A prospective study to evaluate the functional and clinical outcome of anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction with standard hamstring autograft

Abstract

Background: The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is the primary stabilizer of the knee and prevents the knee against anterior translation. It is also important in counteracting rotational and valgus stress. The arthroscopically aided approach has the advantages of smaller skin and capsular incisions, improved viewing of the intercondylar notch for placement of the tunnel and attachment sites, less postoperative pain, fewer adhesions, earlier motion, and easier rehabilitation. The advantages with semitendinosus grafts are the availability of a greater sectional area and the unaffected integrity of the extensor mechanism. Moreover, the tensile strength of quadrupled hamstring is found to be even better than a normal ACL. The rate of complications such as extension loss, anterior knee pain, and surgical site infections was also lower than in other procedures such as in BPTB grafts. Cortical suspension devices have the necessary biomechanical properties with regard to ultimate failure strength, displacement, and stiffness for the initial fixation of soft tissue in the femoral tunnel for ACL reconstruction. The aperture fixation methods such as the interference screws allow for early firm fixation and heal with a tight bone–tendon interface.Objective: A prospective study to evaluate the functional and clinical outcome of ACL reconstruction with standard hamstring autograft.Materials and Methods: The study results included 30 patients admitted with clinical and radiological deficiency of ACL from September 2019 to March 2021 using endobutton and bioabsorbable interference screw in terms of range of motion, postoperative knee stability, subjective knee functions, and prospective assessment of functional outcome using Tegner Lysholm knee scoring system.Results: Sports injuries were the most common mode of injury (n = 17, 56.7%). The mean size of graft used was 8.2 ± 0.39 mm. Postoperatively at 2-year follow-up, 30 cases (100%) had 0 grade pivot-shift test, 0 grade Lachman test, and anterior drawer test. The mean postoperative Lysholm score improved from preoperative score of 62.83 ± 5.2–91.0 ± 5.54. The overall satisfactory result (excellent + good) at 6-month follow-up was (excellent – 30 and good – 70) 100%. Out of this, 27 (90%) patients had returned to preinjury level of activity in 1 year. In this study, one patient had superficial infection and two patients had knee pain.Conclusion: Arthroscopy-assisted ACL reconstruction using hamstring tendon autograft provides a stable knee, reduces postoperative morbidity, and enables early rehabilitation.