Clinical application of 3D printing guild plate in total knee arthroplasty

Abstract

Objective To evaluate the efficacy and safety of total knee arthroplasty (TKA) with 3D printing guild plate by comparing with conventional TKA. Methods From May 2014 to September 2014, 40 patients suffered primary unilateral TKA were received, in which there were 11 males and 29 females, aged from 57 to 82 years with an average age of 68.5±6.3 years. The subjects were divided into two groups randomly. One group was treated with TKA with 3D printing guild plate while the other group was treated with the conventional TKA. The blood loss, operation time, post-operative Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) score, range of motion (ROM), lower limb mechanical alignment and incidence of complication were compared with insignificant differences. Results The operation time in the 3D printing TKA group (103.4±11.7 min) was lower than that in the conventional TKA group (124.5±21.6 min), which was statistically significant (t=3.838, P=0.000). The blood loss in the 3D printing TKA group (370.2±96.0 ml) was lower than that in the conventional TKA group (510.0±235.9 ml), which was statistically significant (t=2.454, P=0.019). The post-operative ROM of knee in the 3D printing TKA group was 104.3°±15.5° and that in the conventional TKA group was 103.5°±12.5° (t=0.169, P=0.867). HSS scores in the 3D printing TKA group and in the conventional TKA group were 88.5±5.7 and 89.4±4.8, which was statistically insignificant (t=-0.633, P=0.530). Mechanical alignment in the 3D printing TKA group was 2.9°±1.1° and that in the conventional TKA group was 3.0°±0.9°, which was not statistically significant (t=-0.317, P=0.753). No obvious complication occurred in two groups. Conclusion TKA with 3D printing guild plate has similar results to conventional TKA in HSS score, mechanical alignment and ROM of knee, but it shortens operation time and decreases the blood loss. Key words: Arthroplasty, replacement, knee; Imaging, three-dimensional; Randomized controlled trial