Iliotibial band (ITB) release for ITB friction syndrome following total knee arthroplasty (TKA) improves knee function

Abstract

Background: Iliotibial (ITB) friction syndrome is a known syndrome in patients’ native knees, however, is not commonly reported following TKA. Purpose: The purpose of our study was to investigate whether ITB release following TKA due to ITB friction syndrome imparted a clinical improvement in patients’ knee function. Materials and methods: This was a retrospective study of 7 patients suffering from ITB friction syndrome following TKA. Patient's knee function was compared using the Knee Society Score (KSS) before and after ITB release. Results: The final study population consisted of 7 patients that underwent ITB release following primary TKA. Six patients (85.7%) were male and 1 (14.3%) was female. The mean age of patients that underwent the ITB release procedure was 63.29 (SD ​± ​7.2) years. Median time from primary TKA to ITB release procedure was 19 months (range: 10–113 months). The mean KSS scores of patients before and after ITB release were 41.29 and 71.14, respectively, with a mean difference of 29.86 (SD ​± ​19.35), which was statistically significant (p ​= ​0.006). Conclusion: ITB release procedure improve knee function for patients with ITB friction syndrome following primary TKA.

Keywords

• Knee
• ITB friction Syndrome
• Lateral knee pain
• Arthroplasty