Patient-matched positioning guides in total knee arthroplasty

Patient-specific moulds are a relatively new method in total knee replacements. An MRI scan or CT scan is used to generate a virtual surgical plan, after which moulds can be fabricated to determine how the knee should be prepared for a prosthesis. This dissertation found a minor reduction in blood loss and surgery time when patient-specific moulds were used compared to more conventional knee prosthesis methods. The quality of alignment, clinical outcomes, hospital admission duration, and safety remained the same. The prosthesis size can be determined preoperatively with considerable accuracy. This technique is therefore safe to use, although its cost effectiveness was not examined.