Heatley modified Fulkerson osteotomy for the treatment of patellar femoral pain. A case series

Abstract

Background: Patellofemoral pain syndrome (PFPS) is a possible cause of anterior knee pain that predominantly affects young women. To date, there is no consensus regarding the aetiology, but the evidence suggests that patellofemoral misalignment probably plays a role in the pathogenesis of pain and particularly in chondromalacia. Osteotomies classically used and described in the literature report variable functional results. As the good results described in the literature are in a range between 50%-80%, this indicates some difficulty with the reproducibility of the technique, or its effectiveness, we wish to evaluate the results of a different technique.
Materials and Methods: Prospective case series study of patients with patellofemoral pain syndrome treated with a new osteotomy technique of the anterior tibial tuberosity, anteriormedialized, in V.
Results: A total of 19 knees were evaluated. The mean pain intensity was 9 in the preoperative period, and 4 and 3 in the follow-up at three and six months, respectively. A mean of 33 points on the Kujala scale was obtained in the pre-operative period, and 75 at 3 months and 87 at six months follow-up.
Discussion: A percentage of 94.7% was considered good or excellent results, and 5% of considered as bad. The technique described and used in our study presents a rate of good results similar to those described in the literature with other surgical techniques and with different functional scales.
Level of evidence: IV.