Ceramic Total Knee Arthroplasty: Advanced Clinical Experiences of 26 Years

We started to use a combination of alumina ceramics and ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) for total knee arthroplasty (TKA) in the late 1970s based on our good clinical results in total hip arthroplasty as well as the results of knee joint simulator tests. From 1982 to 1985, we performed TKAs in 137 patients, mainly of the alumina/UHMWPE type. Since 1990, cemented alumina or zirconia ceramic/UHMWPE total knee prostheses have been used in more than 530 patients. From these clinical and retrieved studies, we confirmed the efficacy of the ceramic bearing surface in TKA.