A Biomechanical Analysis of Kinetic and Kinematic Variables in Osteoarthritic Knees Following Total Knee Arthroplasty

Abstract

Total knee arthroplasty (TKA) has become a common treatment method for combatting end-stage knee osteoarthritis (OA) in the elderly population. While level walking biomechanics have been widely studied, stair ascent and stair descent modalities remain largely in question. Biomechanical variables of interest were primarily kinetic focusing particularly on knee adduction moment (KAM) variables and moment rates. Previous research has found KAM variables to be associated with osteoarthritis in the medial compartment of the knee. The purposes of this study were twofold: 1) to compare proportional changes of each biomechanical variable from pre to post-TKA time points between level ambulation, stair-ascent, and stair-descent and 2) to determine the relationship between biomechanical variables and clinical ROM during both level and stair ambulation in an elderly population pre/post-TKA. Results of the study found KAM rate (KAM-R) to be the best discriminator amongst other KAM variables for medial knee compartment loading. The findings of this study necessitate the need for continued stair negotiation research to better understand the long-term effect of OA and TKA on a patient’s ability to negotiate stairs.