Three Morphological Risk Factors for Predicting Isolated Meniscal Bucket-handle Tear.

Abstract

The study aimed to investigate whether morphometric variables of the knee can predict isolated meniscal bucket-handle tears and identify the risk factors. The study included 146 participants with a mean age of 36.547 ± 12.279years. They included two groups of 73 patients each: one group with isolated meniscal bucket-handle tears and another with no knee injury (control group). Magnetic resonance imaging findings of the participants were retrospectively assessed. A few morphometric variables associated with distal femur, proximal tibia, and cruciate ligaments were measured. Cruciate ligament tensity (CLT), medial femoral condylar height (MFCH), and lateral meniscal bone angle (LMBA) were found to be 12.7 ± 0.3, 30.1 ± 2.5mm, and 21.2° ± 3.4°, respectively, in patients with meniscal bucket-handle tear, compared with 11.9 ± 0.2, 28.3 ± 2.7mm, and 26.5° ± 3.7° in the control group, respectively. Based on multivariate Firth's logistic regression analysis, CLT (Odds ratio [OR]: 456.533; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 27.582 to > 999.999), MFCH (OR: 1.603; 95% CI: 1.023-2.513), and LMBA (OR: 0.780; 95% CI: 0.624-0.975) could distinguish between meniscal bucket-handle tears and knees without meniscus tears (p < 0.05). Based on the multicategorical multinominal regression model, CLT (OR: > 999.999; 95% CI: 49.937 to > 999.999) and MFCH (OR: 1.903; 95% CI: 1.005-3.606) were the determinant variables in differentiating medial meniscal bucket-handle tears from knees without meniscus tears (p < 0.05). Large CLT, high medial condyle, and small LMBA were revealed as the morphometric risk factors for meniscal bucket-handle tear.