Preoperative Evaluation of the Patient for Treatment With a Calipered Kinematically Aligned Total Knee Arthroplasty

Overview

• With calipered kinematic alignment (KA) technique, preoperative management and evaluation of the arthritic knee patient does not vary vastly from the standard evaluation. However, there are some subtle differences that can aid the surgeon in planning and discussing the surgery with patients.

• This chapter introduces how to assess the patient in the office in terms of history, physical exam, and the recommended radiographs. This chapter will also discuss how to counsel patients on the kinematic alignment (KA) technique and answer questions regarding their expectations.

Introduction

Initial evaluation of a patient with knee arthritis should include taking a standard, thorough history of the patient’s symptoms, including previous surgeries and other nonsurgical treatment. As a KA surgeon, one should elicit and document the patient’s recognition of a knee deformity and any worsening of this condition. Given that the tenet of the KA technique is to restore the prearthritic alignment of the patient’s knee, prompting the patient to recognize their alignment will facilitate the discussion with regards to patient expectations postoperatively.