As compared to total knee prosthesis, unicompartmental knee arthroplasty is a good alternative surgery for young patients who have just one worn compartment and a normal alignement of the anatomical knee joint axis.
It is contraindicated in:
- Inflammatory arthritis.
- Patient with anterior cruciate ligament tear.
- Obesity.
The potential benefits of theses prostheses include less postoperative pain. It is a less aggressive technique because less bone is removed in case it would be perfomed the replacement for a total knee prosthesis. Other advantages are the reduction of the patient's time spent in the hospital with a shorter rehabilitation period. They may also improve range of motion for flexion and extension.
One study reported that at 10 years follow up time after the initial surgery the overall survival rate of the implant was 90%, which implies excellent outcomes and joint function maintaining. These results are very similar to the total knee prosthesis ones, regarding to pain reduction.
ery, the survival rate of the prosthesis is 95% and 91% at the 21-year follow-up.