Resumen

ALENCAR, Paulo Gilberto Cimbalista de; DE BORTOLI, Giovani; VIEIRA, Inácio Facó Ventura  y  ULIANA, Christiano Saliba. Periprosthetic fractures in total knee arthroplasty. Rev. bras. ortop. [online]. 2010, vol.45, n.3, pp. 230-235. ISSN 0102-3616.  http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S0102-36162010000300003.

The increasing number of total knee arthroplasties, in combination with the population's longer life expectancy, has led to a greater number of long-term complications. These complications are also correlated with poor bone quality in the elderly and often result in periprosthetic fractures. This complex orthopedic problem has very diverse clinical presentation, possibly afflicting periprosthetic fracture may happen in any bone that constitutes the knee and, due to the difficulty of finding a solution, may lead to disastrous outcomes. The treatment demands broad knowledge from the orthopedic surgeon, not only regarding arthroplasty techniques, but also osteosynthesis, as well as an elaborate therapeutic including, for example, access to a bone bank.

Palabras llave : Periprosthetic fractures; Arthroplasty ,replacement, knee; Atualization.