Extract
Total knee arthroplasty has proven to be a highly successful procedure over
the past four decades, with reported survivorship rates surpassing 90% for the
various implant designs. Several factors are known to correlate with a
well-functioning total knee arthroplasty, including implant design, component
fixation, mechanical alignment, and soft-tissue balancing. Balancing the
soft-tissue envelope surrounding a total knee arthroplasty has proven to be a
particularly strong determinant of function. In fact, some authors have
pointed out that a successful total knee arthroplasty may be most
appropriately characterized as a soft-tissue
operation1,2.