No difference in blood loss between posterior-cruciate-ligament-retaining and posterior-cruciate-ligament-stabilized total knee arthroplasties

PURPOSE: Posterior-cruciate-ligament-retaining (PCR) and posterior-cruciate-ligament-stabilized (PS) arthroplasties are two major common practices in total knee arthroplasty (TKA). The hypothesis of the present study was that compared with the PCR technique, the PS technique is associated with a higher amount of postoperative blood loss and greater need for blood transfusion in cemented TKA. METHODS: In this prospective, randomized study, 100 patients diagnosed with primary knee osteoarthritis were randomly assigned to either the PCR group (Group I) or the PS group (Group II). The exclusion criteria were rheumatological joint disease, previous knee surgery, anticoagulant therapy and hypertension. There were no significant differences in age, body mass index and gender, between the groups. The haemoglobin and haematocrit levels of each patient were recorded preoperatively and on postoperative days 1, 3 and 5. The postoperative suction drainage and blood transfusion volumes were also recorded. RESULTS: There were no statistically significant differences in haemoglobin or haematocrit levels between the groups on postoperative days 1, 3 and 5. There were also no statistically significant differences in the total measured blood loss volume, postoperative drainage amounts or transfusion rates between the groups. CONCLUSION: Use of the PS technique during cemented TKA does not appear to influence the amount of perioperative blood loss or the need for postoperative blood transfusion in general. The clinical relevance of this study is that the difference in blood loss between the PCR and PS techniques does not need to be considered by surgeons when performing TKA. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: I.