Because of the preconception that they are doomed to early failure, the use of rotating hinges in total knee arthroplasty (TKA) remains a controversial topic. We share our experience of more than 100 patients undergoing TKA using a rotating hinge.

As we had in mind the single purpose of allaying fears of early failure, this was a fairly simple study, using revision as a concrete endpoint. We discuss indications, contra-indications and some examples.

With our study showing a 93.6% survivorship rate at a mean of 4.8 years, we conclude that the rotating hinge has a definite place in TKA.