The Danish anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction registry: What we are doing, how we do it, and which would be the best way to do it

Abstract

In order to monitor the developments in surgical methods and clinical outcome, a national clinical database for knee ligament reconstructions was established in 2005 in Denmark. All orthopedic departments and private clinics performing ACL reconstructions in Denmark report to the registry. The database includes both surgery- and patient-related data. The surgeon reports anamnestic, objective knee laxity and operative data including graft and implant choices. At 1-year control, complications, reoperations, and objective knee laxity are recorded. The patient registers the Knee injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score and Tegner function score preoperatively and at 1-, 5- and 10-year follow-up. After 6 years of function, 14,335 ligament reconstructions are included in the registry: 12,322 primary ACL reconstructions, 1,099 ACL revisions, and 914 multi-ligament reconstructions. Overall completeness is 85 %. At 5-year follow-up, 4.1 % of primary reconstructions were revised. Data from a national registry can become new international reference materials for outcome measures before and after ACL surgery. The database will enable future monitoring of ACL reconstruction techniques and outcome.