Minimally invasive selective osteotomy of the knee: A new surgical technique

We present a simple surgical technique created by the authors to address degenerative chondral lesions of the knee and its application in a limited prospective case series. The technique assumes the concept of beneficial epiphyseal changes caused by disruption of the subchondral bone in improving symptoms, as with drilling, microfracture, periarticular osteotomy, and other invasive procedures. Minimally invasive selective osteotomy (MISO) is an expansion of the arthroscopic treatment of the knee, specifically targeting symptomatic lesions with minimal additional trauma and cost, while avoiding disruption of the articular surface of the subchondral bone. The technique involves a mimimal access approach with selective saw cuts placed with a 1-cm oscillating blade parallel to the joint surface 1 to 1.5 cm deep to identified lesions. The technique does not address malalignment but can address lesions not addressed by classic osteotomies and, as such, may be combined with other corrective alignment procedures as necessary. We present the results of MISO of the knee in a case series of 62 outpatients carried out at the Orthopaedic Division of the Clinical and Surgical Hermanos Ameijeiras Hospital in Havana, Cuba. At 2-year follow-up, there was improvement of symptoms without significant complications.