SynthesisKnee surgery, sports traumatology, arthroscopy : official journal of the ESSKA2025
High variability exists in 3D leg alignment analysis, but underlying principles that might lead to agreement on a universal framework could be identified: A systematic review.
Synthesis in Knee surgery, sports traumatology, arthroscopy : official journal of the ESSKA, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
6 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- High variability exists in 3D leg alignment analysis, but underlying principles that might lead to agreement on a universal framework could be identified: A systematic review.Knee surgery, sports traumatology, arthroscopy : official journal of the ESSKA · 2025Pooled it
- Tibial morphological variations reveal medial proximal tibial angle discrepancies in Japanese patients: Three-type classification for high tibial osteotomy.Journal of experimental orthopaedics · 2025Article
- Biplanar radiographic analysis of knee alignment: a stepwise approach for phenotype classification and knee arthroplasty planning.EFORT open reviews · 2025Review
- Posterior tibial slope is independent of coronal plane knee alignment and needs to be assessed to determine knee phenotype.Journal of orthopaedics · 2025Article
- A structured framework for standardized 3D leg alignment analysis: An international Delphi consensus study.Knee surgery, sports traumatology, arthroscopy : official journal of the ESSKA · 2025Article
- Appropriate patient selection based on joint line convergence angle minimizes the difference between the mechanical axis in the standing and supine positions after open-wedge high tibial osteotomy and distal tuberosity osteotomy.Journal of orthopaedic surgery and research · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
Abstract
purposeTo (1) investigate the hypothesis that there is high variability in the reported methods to derive axes and joint orientations from three-dimensional (3D) bone models to (a) perform 3D knee-related leg alignment analysis and (b) define coordinate systems for the femur, tibia and leg and (2) identify underlying principles that might lead to agreement on a universal 3D leg alignment analysis framework.
methodsA systematic review of the literature between January 2006 and June 2024 was performed. Articles explicitly reporting methods to derive axes and joint orientations from CT-based 3D bone models for alignment parameters and/or coordinate systems of the femur, tibia and leg were included. Study characteristics and reported methods were extracted and presented as a qualitative synthesis.
resultsA total of 93 studies were included. There was high variability in the reported methods to derive axes and joint orientations from 3D bone models. Nevertheless, the reported methods could be categorized into four groups, and several underlying principles of the four groups could be identified. Furthermore, the definitions of femoral and tibial coordinate systems were most frequently based on the mechanical axis (femoral, 13/19 [68%]; tibial, 13/26 [50%]) and a central medial-lateral axis (femoral, 16/19 [84%]; tibial, 12/26 [46%]); no leg coordinate system was reported. Interestingly, of the included studies that reported on leg alignment parameters (76/93, 82%), only a minority reported expressing these in a complete coordinate system (25/76, 33%).
conclusionThere is high variability in 3D knee-related leg alignment analysis. Therefore, universal 3D reference values for alignment parameters cannot yet be defined, and comparison of alignment parameter values between different studies is impossible. However, several underlying principles to the reported methods were identified, which could serve to reach more agreement on a future universal 3D framework for leg alignment analysis. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level I.
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.