Clinical Reliability of Adjustable Femoral Cortical Suspensory Fixation in Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction and Correlation of Clinical Outcomes With Demographic and Perioperative Factors

Abstract

Background and objective The primary goal of anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR) is to protect the initial graft fixation against heavy loads encountered during the rehabilitation phase. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the functional outcomes (Lysholm score) and laxity [anterior tibial translation (ATT), anterior drawer test, Lachman test, and pivot shift test] of ACLR with adjustable-loop femoral cortical suspensory fixation (CSF) and tibial interferences crew fixation. Methods This study included 100 patients who underwent primary ACL reconstruction using quadruple hamstring grafts secured with TightRope® (Arthrex Inc, Naples, FL) femoral fixation and an interference screw on the tibial end. Six patients were excluded from the final analysis (four lost to follow-up, one suffered re-injury, and one had septic arthritis). The remaining 94 patients were evaluated for laxity and functional outcomes preoperatively, as well as at one, six, and 12 months postoperatively. Regression analysis was performed to determine the association between outcomes and 11 independent variables. This was designed as a prospective cohort study (level of evidence: II). Results The mean age of the participants was 28.46 ± 7.01 years. The median preoperative Lysholm knee score of 49 (mean ± SD: 48.2 ± 5.42) improved to 93 (92.7 ± 2.1) at six months and 98 (97.6 ± 2.1) at the one-year follow-up. The improvement was found to be statistically significant (p<0.01). The median ATT was 10 mm preoperatively, which decreased to 2 mm at one month, remained the same at six months, and rose to 3 mm at the one-year follow-up. ATT was found significantly reduced at one month postoperatively (p 0.05). Multiple linear regression revealed that one-year postoperative ATT (Rolimeter, Aircast Europa, Stephanskirchen, Germany) was independent of all demographic and perioperative variables tested. Conclusion Quadrupled hamstring graft ACLR with adjustable-loop fixation showed excellent subjective and objective outcomes with no residual laxity or failure of graft over mid-term follow-up. Postoperative laxity was not correlated with graft and tunnel dimensions.