title: Diagnosis, causes and treatments of instability following total knee arthroplasty.
abstract: Instability following total knee arthroplasty is one of the major causes of revision surgery. In most cases, it can be prevented by using an appropriate prosthesis and a good surgical technique. Particular attention should be given to confirmation of diagnosis for which thorough history taking, complete physical examination and radiographic evaluation are needed. With regard to treatment, identification of the etiology of instability is crucial for establishing proper treatment plans; instability would persist without correction of the cause of the initial instability. For successful revision surgery, balanced medio-lateral and flexion-extension gaps should be achieved. Constrained or rotating-hinge total knee prosthesis should also be considered as an alternative option for certain subsets of patients with instability.
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Samsung Medical Center, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Moon Jong
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Chang
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Samsung Medical Center, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Hyungtae
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Lim
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Samsung Medical Center, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Na Rae
authors.initials: NR
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Samsung Medical Center, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Young-Wan
authors.initials: YW
authors.lastname: Moon
keywords: Arthroplasty; Instability; Knee; Prosthesis failure