Femoral trial component

1. An orthopaedic surgical instrument for use prior to implantation of one of a plurality of sizes of femoral prosthetic components, the instrument comprising:

a first femoral prosthetic component having a first femoral prosthetic component size,

a second femoral prosthetic component having a second femoral prosthetic component size different from the first femoral prosthetic component,

a femoral trial component configured to be coupled to a surgically-prepared distal end of a patient's femur, the femoral trial component comprising:

an articular side comprising a femoral condyle surface having a curved contour corresponding with a curved contour of a femoral condyle surface of at least one of the femoral prosthetic components,

a fixation side that is opposite the articular side, the fixation side comprising a fixation surface configured to engage the surgically-prepared distal end of the patient's femur,

a medial side including a first medial surface and a second medial surface that extend between the femoral condyle surface and the fixation surface, and

a lateral side that is opposite the medial side, the lateral side including a first lateral surface and a second lateral surface that extend between the femoral condyle surface and the fixation surface,

wherein (i) the first medial surface and the first lateral surface define a first outer edge corresponding to the first femoral prosthetic component size, and (ii) the second medial surface and the second lateral surface define a second outer edge corresponding to the second femoral prosthetic component size.

2. The orthopaedic surgical instrument of claim 1 , wherein:

a first medial-lateral dimension is defined between the first medial surface and the first lateral surface, the first medial-lateral dimension matching a medial-lateral dimension of the first femoral prosthetic component size, and

a second medial-lateral dimension is defined between the second medial surface and the second lateral surface, the second medial-lateral dimension matching a medial-lateral dimension of the second femoral prosthetic component size.

3. The orthopaedic surgical instrument of claim 1 , wherein:

a first pair of spaced surfaces extend from the first medial surface, the second medial surface extends between and connects the first pair of spaced surfaces, the first pair of spaced surfaces and the second medial surface cooperate to define a medial notch,

a second pair of spaced surfaces extend from the first lateral surface, the second lateral surface extends between and connects the second pair of spaced surfaces, the second pair of spaced surfaces and the second lateral surface cooperate to define a lateral notch, and

the medial notch is substantially aligned with the lateral notch.

4. The orthopaedic surgical instrument of claim 3 , wherein the first pair of spaced surfaces define a width of the medial notch and the second medial surface defines a length of the medial notch, the length of the medial notch being greater than the width of the medial notch.

5. The orthopaedic surgical instrument of claim 4 , wherein:

the second pair of spaced surfaces define a width of the lateral notch and the second lateral surface defines a length of the lateral notch, the length of the lateral notch being greater than the width of the lateral notch, and

the length of the lateral notch is substantially equal to the length of the medial notch.

6. The orthopaedic surgical instrument of claim 5 , wherein the width of the lateral notch and the width of the medial notch are each equal to approximately 1.75 millimeters.

7. The orthopaedic surgical instrument of claim 3 , wherein:

the femoral trial component includes an anterior flange and a pair of posterior condyles, and

the medial notch and the lateral notch are positioned between the anterior flange and the pair of posterior condyles.

8. The orthopaedic surgical instrument of claim 7 , wherein:

the medial notch is a first medial notch and the lateral notch is a first lateral notch,

the medial side includes a second medial notch positioned anterior to the first medial notch and partially defined by a third medial surface,

the lateral side includes a second lateral notch positioned anterior to the first lateral notch and partially defined by a third lateral surface, and

the second and third medial surfaces and the second and third lateral surfaces cooperate to define the second outer edge.

9. The orthopaedic surgical instrument of claim 8 , wherein the second medial notch is substantially aligned with the second lateral notch.

10. The orthopaedic surgical instrument of claim 1 , wherein:

the medial side includes a third medial surface extending between the femoral condyle surface and the fixation surface, the third medial surface being positioned anterior to the second medial surface,

the lateral side includes a third lateral surface extending between the femoral condyle surface and the fixation surface, the third lateral surface being positioned anterior to the second lateral surface, and

the second and third medial surfaces cooperate with the second and third lateral surfaces to define the second outer edge.

11. The orthopaedic surgical instrument of claim 10 , wherein a first medial side surface extends from the second medial surface, a second medial side surface extends from the third medial surface, and the first medial surface connects the first medial side surface to the second medial side surface.

12. The orthopaedic surgical instrument of claim 11 , wherein a first lateral side surface extends from the second lateral surface, a second lateral side surface extends from the third lateral surface, and the first lateral surface connects the first lateral side surface to the second lateral side surface.