This article is more than 5 years old. Information may no longer be current.
Study: Long leg radiographs should be used to measure mechanical alignment after TKA
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts
Researchers in Australia have recommended the use of long leg radiographs when analyzing mechanical alignment after total knee arthroplasty because of its availability and reduced radiation dose compared to CT scans.
“Our results indicate that alignment measured using [long leg radiograph] LLRs and CT scans have an excellent intra-observer correlation and reproducibility,” the researchers wrote in the study. “Inter-observer correlation and reproducibility is also excellent but only postoperatively.”
In a prospective study, researchers compared results of LLRs and CT scans in 40 patients who underwent total knee replacement to intraoperative computer-assisted navigation measurements, according to the abstract. The patients were measured three times using each method by three observers. Intra-observer, inter-observer and inter-modality correlation was also measured.
Intra-observer correlation was rated as excellent in all cases, with a coefficient of repeatability of <1.1°. Similarly, inter-observer correlation was excellent in all cases with a coefficient of repeatability of <2.8°, according to the abstract. When compared with computer-assisted navigation, neither method had higher inter-modality correlation.
Disclosure: The authors have no relevant financial disclosures.
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts