arthropathy (Charcot joint) is a rare and relatively poorly understood condition; it is suggested to be caused by autonomic dysfunction and repetitive microtrauma and characterized by instability and joint destruction. Diagnosing the idiopathic Charcot joint is challenging and is considered to be a diagnosis of exclusion. In addition, there are limited cases of Charcot knees managed by arthroplasty. Patients with Charcot knees are commonly characterized by profound bone loss, diffuse synovitis, and instability in the knee joint. In this article, we report the case of a 13-year-old patient with known NTRK1 gene mutation who presented with recurrent knee joint swelling episodes and instability without pain. She was diagnosed with Charcot knee joint and underwent right hinged total knee replacement. At one-year follow-up, she continued to have good knee stability and an overall functional gait. Our findings suggest that managing Charcot knee joint with total knee replacement in patients with HSAN may show improvement in terms of stability, swelling, and overall gait.

Diagnóstico clínico y por imagen de rodilla de Charcot por neuroartropatía diabética

RESUMEN Introducción: La neuroartropatía es una afección secundaria a enfermedades metabólicas, infecciosas o genéticas. Su localización usual está reportada en el pie, pero puede afectar cualquier articulación, compromete su estado vascular y modifica la condición ósea, genera fracturas, contracturas y luxaciones. Objetivos: Reportar los hallazgos clínicos e imagenológicos de una paciente con neuroartropatía de Charcot por diabetes mellitus, en una localización articular, poco frecuente. Caso Clínico: Paciente femenina de 62 años, procedente del suroccidente colombiano, con antecedentes de diabetes mellitus y complicaciones micro y macrovasculares. Presentó un cuadro clínico de dolor articular en la rodilla derecha, que evolucionó a una imposibilidad para la marcha. En su atención se realizaron diferentes estudios de imagen; se encontró una fractura del cóndilo femoral izquierdo y de los platillos tibiales. Estas características radiológicas típicas, más los cambios clínicos de la articulación, llevaron al diagnóstico de rodilla de Charcot. Se realizaron intervenciones farmacológicas analgésicas, además de inmovilización articular, con adecuada evolución en el seguimiento clínico. Conclusiones: La neuroartropatía con rodilla de Charcot es una afección que debe ser evaluada en todos los pacientes con diabetes mellitus y otras enfermedades, ampliar el panorama de revisión articular a localizaciones menos frecuentes, como la rodilla. Una intervención temprana y multidisciplinaria puede favorecer los desenlaces clínicos positivos.

ABSTRACT Introduction: Neuroarthropathy is a condition secondary to metabolic, infectious, or genetic diseases. Its usual localization is reported in the foot, but it can affect any joint, compromising its vascular status and modifying the bone condition generating fractures, contractures, and dislocations. Objectives: To report the clinical and imaging findings of a patient with Charcot neuroarthropathy due to diabetes mellitus in a rare joint location. Clinical Case: A 62-year-old woman from Colombian southwestern, with a history of diabetes mellitus, in addition to micro and macrovascular complications. She presented a clinical picture of joint pain in the right knee that evolved to an inability to walk. During her care, different imaging tests were performed, finding a fracture of the left femoral condyle and tibial plateau, these typical radiological characteristics plus the clinical changes of the joint, led to the diagnosis of Charcot's knee. Pharmacological interventions were performed in pain in addition to joint immobilization, with adequate evolution in clinical follow-up. Conclusions: Neuroarthropathy is a condition that should be evaluated in all patients with diabetes mellitus and other conditions, expanding the joint revision panorama to less frequent locations such as the knee; early and multidisciplinary intervention can favor positive clinical outcomes.

Bilateral Total Knee Arthroplasty for Charcot Arthropathy After Cauda Equine Syndrome: A Case Report.

Charcot arthropathy of the knee is a relatively rare and poorly understood condition. Diagnosis requires detailed history of the patient, radiological investigation and exclusion of other causes of arthropathy. Conservative treatment is sufficient only in early stages. In late stages, either arthrodesis or total knee arthroplasty is the treatment of choice. We report a case of a 65-year-old woman who presented with Charcot arthropathy in both knees, after a spinal fracture 35 years ago, which caused cauda equine syndrome with diminished sensation of both legs. She underwent bilateral total knee arthroplasty using hinged knee prosthesis.

Charcot arthropathy of the knee after unsuccessful spinal stenosis surgery: A case report.

INTRODUCTION: Charcot arthropathy was first described in 1868 by Jean Martin Charcot as a progressive and destructive joint disease. Diabetes, polyneuropathy, syphilis, syrengomyelia and chronic alcoholism are the main causes of the disease. In this study we present a Charcot arthropathy of the knee seen after unsuccessful spinal stenosis surgery. PRESENTATION OF CASE: We report here a case of 62 years old patient with Charcot arthropathy at her left knee developed one year after spinal stenosis surgery. The patient's knee joint was already beyond the fragmentation and coalescence stages at the moment of physical examination. Patient had already been treated for Charcot foot four years before spinal surgery. Because of an unsuccessful spinal surgery, proximal migration of the level of the sensorineural loss negatively affected the polyneuropathy and eventually resulted in Charcot knee joint in a short period of time. DISCUSSION: However, the etiology of the neuropathic arthropathy hasn't been well described yet, it is usually seen at patients with diabetes mellitus as a long-term complication with or without polyneuropathy. In addition to the spinal canal pathologies, it is reported that Charcot arthropathy can be seen even after spinal anesthesia procedures. CONCLUSION: In conclusion, spinal procedures should be applied with extra caution on the patients with polyneuropathy or any neuropathic arthropathy. It should be remembered that it is possible to encounter unexpected complications such as proximally migration of the level of sensorineural loss and progression of the actual disease after spinal procedures of these patients.