Early in its development, the subject matter of any field of surgery is too ill-defined and opinions are too fluid for the production of a book on the subject to be possible. Late in its development, controversy is at an end, and although it is still possible to produce a textbook, it is too late to produce a book that might stimulate discussion and crystallise ideas. This book has that objective, it being the Editor's view that the field of the surgical treatment of arthritis of the knee ...

"Knee replacement is bound to fail-providing the patient lives long enough". There is some truth in this hoary cliche, so why write books on the subject? I think the answer is that knee replacement has at last become established and even respectable. The more absurd surgical extravaganzas have been recognised and discarded; today a patient can expect to rely on his new knee to serve him with comfort for a fair number of years. Of course even the early knee replacements often made the patie...