THE PATHOGENESIS OF BONE LOSS FOLLOWING TOTAL KNEE ARTHROPLASTY

Bone loss following total knee arthroplasty (TKA) may be focal or diff use. It may be caused mechanically, either by unloading of the bone le ading to disuse osteoporosis, or by overloading of the bone leading to trabecular fractures and bone destruction. Osteolysis, instigated by an inflammatory reaction to particulate wear debris, is an important a nd common cause of bone loss after TKA. Less common, though sometimes dramatic, causes of bone loss are infection and osteonecrosis.