The disclosure provides a patella joystick for tilting a knee cap in an operation of knee arthroscopy and a method of using the patella joystick. The patella joystick can include a handle, a shank, a tapered portion, and a screw portion. The tapered portion has a diminishing diameter and provides a structural transition between the shank and the screw portion. The screw portion can include a thread and a screw point. The thread can have a buttress form, and the screw point can have an inverted cone shape with a cone angle of at or about 90°. The method of using the patella joystick can include: drilling a pilot hole into the patella; screwing the patella joystick onto the pilot hole; and holding the patella joystick to tilt and/or lift the knee cap.

A gap gauge is disclosed for facilitating an arthroplasty procedure on a first bone and a second bone of a patient. The gap gauge may include a first plate positionable in contact with the first bone, a second plate positionable in contact with the second bone. The second plate may be displaced from the first plate by a displacement. The gap gauge may further include a separator connected to the first plate and the second plate, a separation indicator coupled to the separator and configured to indicate the displacement, and a balance indicator connected to at least one of the first plate and the second plate. The balance indicator may indicate a balance status between the first plate and the second plate. The separator can be actuated to adjust the displacement.

A joint distraction lever includes a lever body, a foot coupled to the lever body via a hinge such that the foot is rotatable relative to the lever body, and a force sensor positioned between a bottom surface of the lever body and the foot and configured to measure a force of the foot on the bottom surface of the lever body during a joint distraction procedure in which a torque is applied to the lever body.

A method and system for femoral condylar resection arthroplasty (FCRA) of the knee, which preserves the undamaged meniscus, whether by arthroscopy or arthrotomy, and only replaces the damaged area of the femoral condyle. In one embodiment, both the distal and posterior femoral condyle are replaced with a two piece femoral two-piece distal and posterior femoral condyle component. This two piece component has a metal piece and a plastic piece removably attached in a tongue and groove arrangement. This arrangement allows the plastic piece to be removed when converting the FCRA into a unicompartmental arthroplasty.

A surgical apparatus is configured to support at least one bone cut for installation of a prosthetic component. The installed prosthetic component will have reduced alignment error. The surgical apparatus is configured to distract a first compartment to a first predetermined load value while allowing a moving support structure to pivot freely. A distraction lock mechanism is then engaged to prevent movement of a distraction mechanism that raises or lowers the moving support structure relative to a fixed support structure. The moving support structure has M-L tilt angle that is measured. A M-L tilt mechanism is engaged to forcibly equalize the first and second compartments. Engaging the M-L tilt mechanism prevents the moving support structure from freely pivoting. The at least one bone cut relates to the first and second compartments equalized and the M-L tilt angle.

A system is disclosed to support installation of a prosthetic joint or a prosthetic component. The system includes at least one sensor to measure a parameter. The system uses one or more patient specific instruments in conjunction with a tensor to make one or more bone cuts. The patient specific instruments and tensor make the bone cuts such that an installed prosthetic joint is aligned, balanced, loaded correctly, and positioned optimally for performance and reliability. The use of the tensor simplifies the workflow required when using the patient specific instruments. In one embodiment, the patient specific instruments are bone cutting jigs configured for the patient anatomy.

A surgical instrument for use in a knee joint replacement operation includes a reference block with a block rear face configured to bear on a resected femur, a stylus arranged on the reference block, a stylus tip configured to bear on the femur, and two reference feet that are spaced apart mediolaterally from one another and arranged on the reference block. Each reference foot has a foot upper face protruding beyond the block rear face. The foot upper faces are arranged in a common reference plane and are configured to bear on the femur. At least two reference bores extend from the block rear face. Each reference bore is configured to receive a reference pin. A compensation element is configured for form-fitting and/or force-fitting releasable connection to one of the reference feet. The compensation element has an upper face which comes to bear against a posterior condyle.

The present invention relates to a carriage assembly and, more particularly, to a carriage apparatus, system, and method for coupling to a base plate and slidably holding a patient positioner, such as a distractor, at one or more angles with respect to an operating table. The carriage assembly may comprise a base, a jaw, and a fastener, which, when tightened, urges the jaw and base to clamp the rail of a baseplate, the baseplate being coupled to a side rail clamp via pins. Tapered openings in the carriage base may hold the patient positioner either vertically or at an angle with respect to the vertical. A secondary carriage may hold a boot configured to hold a foot. The carriages may be linearly translated to position the knee at a precise angles and provide enhanced structural stability.

A patient-specific arthroplasty system comprising a database comprising preoperative data, ligament balancing tool data, and postoperative data associated with a plurality of patients, a preoperative evaluation module that receives preoperative data for a given patient, an analysis engine that analyzes the database, receives the preoperative data, and generates a surgical recommendation based on the preoperative data of the given patient and the analysis of the database, and a pin positioning block module that receives the surgical recommendation and determines a pin positioning block based on the surgical recommendation.

Apparatus and methods for replacing a knee joint with an implant prosthesis are described. The method includes distracting the knee, locating the pre-diseased joint line of the knee and referencing cuts to the femur and tibia in the coronal plane relative to the joint line. The method further comprises determining the posterior slope of a cut to the tibia in the sagittal plane such that the gaps between the tibia and femur in extension and flexion are substantially equal. Apparatus for use in the method is described, including a distractor for distracting the joint, a joint level finder for finding the pre-diseased joint line and a flexion gap optimisation device.