Morphometry of the tibial plateau at the surface and resected levels

Abstract Background We aim to make an anthropometric analysis of tibial plateau at the surface level and the resected level and analyze the correlation in lengths between two levels. We hypothesized that lengths at the surface level were longer than those at the resected level, which brought soft tissue tolerance for tibial component to overhang. Methods Anthropometric data were measured using three dimensional (3D) structures reconstructed from tibial plateaus of 100 knees in 100 Chinese subjects (50 men and 50 women). Mediolateral (ML), medial anteroposterior (MAP) and lateral anteroposterior (LAP) lengths at the surface level and the resected level were measured, and the Pearson’s correlation coefficients of these data were calculated. Results ML, MAP lengths at the surface level were longer than those at the resected level by a mean 2.38 ± 1.29 mm and 1.99 ± 1.76 mm, respectively. LAP length at the surface level was shorter than that at the resected level by a mean 1.54 ± 2.49 mm. All these differences between two levels had no gender difference. Conclusion Our findings suggest that tibial overhang could be better tolerated in the medial compared to the lateral compartment but this hypothesis has to be further investigated in a clinical study.