New Total Knee Replacements Specifically Designed for Feminine Anatomy

Lately, two key orthopaedic implant companies, (Stryker Corp. and Zimmer Holdings Inc.) announced the availability of complete knee substitute implants specially developed for women. We all know that males and gals are different, but how does this relate to knee implants?

The critical distinction is the relative dimension of the conclude of the femur or thigh bone. For a granted entrance-to-back or anterior-posterior (AP) width, the femurs of females have a tendency to be narrower in the medial-lateral (ML) or aspect-to-side direction in comparison to males. An implant which is proportioned centered on male anatomy would, consequently, be also broad on a likewise sized feminine. The end result is that when a surgeon dimensions the implant based mostly on the AP width of the femur, the implant could "overhang" the narrower feminine bone and lead to irritation of the bordering soft-tissue. Confronted with this circumstance, orthopaedic surgeons are often pressured to "downsize" the femoral part in the course of total knee substitute surgical treatment. In downsizing the femoral component, the medical professional chooses a scaled-down implant, so that the implant does not overhang the sides of the bone.

There are, however, some probable drawbacks to downsizing relying upon the variety of instrumentation technique the surgeon is making use of in the course of the knee replacement process. If the surgeon is making use of an implant system in which the femoral part is positioned at a distinct distance relative to the anterior surface of the femur (anterior referencing), abnormal laxity in flexion can arise with downsizing. Alternatively, if the medical professional is working with a process which references the posterior facet of the femur, the resulting femoral preparation could "notch" or undercut the anterior facet of the femur. This could, in turn, lead to fracture of the femur.
For much more details about "zimmer knee", you really should check out: zimmer knee
Recognizing that neither of the over scenarios is desirable, the makers of implants especially made for females have sought to treatment this by generating the implants a lot more narrow in the ML direction. On a male knee, the implant could "underhang" leaving some distal femoral bone exposed, but this is typically not a difficulty.

In the organization announcements, both manufacturers noted that their new "Female" knee replacements are designed to address the far more narrow feminine femur. Zimmer also mentioned that variations extend over and above femur width to factors these kinds of as the angle of the femur in relation to the tibia. It will be interesting to see how these new implants fair clinically and no matter if the prospective rewards are recognized.
New Total Knee Replacements Specially Made for Female Anatomy