Augmented reality-based navigation system applied to tibial bone resection in total knee arthroplasty

Area of Science:

• Orthopedic Surgery
• Medical Technology
• Surgical Navigation

Background:

• Total knee arthroplasty (TKA) requires precise bone resection for optimal alignment.
• Traditional navigation systems can be cumbersome and require intraoperative setup.
• Augmented reality (AR) offers a novel approach to surgical guidance.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the accuracy of the AR-KNEE system, an imageless navigation tool for TKA.
• To assess the system's ability to guide tibial bone resection with real-time visual feedback.

Main Methods:

• The AR-KNEE system was used by a single surgeon to resect 10 tibial sawbones.
• Surgeons viewed real-time superimposed navigation data for alignment.
• Computed tomography and digital calipers were used to measure resection accuracy.

Main Results:

• Mean absolute differences for angular alignment (varus/valgus, slope, rotation) were within acceptable ranges (0.5° to 1.8°).
• Mean absolute difference for bone resection thickness was 0.6 mm.
• The system provided accurate real-time feedback for tibial bone resection.

Conclusions:

• The AR-KNEE system demonstrated reliable accuracy in achieving coronal, sagittal, and rotational alignment during tibial bone resection in a sawbone model.
• This imageless AR navigation system shows promise for improving precision in total knee arthroplasty.