An underused type of knee surgery in younger patients, called high tibial osteotomy, shows considerable success in reducing the need for total knee replacement, according to a new research.
The findings of the research were published in ‘CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal).’
“High tibial osteotomy is a knee surgery aimed at younger patients in the earlier stages of knee osteoarthritis. One of its goals is to prevent or delay the need for knee replacement,” said co-author Dr. Trevor Birmingham, Canada Research Chair in the Faculty of Health Sciences and the Bone and Joint Institute at Western University, London, Ontario.
“In some ways, it’s like performing a front-end alignment on your car to stop asymmetric wear on your tires and increase their longevity,” added Birmingham.
Knee osteoarthritis is a common cause of pain and disability and puts a tremendous burden on health care systems. Total knee replacement is frequently performed on older patients with end-stage disease and limited mobility.
In Canada, rates of total knee replacement are high and increasing, while rates of high tibial osteotomy are low and decreasing. One reason for this is the perception that high tibial osteotomy is not warranted if the joint is going to be replaced soon afterward.
The findings of this new study contradict this perception. (ANI)
