Simple surgical techniques to protect the soft tissues during total knee arthroplasty.

The surgical techniques involved in total knee arthroplasty are often overshadowed by implant design, metallurgy, and fixation methods. This is especially true when considering the handling of the soft tissues rather than the bony cuts. The authors believe that protection of the soft-tissue structures around the knee is of paramount importance and describe six surgical techniques that they use to accomplish this during total knee arthroplasty.