Arthroscopically assisted anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction with the pes anserine tendons

Abstract

Fifty anterior cruciate ligament-deficient knees treated consecutively with arthroscopically assisted recon struction using a pes anserine tendon autograft were retrospectively studied. The mean followup was 36.7 months (range, 26 to 58). All patients had reconstruc tion with a double-stranded graft. The mean injury to surgery interval was 9.6 days in 22 patients (acute group) and 22.5 months in 28 patients (chronic group). Objective outcome, which was noted to be more opti mal in the acute group, was better than subjective outcome in either group. Examination revealed 95% of patients treated acutely and 82% of those treated later to have 1 + or less Lachman test result ( P < 0.036) and 96% of the acute group and 82% of the chronic group to have an absent pivot shift ( P < 0.036). Eighty-eight percent of acutely treated patients had a KT-1000 result of ≤3 mm, as compared to 61% of chronically treated patients ( P < 0.001). Loss of range of motion was significantly greater in the acute group ( P < 0.018). Using a strict overall rating system, patients recon structed earlier were noted to have a better outcome compared to those after delayed reconstruction ( P < 0.021). Cumulative meniscal injury appears to be the most significant contributing factor.