We investigated the clinical results and early complications after lateral unicompartmental knee arthroplasty (UKA) using the Zimmer unicompartmental high-flex knee (ZUK) prosthesis with a minimum follow-up of 2 years.
Twenty-seven patients (30 cases) who underwent lateral UKA with the ZUK prosthesis between January 2011 and February 2014 were selected for this study. The mean age of the patients was 63.3 years at the time of surgery, and the mean followup was 3 years and 2 months (range, 24 to 48 months). A retrospective investigation method was used to evaluate the clinical and radiographic results with use of the Knee Society (KS) clinical rating system and plain radiography.
The mean KS pain score was improved from 17.9 points (range, 10 to 30 points) preoperatively to 40.5 points (range, 30 to 45 points) at the final follow-up (
The early clinical results of lateral UKA using the ZUK prosthesis were satisfactory for improvement of pain, knee score, function score, and recovery of knee motion. Therefore, the lateral UKA could be a useful method in the treatment of osteoarthritis in the lateral compartment of the knee. Long-term survivorship remains to be confirmed through ongoing follow-up.