Iliotibial band (ITB) release for ITB friction syndrome following total knee arthroplasty (TKA) improves knee function

Abstract

BackgroundIliotibial (ITB) friction syndrome is a known syndrome in patients’ native knees, however, is not commonly reported following TKA. PurposeThe purpose of our study was to investigate whether ITB release following TKA due to ITB friction syndrome imparted a clinical improvement in patients’ knee function. Materials and methodsThis was a retrospective study of 7 patients suffering from ITB friction syndrome following TKA. Patient's knee function was compared using the Knee Society Score (KSS) before and after ITB release. ResultsThe final study population consisted of 7 patients that underwent ITB release following primary TKA. Six patients (85.7%) were male and 1 (14.3%) was female. The mean age of patients that underwent the ITB release procedure was 63.29 (SD ​± ​7.2) years. Median time from primary TKA to ITB release procedure was 19 months (range: 10–113 months). The mean KSS scores of patients before and after ITB release were 41.29 and 71.14, respectively, with a mean difference of 29.86 (SD ​± ​19.35), which was statistically significant (p ​= ​0.006). ConclusionITB release procedure improve knee function for patients with ITB friction syndrome following primary TKA.