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Amount of tension on ACL graft has minimal effect on outcomes at 36 months
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According to this randomized controlled study, there was no significant difference in ACL reconstruction outcomes when autograft ligaments were tensioned to either restore intraoperative normal anterior-posterior laxity or over-constrain anterior-posterior laxity by 2 mm.
“Both laxity-based initial graft tension protocols produced similar outcomes without fully restoring joint function or patient-oriented outcomes (KOOS) when compared with the control group. There was minimal evidence of cartilage damage 36 months after surgery,” Braden C. Fleming, PhD, of Brown University, in Providence, R.I., and colleagues wrote in the study abstract.
Among the 99 patients who underwent ACL reconstruction for isolated unilateral ACL injuries, tensioned with one of the two methods, Fleming and colleagues found anterior-posterior laxity was 2 mm greater than in 60 matched patients that formed the control group.
Furthermore, patient-reported outcome scores in both ACL reconstruction groups were significantly worse compared to controls, according to the abstract.
At the latest follow-up of 36 postoperatively months, results showed similar reinjury rates in the two groups of patients with tensioned ACL grafts.
Disclosure: The authors received funding from the National Institutes of Health to conduct this study.
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