Unicompartmental Knee Arthroplasty - Indications and Contraindications

Indications and Contraindications

UKA may be suitable for patients with moderate joint disease caused by painful osteoarthritis or traumatic injury, a history of unsuccessful surgical procedures or poor bone density that precludes other types of knee surgery. Patients that may not be eligible for a UKA include patients that have an active or suspected infection in or about the knee joint, may have a known sensitivity to device materials, have bone infections or disease that result in an inability to support or fixate the new implant to the bone, have inflammatory arthritis, have major deformities that can affect the knee mechanical axis, have neuromuscular disorders that may compromise motor control and/or stability, have any mental neuromuscular disorder, patients who are not skeletally mature, are obese, have lost a severe amount of bone from the shin (tibia) or have severe tibial deformities, have recurring subluxation of the knee joint, have untreated damage to the knee cap and thigh bone joint (patellofemoral joint), have untreated damage to the opposite compartment or the same side of the knee not being replaced by a device, and/or have instability of the knee ligaments such that the postoperative stability the UKA would be compromised.

The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) should be intact. Although, this is debated by clinicians for patients that need a medial compartment replacement. For patients that need a lateral compartment replacement, the ACL should be intact and is contraindicated for patients that have ACL-deficient knees because the lateral component has more motion than the medial compartment.