Tibial osteotomy is a surgical technique little used to treat knee osteoarthritis. However, it is a less invasive method for the patient, which could delay the use of arthroplasty.
- Age, sex, family history, being overweight and repetitive strain injuries during certain professional or sporting activities can increase the risk of knee osteoarthritis.
- The tibial osteotomy, a little used intervention and adapted to younger patients, would delay the use of knee prosthesis by several years.
In France, osteoarthritis of the knee, also called “gonarthrosis”, affects 3% of the population under 45 and 65% of French people over 65. For now, there is no treatment to cure this chronic disease. To slow its development and reduce pain, it is advisable to adopt lifestyle and dietary measures (weight loss, rehabilitation, etc.) or to take medication (analgesics, anti-arthrosics, etc.).
Arthroplasty or “installation of a knee prosthesis is considered when the knee osteoarthritis is very advanced and not relieved by medical treatment”, says health insurance. However, it is possible to have recourse to another intervention, called “tibial osteotomy”, which is a less invasive technique, according to a study published in the journal Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ). As a reminder, the osteotomy corrects the deviation of the axis of the leg by cutting the tibia and fixing it in the right position to re-axis the leg.
Tibial osteotomy delays the need for knee arthroplasty by several years
For the purposes of the work, the researchers conducted a study with 643 patients suffering from osteoarthritis of the knee. 556 of them underwent tibial osteotomy. The scientists noted that 95% of people who had recourse to this less invasive intervention did not need a pose of a knee prosthesis during the five which follow the tibial osteotomy. “We found that 79% of participants did not need knee replacement surgery within 10 years,” the study authors said.
The tibial osteotomy would be particularly suitable for younger people who have less severe joint damage. “However, these patients also contribute to the burden of knee osteoarthritis. There is a need for intermediate treatments between ‘non-operative’ treatments and joint replacement. of pain and for society, considerable health expenditure”, said Codie Primeau, author of the study.
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