Which strategy helps avoid edge loading in knee arthroplasty?

• A. Adjust soft tissue balancing and component placement to optimize contact distribution
• B. Increase tibial slope blindly
• C. Use a larger femoral component without balancing
• D. Leave margins unchanged

Answer: (A)

Edge loading happens when contact stress concentrates at the edge of the bearing surface, usually from imbalanced soft tissues or misaligned components. The way to prevent this is to adjust soft tissue balancing and place the components so that contact is distributed evenly across the articulating surfaces through the knee’s range of motion. By achieving balanced flexion and extension gaps and proper alignment, the load is shared more evenly, reducing edge contact and wear.

Bluntly increasing tibial slope can alter knee kinematics and often worsens edge loading rather than preventing it. Using a larger femoral component without balancing can introduce mismatches and edge contact, and leaving margins unchanged doesn’t address the underlying balance and alignment issues.