Complete removal of the infrapatellar fat pad in total knee arthroplasty does not affect the patellar height

BACKGROUND/AIMS Most orthopedic surgeons tend to remove the infrapatellar fat pad (IPFP) in total knee arthroplasty (TKA). The present study was designed with the aim of determining whether complete removal of the IPFP during TKA affects the patella height. MATERIAL and METHODS Knee radiographs of 85 patients who underwent primary TKA that involved complete IPFP removal were reviewed retrospectively. We measured the patella height using the Insall-Salvati (IS) ratio, modified IS (mIS) ratio, Cathon-Deschamp (CD) index, and Blackburne-Peel (BP) index on preoperative radiographs and at the 1-year follow-up. Two orthopedic surgeons independently analyzed all 85 radiographs and were blinded to the measurement taken by the other surgeon. The average values of the data recorded by the two observers was used in the final analyses. RESULTS The average preoperative patella height was higher than the mean patella height at 1 year after TKA using all the measurement methods. Although this may reflect patellar tendon shortening or elevation of the joint line, this decrease was not significant using all methods (p>0.05). CONCLUSION Complete removal of the IPFP during TKA for patients with primary osteoarthritis did not affect the patellar height at the 1-year follow-up.