Prosthesis having a soft tissue attachment element

1. A prosthetic bone implant, the bone implant forming one side of a joint, comprising:

a prosthesis for replacing one side of a joint, the prosthesis having a bearing surface located on one side of a joint line; and

a soft tissue attachment component having a flange portion fixedly connected to the prosthesis adjacent at a first end and extending outwardly therefrom beyond the joint line at a second end, the soft tissue attachment component further comprises a stem portion formed as a one-piece construct with the flange portion, the stem portion having a free end with first and second arms forming a U-shaped slot, the U-shaped slot being open proximally at a free end thereof and having two medial and lateral side openings extending from the open free end of the slot distally towards the stem portion;

wherein the soft tissue attachment component is moveable with respect to the prosthesis while connected thereto.

2. The prosthetic bone implant of claim 1 , further comprising a plurality of filaments attached to the soft tissue attachment component, wherein the filaments are configured to connect the soft tissue attachment component to soft tissue.

3. The prosthetic bone implant of claim 1 , wherein the soft tissue attachment component has a first end and a second end, the first end configured to attach to the prosthesis and the second end including a plug configured for attachment to bone.

4. The prosthetic bone implant of claim 1 , wherein the soft tissue attachment component has a first end and a second end, the first end configured to attach to the prosthesis and the second end attached to a replacement or resurfacing element for a bony structure.

5. The prosthetic bone implant of claim 4 , wherein the soft tissue attachment component is formed integrally with the replacement or resurfacing element.

6. The prosthetic bone implant of claim 1 , wherein the soft tissue attachment component has a sufficient length to provide attachment to a piece of soft tissue that has been at least partially resected.

7. The prosthetic bone implant of claim 1 , wherein the prosthesis and the soft tissue attachment mechanism are configured to be connected at the time of surgery.

8. The prosthetic bone implant of claim 1 , wherein the soft tissue attachment component is configured to be modified by a surgeon according to the size and tension needs of a particular procedure.

9. The prosthetic bone implant of claim 1 , wherein the soft tissue attachment component is composed of a material that is either synthetic or biologic, or a composite of synthetic and biologic materials.

10. The prosthetic bone implant of claim 1 , wherein the soft tissue attachment component is composed of a material that is biodegradable or bioresorbable such that over time it is replaced by natural tissue.

11. The prosthetic bone implant of claim 1 , wherein the soft tissue attachment component is at least partially porous.

12. The prosthetic bone implant of claim 1 , wherein the soft tissue attachment component has a variable porosity throughout its length or throughout its cross section, or throughout both its length and its cross section.

13. The prosthetic bone implant of claim 9 , wherein the soft tissue attachment component is composed at least in part of a material selected from the group consisting of Dacron, polytetra fluoroethylene, Texturized or Open-weave poly(ethylene terephthalate), waterswolen poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate), polydioxanone, PDO/Elastin Weave, polyurethane, aromatic porous polyurethane, poly-(L-lactic acid), Polyetheretherketone, allograft or xenograft tendon or ligament, small-intestinal submucos, collagen, cell seeded collagen matrices, hydrogels, Chitosan, or other known cell scaffold materials.