The principal finding of this study is that discrepancies are evident in the coronal alignment determined by preoperative FLWBR versus non-weight-bearing CT using the Mako system. Significantly less varus deformity was reported with preoperative CT measurements than with FWLBR measurements, which may be attributed to the absence of loading or weight-bearing when this imaging study is performed. Furthermore, compared with conventional FWLBR, the Mako system tends to overestimate the magnitude of tibial varus deformity. Our findings suggest that FLWBR is still a vital tool for coronal alignment analysis in the planning of robotic arm-assisted TKA, especially for those patients with a larger preoperative mHKA and increased posterior tibial slope.
To our knowledge, the present study is the first to elucidate differences in coronal alignment in an Asian population between conventional FLWBR and CT measurements using the MAKO system. Tarasosoli et al. first reported the differences between these two imaging modalities by quantifying the coronal plane alignment of the lower limb in TKA within the same Australian population25. However, these results may vary in the global population. Song et al. have previously demonstrated that the mechanical alignment of the lower limb was not neutral in an Asian population and that the prevalence of constitutional varus was higher than that in the Caucasian population27. Furthermore, Asian patients tended to have more varus and a wider distribution in lower limb alignments than Caucasian individuals27,28. Our findings suggest that a greater understanding of the discrepancies in alignment between measurements made with these two imaging modalities would aid surgeons in establishing a more personalized approach to patients undergoing TKA.
Although systematical restoration of a neutral mechanical alignment of the lower limb is a classic goal for TKA, up to 20% of patients remain dissatisfied following TKA4,29. Furthermore, there is increasing evidence that deviations from the classic mechanical alignment does not affect long-term survivorship30. It remains questionable whether aligning to a standardized neutral mechanical alignment leads to the optimal solution for every patient undergoing TKA, regardless of the widely variable “constitutional alignment” between individuals31–33. Based on this and the relatively large amount of patient dissatisfaction after TKA, kinematic alignment has been introduced as an alternative approach. This technique involves individualized alignment target that aims to restore the pre-arthritic or native limb and joint line alignment of each patient, thereby restoring the native joint laxities31,34,35. The considerable variation in human lower limb alignment, as demonstrated by multiple authors, suggests the need to consider and potentially adopt a more personalized alignment approach during TKA31,34. Several clinical studies have demonstrated their modified alignment options and philosophies to be reliable techniques that better represent the preoperative knee phenotype20,36,37.
Achieving the planned alignment is a crucial determinant of outcomes following TKA38,39. The gold standard method for assessing the lower limb coronal alignment is the MA determined using FLWBR13,14,40,41. FLWBR can be performed rapidly and is widely available and cost-effective 42. However, one issue with this method is the potential errors due to suboptimal patient positioning. As previously reported, rotation of the hip and/or leg and lower limb deformities in the sagittal plane may influence measurements in the coronal alignment9,10. Newer imaging methods such as CT and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can overcome this issue and are promoted for determining lower limb alignment. Although these imaging modalities can avoid positioning errors, they cannot currently provide weight-bearing assessments; therefore, the true knee alignment may not be well represented in the supine position as there are no loading forces on the knee joint in this position13–16. Schoenmakers et al. evaluated the within-persons agreement in the mHKA measured on FLWBR and non-weight-bearing measurement modalities (computer-assisted surgery navigation or MRI) and demonstrated that on average, up to 2.5° differences existed between these two imaging measurement modalities, even within the same observer15. Holme et al. assessed the differences in knee alignment measurements between FLWBR and CT in native knees and after unicompartmental knee arthroplasty and recommended that CT should not be used as an alternative to FLWBR for coronal alignment analysis of the knee16. León-Muñoz et al. identified potential differences between preoperative FLWBR- and non-weight-bearing CT-based 3D models when assessing the knee joint alignment before TKA43. They concluded that CT-based models underestimate the extent of deformity at the knee joint and that although CT provided an accurate assessment of bone morphology, FLWBR should be the primary assessment method for preoperative planning for TKA to evaluate the extent of coronal mediolateral tension.
In the present study, there were discrepancies in coronal alignment between preoperative FLWBR and non-weight-bearing CT measurements made using the Mako 2.0 system. In particular, we observed a significant mean difference between measurements made with these two imaging modalities for the MA and MPTA; therefore, surgeons using the Mako system should be aware of these discrepancies between CT and conventional FLWBR. In our study, these differences could not be solely explained by the effect of the extent of the weight-bearing condition. The method by which we defined the femoral and tibial axes may also have contributed to these differences. Tarassoli et al. evaluated the discrepancies between these two imaging modalities (FLWBR and CT using the Mako 1.0 system) by quantifying the coronal plane alignment of the lower limb in TKA25. They concluded that these differences may change the CPAK type as well as JLO and showed an increase in the proportion of patients with CPAK type I as determined by CT measurements compared with FLWBR measurements. These findings are consistent with our results. Glowalla et al. studied differences in the knee alignment determined between postoperative FLWBR and CT measurements and found less varus positioning of the tibial component on postoperative FLWBR than on intraoperative measurements made with the Mako system19. They suggested that careful preoperative planning and fine-tuned adjustments of the component position in robotic arm-assisted TKA are necessary to prevent excessive overcorrection in varus knee osteoarthritis. However, these studies used the Mako 1.0 software, which lacks the ability to directly measure alignment; instead, the measurements were made indirectly by virtually positioning the component in the planning software, which was different from the points of reference what we measured20.
The multivariate analysis in this study demonstrated that the discrepancies in measurements of coronal alignment were more pronounced in patients with a larger preoperative mHKA and posterior tibial slope. This is more important in the Asian population because these patients have been shown to have more varus and an increased posterior tibial slope in terms of lower limb alignment27,28,44. Panzica et al. have demonstrated that preoperative measurements involve a higher level of ligamentous imbalance, which results in greater alignment deformity in the weight-bearing condition45. A better understanding of population-level variability in the characteristics of the knee may enable surgeons to offer more individualized recommendations when considering alignment strategies.
Our study has certain limitations. First, it was an observational study performed at a single institute. Second, radiographic measurement errors including fixed flexion contractures and limb rotational mispositioning could not be excluded, suggesting that alternative advanced imaging techniques may offer greater precision. Third, geographic variation in the knee phenotypes between populations are nascent, and another limitation of this study is the potential differences between the races in terms of coronal alignment46. Thus, our findings may not be applicable to global populations. Finally, only the Mako system was assessed in this study, and the definition of the MA may differ among various robotic systems. A comparison between various robotic systems is needed to address this aspect in the future.