Graft tunnel integration occurs early in the tibial tunnel compared with the femoral tunnel after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction with preserved insertion hamstring tendon graft

Preserving the hamstring tendon insertion during ACL reconstruction with an autograft: Systematic literature review

INTRODUCTION

The hamstring tendons (gracilis and semitendinosus) are often used as an autograft for anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction. Healing of this graft involves a slow biological process called ligamentization. To encourage this process, some authors have proposed preserving the insertion of the hamstring tendons.

HYPOTHESIS

Leaving the tibial insertion of the hamstring tendons intact will provide better early biological incorporation and superior tibial mechanical fixation resulting in various clinical advantages.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

In January 2022, a systematic literature review was carried out independently by two authors of the Medline, PubMed and Embase databases. The keywords used were "pedicular" or "pedicled" or "preservation of tibial attachment" or "hamstring tibial insertion" AND "ACL reconstruction". Each author's data was analyzed separately.

RESULTS

Sixteen articles were analyzed. Preserving the hamstring tibial insertion during ACL reconstruction improves the graft's biological incorporation during the initial postoperative phase according to clinical studies with MRI analysis and provides a mechanical advantage at the graft's tibial attachment according to biomechanical studies (construct up to 65% stiffer). There was no difference in the clinical and functional scores when compared to the conventional technique in which the hamstring tendons are detached from their tibial insertion.

DISCUSSION

The main conclusion of this systematic literature review was that preserving the hamstring tibial insertion during ACL reconstruction appears to improve the graft's ligamentization with biological and mechanical advantages relative to detaching the hamstring tendons. The clinical and functional results were comparable to other techniques. Prospective studies with large cohorts are still needed to confirm these findings.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

IV; Systematic review of literature.

Determining the Substantial Clinical Benefit Values for Patient-Reported Outcome Scores After Primary ACL Reconstruction

Background:

Little is known about the threshold of patient-reported outcomes (PROs) at which patients perceive to have attained a substantial clinical benefit (SCB) after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR).

Purpose:

To determine the SCB value of PROs 1 year after ACLR in the general population and to determine factors that predict SCB attainment.

Study Design:

Case series; Level of evidence, 4.

Methods:

The Lysholm, International Knee Documentation Committee Subjective Knee Evaluation Form (IKDC-SKF), Tegner, and Anterior Cruciate Ligament–Return to Sport after Injury (ACL-RSI) scores were examined postoperatively in 88 patients who underwent ACLR. At the 12-month follow-up visit, the patients answered 2 independent anchor questions about daily discomfort and functional recovery. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was used to differentiate PRO scores between patients who responded as having no difficulty versus some difficulty with daily knee discomfort (anchor question 1) and between patients with substantial recovery versus nonsubstantial recovery of knee function (anchor question 2). The area under the ROC curve (AUC) was calculated to assess reliability, and the differences between the AUC values were compared. Multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to determine predictors affecting SCB attainment.

Results:

There were 76 patients enrolled in this study. The 12-month Lysholm, IKDC-SKF, Tegner, and ACL-RSI scores that corresponded to the SCB were 88.0, 85.1, 6.5, and 64.2 for anchor question 1 and 84.5, 77.7, 5.5, and 57.1 for anchor question 2, respectively. The AUC values obtained from the ROC curve analyses showed acceptable to excellent reliability (anchor question 1: Lysholm, 0.90; IKDC-SKF, 0.86; Tegner, 0.71; ACL-RSI, 0.92; anchor question 2: Lysholm, 0.80; IKDC-SKF, 0.90; Tegner, 0.82; ACL-RSI, 0.82) and were all statistically significant ( P < .001 to P = .028). For all PROs, younger age (Odds Ratio (OR), 0.88-0.94; P < .001 to P = .027) and greater muscle strength (OR, 1.03-1.07; P < .001 to P = .023) were predictive factors of SCB attainment.

Conclusion:

The postoperative Lysholm, IKDC-SKF, Tegner, and ACL-RSI scores showed acceptable to excellent reliability in predicting the SCB after ACLR in the general population. Age at surgery and thigh muscle strength influenced SCB attainment for all PROs.