Navigation systems are particularly useful for measurement of kinematic joint characteristics during surgery. Soft tissue laxity can be determined; errors can be detected and corrected intra-operatively.
Ligament balance and stability are essential to the immediate and long-term clinical success. Knees appearing not to be treatable using traditional instrumentation because of severe deformity, retained old implants or previous infection can be dealt with successfully using computer assisted navigation. Navigation facilitates the use of less invasive operative techniques providing controlled implant alignment. Integration of pre- and intra-operative data acquisition with post-operative verification and clinical outcomes should lead to refinement of surgical techniques.
Northern Hip & Groin Institute