Unicompartmental Knee Arthroplasty versus High Tibial Osteotomy in Treatment of Isolated Medial Compartment Osteoarthritis of the Knee

Abstract

egenerative changes of the knee mostly involve the entire joint, including medial, lateral and patellofemoral compartments (1-2). However, up to 30% of patients can develop osteoarthritis (OA) in only one compartment, mainly the medial compartment (3-4). The primary treatment of OA is conservative and include patient education, weight reduction, physical therapy and pain killer medication (5). Other non-operative measures for unicompartmental OA are knee braces which may alter the alignment of the lower extremity (5-6). If conservative treatment fails, surgical treatment maybe indicated. Several surgical procedures have been mentioned to treat it, as total knee arthroplasty (TKA), unicompartmental knee arthroplasty (UKA) and high tibial osteotomy (HTO) (7). According to the age and the level of activity of the patient and the grade of disease severity (8). However, the best option for these patients is still debatable (9-10).