Nineteen knees were treated for recurrent subluxation or dislocation of
the patella by lateral and distal transfer of the vastus medialis with or
without release of the lateral retinaculum. Fifty-eight per cent has good
or excellent and 42 per cent had poor results after a mean follow-up of
twenty-nine months. The factors that predisposed to failure were genu
valgum greater than 15 degrees and, to a lesser extent, palpable synovitis
associated with symptomatic chondromalacia patellae.