Secondary Resurfacing of the Patella in Mobile-Bearing Total Knee Arthroplasty

Objective: We aim to evaluate the impact of secondary patellar resurfacing in patients with patellar-related anterior knee pain who have undergone a mobile-bearing primary knee arthroplasty without resurfacing. Materials: A total of 2950 primary Low Contact Stress (DePuy, Warsaw, Ind) mobile-bearing knee arthroplasties without patellar resurfacing were carried out between March 1992 and March 2003. Thirteen patients (0.4%) underwent secondary patellar resurfacing for patellar-related anterior knee pain. The mean age of the patients was 67.8 years. There was a mean time of 28 months to the secondary resurfacing procedure. Results: Only 4 patients had an unequivocal improvement in their symptoms at a mean follow-up of 45 months (range, 3-92 months). No morbidity was noted from the procedure. Conclusion: The success rate of secondary patellar resurfacing is poor and patients should be counseled carefully.