Extract
Stability of the knee is a complex issue and involves ligaments that
behave differently on the medial and lateral side. Correct positioning of the
components and adequate soft-tissue balancing are critical steps in successful
total knee
arthroplasty1. A
total knee prosthesis that is implanted "too tightly" may cause
limited range of motion and compromise patient satisfaction. A total knee
replacement that is implanted "too loosely" will be
unstable2.
Medial-lateral instability is the most common type of instability and may
result from incompetent collateral ligaments, incomplete correction of a
preoperative deformity, or incorrect bone
cuts3. Separate
studies have identified instability as a leading cause of early clinical
failure of a primary total knee replacement, resulting in revision within
three to five
years4,5.