Patent ID: 8728167

Claim:
A method for implanting a base component for a tibial implant comprising: providing a base component for a tibial implant comprising: a lateral compartment, a medial compartment spaced from the lateral compartment defining an open central section therebetween and a connecting portion connecting the medial and lateral compartments at an anterior end of the base component to be located adjacent the anterior tibia, wherein the central section of the base component intermediate the spaced medial and lateral compartments is open to a posterior end of the base component, wherein the medial and lateral compartments have a bone contacting surface and a superiorly facing surface, the connecting portion having a convexly curved anteriorly facing surface, the curved anteriorly facing surface curved convexly in an anterior direction along an arc lying in a sagittal plane bisecting the open central section of the tibial implant along a proximal to distal extent of the tibial component, and has a first inferiorly facing planar angled surface extending at a first angle from adjacent the anterior end of the base component at a bone contacting surface of the connecting portion proximally and posteriorly to a posterior end of the connecting element, the first planar angled surface defining an anterior end of the open central section at the sagittal plane bisecting the open central section of the tibial implant; resecting a medial and lateral compartment of a proximal tibia to form two planar surfaces spaced from the anterior cruciate ligament and the posterior cruciate ligament; forming a superiorly facing first angled surface on the proximal tibia intermediate the medial and lateral planar surfaces, the angled tibial surface extending from an anterior margin of the proximal tibia in a proximal-posterior direction to a proximal most surface of the tibia; and mounting the base component on the proximal tibia with the base component medial and lateral compartment bone contacting surfaces respectively engaging the planar medial and lateral tibial compartments and the first angled superiorly facing surface on the proximal tibia contacting the first angled inferiorly facing surface on the base component from the anterior margin to the proximal most surface of the tibia.