Survival and Risk Factor Analysis of Arthroscopic Ramp Lesion Repair During Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction

Abstract

Background: There is a lack of research on the management of ramp lesions associated with anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries. Furthermore, there has been no report of the risk factors for failure of ramp lesion sutures, linked to either the technique used (all-inside suture implant vs suture hook through a posteromedial portal) or the type of lesion (location in the red zone or meniscocapsular junction, longitudinal extension, partial- or full-thickness tear). Purpose: To evaluate the results of arthroscopic repair of ramp lesions and determine the risk factors associated with ramp lesion repair failure, with special focus on their subtype and the suture technique. Study Design: Case-control study; Level of evidence, 3. Methods: All patients who underwent arthroscopic ramp lesion repair in association with ACL reconstruction between November 2015 and January 2018 were evaluated retrospectively. The following parameters were studied: demographics; clinical history; clinical findings including International Knee Documentation Committee score, complications, time from injury to surgery, side-to-side laxity, and pivot shift; and surgical findings including subtype, surgical management, and type and number of sutures. Failure of the ramp lesion repair was defined at secondary arthroscopy. Results: Among the 248 lesions analyzed, 18 (7.3%) failures were documented. The failures occurred in 21.1% of repairs managed with the all-inside device versus 4.3% of sutures managed with the suture hook ( P = .003). Among the 6 factors included in the Cox model, the only one identified as a risk factor for failure was the type of repair ( P = .003), with a risk for the all-inside device that was >5-fold higher than that for the suture hook repair (corresponding hazard ratio, 5.1 [95% CI, 1.8-14.5]). No other complications involving the surgical technique or device were registered. Conclusion: An arthroscopic all-inside technique of meniscal repair of ramp lesions appeared to be safe and effective. It provided excellent healing of the repaired meniscus, with an overall failure rate of 7.3%. The type of suture was associated with failure of the ramp lesion repair, with a significantly higher risk with the all-inside device than with suture hook repair sutures.