Ridgestop Good/bad/ok?

RE: Ridgestop Good/bad/ok?

Alistair Graham-Evans — Sat, 10 Jun 2017 07:12:39 GMT

I have found them to be very useful especially in cases where there is lack of a medial ridge proximally.

In mild instability I use just the Ridgestop but combine it with tibial tuberosity translocation where necessary.

I find it useful to have an assistant to hold the drill guide in place and retract the medial tissues.

A small gap under it doesn't matter.

Used one the other day in a bulldog that had a TTO for a cruciate rupture too - went well and quick procedure after doing a few. In my opinion so much better than damaging the trochlear groove cartilage. Recovery time does seem slightly longer than previously but usually active and sound in 4 weeks.

Don't regret buying the kit.

RE: Ridgestop Good/bad/ok?

David Mills — Fri, 19 May 2017 17:45:23 GMT

I've never used them but have colleagues who have. Their theory is attractive as I think sulcoplasty is very traumatic.

Ive moved away from sulcoplasty as much as possible in recent years - in most dogs especially smaller ones (most of the ones I see) it is a biomechanical abnormality caused by the tibial crest position and realigning this will normally solve the problem whilst at the same time going some way to slowing oa development.

RE: Ridgestop Good/bad/ok?

Glenn Hodgson — Thu, 18 May 2017 20:33:41 GMT

Thanks for taking the time to write this Chris.

The type of real life I am looking for. I am still a skeptic. I have seen on tibial crest shatter so am considering.

RE: Ridgestop Good/bad/ok?

Chris Barker — Thu, 18 May 2017 19:35:54 GMT

We invested in the kit and have used it a couple of times. Re-alignment of the patellar ligament remains our chief aim - if when it is exposed it looks mightily out of line then I move the tibial crest. If I feel the patellar groove is excessively shallow then I will consider using the ridgestop rather than deepening the groove - as a retired arthropod of these parts said to me 'Why give them two surgeries to recover from if straightening the pull does the job?' So the cases in which I use it are few - one a spaniel who had worn down the medial ridge, and another in a larger dog where the whole problem was traumatic and who needed little angular correction. But the drill guides are unforgiving - whatever shape femurs they were modelled upon do not match the ones on which I operate! Consequently they sit proud of the bone and the holes then tend to drill themselves too sagitally, so your planned position for the implant can end up more on/in the groove than you planned. The screws for larger dogs are quite long and in my latest case I 'missed' the far cortical hole with one screw which slid/bent its way down the inner cortex. I wonder if I should be braver and use the system on mild cases rather than attack the tibial crest with a saw...but they heal so well and successfully with a pin and tension band wire I carry on sawing... And I prickle a little at the cost of the implant - I can understand the cost of Orthomed's titanium foam implant for its MMP system being quite high - it is a rare metal resource. But the ridgestop is based on a high density plastic...but the cost per implant is the same a s a titanium wedge...