Radiographic Evaluation of Alignment Following TKA, a Systematic Review

Postoperative assessment is of paramount importance in primary total knee arthroplasty. A thorough postoperative analysis helps the surgeon anticipate any postoperative potential issues and correlate the preoperative planning with the postoperative result, and provides better understanding of the importance of surgical principles of primary total knee arthroplasty. In addition, postoperative analysis helps the surgeon understand surgical errors and improve future outcomes. Standard radiographs, with a known magnification, should be obtained for postoperative total knee arthroplasty evaluation. Although imaging evaluation of knee arthroplasty is usually limited to conventional radiographs, examples of the utility of computed tomography are also illustrated, and suggested imaging strategies discussed.