The benefit of revision knee arthroplasty for component malrotation after primary total knee replacement

Purpose: Revision surgery for component malrotation in the painful TKA is a relatively novel indication. The purpose of this study was to assess the benefit of revision TKA for component malrotation with regard to the clinical and functional outcomes. Methods: Our retrospective case-control study included 51 patients who underwent revision surgery for malrotation with mean follow up of 42 months. They were equally matched to patients who had surgery for aseptic loosening. Results: Knee society scores improved from 44/49 to 75/60 (p < 0.001) for the study group and 44/47 to 76/57 (p < 0.001) for the control group. There was no statistical difference between the groups, including for VAS scores, narcotic reduction or patient satisfaction. Our study showed that revision surgery for malrotation is as beneficial as surgery for aseptic loosening with regard to clinical and functional outcome. Conclusions: We recommend CT in painful TKA to assess component malrotation for which revision TKA is beneficial.