Description
Abstract Objectives: * Understanding the racial differences in lower limb alignment is crucial when discussing alignment strategies for procedures. This study aims to investigate the distribution of Coronal Plane Alignment of the Knee (CPAK) classification in healthy knees of the Japanese population and compare it with knees affected by osteoarthritis (OA). Methods: * Two cohorts were examined: healthy young adults (n=31, 60 knees) and OA patients (n=72, 84 knees). Digital long-leg radiographs were taken and analyzed for mechanical Hip-Knee-Ankle angle (mHKA), Medial Proximal Tibial Angle (MPTA), Lateral Distal Femoral Angle (LDFA), arithmetic HKA (aHKA), and joint line obliquity (JLO). We compared the distributions of CPAK classifications between healthy and OA knees, as well as analyzing deformity parameters. Statistical analyses were conducted using the Mann-Whitney U test. Results: * In healthy knees, CPAK type II was the most prevalent (51.7%), with 30% showing constitutional varus deformity. For OA knees, CPAK type I was the most common (55.9%). The comparison of deformity parameters revealed significantly higher LDFA angulation in OA knees compared to healthy knees. The difference in CPAK distribution between the healthy and OA cohorts was primarily attributed to LDFA, rather than MPTA. Conclusions: * The results of this study illustrate the characteristics of Japanese healthy and OA knees. Both constitutional alignment and deformities due to OA progression differ among different racial groups, emphasizing the need to consider such variations in treatment approaches carefully.
