Browse by author
Lookup NU author(s): Dr Nicola Hunt, Professor David Deehan
Full text for this publication is not currently held within this repository. Alternative links are provided below where available.
Background: Tibiofemoral instability is a common reason for total knee arthroplasty failure, and may be attributed to soft tissue deficiency and incorrect ligament balancing. There are many different designs of implant with varying levels of constraint to overcome this instability; however there is little advice for surgeons to assess which is suitable for a specific patient, and soft tissue balance testing during arthroplasty is very subjective. Method: The current theories on primary and secondary soft tissue restraints to anterior/posterior, varus/valgus, and internal/external rotational motion of the knee are discussed. The paper reviews biomechanics literature to evaluate instability in the intact and implanted knee. Findings: The paper highlights important intra- and extra-capsular structures in the knee and describes the techniques used by clinicians to assess instability perioperatively. In vitro cadaveric studies were found to be a very useful tool in comparing different implants and contributions of different soft tissues. Interpretation: In vitro cadaveric studies can be utilised in helping less experienced surgeons with soft tissue releases and determining the correct implant. For this to happen, more biomechanical studies must be done to show the impact of release sequences on implanted cadavers, as well as determining if increasingly constrained implants restore the stability of the knee to pre-deficient conditions.
Author(s): Athwal KK, Hunt NC, Davies AJ, Deehan DJ, Amis AA
Publication type: Review
Publication status: Published
Journal: Clinical Biomechanics
Year: 2014
Volume: 29
Issue: 2
Pages: 119-128
Print publication date: 05/11/2013
ISSN (print): 0268-0033
ISSN (electronic): 1879-1271
URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.clinbiomech.2013.11.004
DOI: 10.1016/j.clinbiomech.2013.11.004
