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High-resolution MRI may accurately assess bone tunnel placement in ACL reconstruction
Recently published results showed high-resolution MRI accurately assessed bone tunnel placement in patients undergoing ACL reconstruction and may be an alternative to 3-D CT.
Per the imaging protocols of the Sydney Orthopaedic Research Institute, researchers converted MRI and 3-D CT scans of 24 patients with failed ACL reconstruction (ACLR) into 3-D models. To evaluate the accuracy of high-resolution MRI and 3-D CT, researchers used bone tunnels of the previous ACL reconstruction that were intraoperatively digitized at the tunnel aperture and along the length of the tunnel as reference standard. Researchers calculated differences in geometry through point-to-point comparison between the image-based model and the reference point cloud.
Results showed no significant differences between the MRI and 3-D CT models vs. the reference models for the femur and tibia at the tunnel apertures. Researchers found a mean deviation of approximately 0.48 mm for the femoral barrel and approximately 0.46 mm for the tibial barrel when MRI models were compared with the CT models. MRI and 3-D CT models had no significant differences in the femoral and tibial tunnel barrels when compared with the reference models.
“The MRI protocol discussed may yield other information important to the evaluation and management of ACLR and revision ACLR in the clinical and research settings,” the authors wrote. – by Casey Tingle
Disclosures: This study was internally funded by the Sydney Orthopaedic Research Institute, including purchases for equipment and supplies. Please see the full study for a list of all other authors’ relevant financial disclosures.