Early Weight Bearing After Open Wedge High Tibial Osteotomy (OWHTO), Is it Worth?

The management of medial compartment osteoarthritis of the knee in middle-aged patients is challenging. High tibial osteotomy (HTO) is a joint-preserving procedure that can relieve symptoms and return patients back to an active lifestyle. However, both total and uni-compartmental knee arthroplasty can provide good pain relief, but there is concern about the durability of the components in this younger population.

High tibial osteotomy (HTO) is a procedure with proven short-, medium- and long-term efficacy for treating isolated medial tibiofemoral knee osteoarthritis in young subjects with varus knee deformity.

Several studies have shown that the HTO lasts on average 10 years. After this, 74% to 96% of patients require total knee arthroplasty (TKA).

HTO can delay or sometime even avoid the need for arthroplasty. Better functional results have been seen in younger patients. HTO can also be performed to treat medial femoral condyle osteonecrosis or as part of the treatment of ligament injuries with varus malalignment.

The goal of high tibial osteotomy in knees with medial compartment OA is to shift the weight bearing axis from the medial compartment into the lateral compartment. This unloads the damaged medial articular cartilage. To achieve this, two main surgical techniques have been utilized, the lateral closing wedge and the medial opening wedge high tibial osteotomy (MOHTO). The lateral closing wedge HTO has the advantage of early bony healing at the osteotomy site.