Patient-adapted and improved articular implants, designs and related guide tools

A tibial implant for knee arthroplasty, the tibial implant comprising:

• (a) a medial tibial insert comprising (i) a substantially planar inner surface for engaging a medial tibial tray face and (ii) an articular surface comprising an articular surface plateau and disposed therein a curved portion for opposing an articular surface of a medial femoral condyle;
• and
• (b) a lateral tibial insert comprising (i) a substantially planar inner surface for engaging a lateral tibial tray face and (ii) an articular surface comprising an articular surface plateau and disposed therein a curved portion for opposing an articular surface of a lateral femoral condyle;
• wherein the distance from the inner surface to the articular surface of the medial tibial insert is different from the distance from the inner surface to the articular surface of the lateral tibial insert.

A method for making a tibial implant for use in repairing or replacing a knee of a patient, comprising:

• (a) electronically evaluating at least a portion of the knee based on image data of the of the knee;
• and
• (b) specifying one or more parameters of the tibial implant based at least in part on the evaluation;
• wherein the specified parameters define at least in part a tibial implant having a first articular surface higher than a second articular surface relative to a proximal end of a tibia of the knee when the tibial implant is implanted on the proximal end of the tibia.

A method for implanting a knee implant in a patient's knee, the method comprising the steps of:

• (a) preparing a proximal end of a tibia to receive an implant;
• and
• (b) inserting at least one tibial implant onto the prepared proximal end of the tibia such that a first articular surface of the at least one implant engages a first articular surface of a femur or femoral implant and a second articular surface of the at least one implant engages a second articular surface of the femur or femoral implant;
• wherein the first articular surface is higher than the second articular surface relative to an anatomical axis of the tibia.

A method for balancing or optimizing ligament tension during implantation of a knee implant in a patient, the method comprising the steps of:

• (a) assessing the patient's medial joint gap distance and tension;
• (b) assessing the patient's lateral joint gap distance and tension;
• and
• (c) selecting independent medial and lateral tibial inserts to provide proper gap distance and tension.