Bryson P. Lesniak

Anatomic Single- and Double-Bundle Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction Flowchart

Anatomy is the foundation of orthopaedic surgery, and the advancing knowledge of the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) anatomy has led to the development of improved modern reconstruction techniques that approach the anatomy of the native ACL. Current literature on the anatomy of the ACL and its reconstruction techniques, as well as our surgical experience, was used to develop a flowchart that can aid the surgeon in performing anatomic ACL reconstruction. We define anatomic ACL reconstruction as the functional restoration of the ACL to its native dimensions, collagen orientation, and insertion sites. A guideline was written to accompany this flowchart with more detailed information on anatomic ACL reconstruction and its pitfalls, all accompanied by relevant literature and helpful figures. Although there is still much to learn about anatomic ACL reconstruction methods, we believe this is a helpful document for surgeons. We continue to modify the flowchart as more information about the anatomy of the ACL, and how to more closely reproduce it, becomes available.

Biomechanical consequences of a tear of the posterior root of the medial meniscus. Surgical technique.

BACKGROUND Tears of the posterior root of the medial meniscus are becoming increasingly recognized. They can cause rapidly progressive arthritis, yet their biomechanical effects are not understood. The goal of this study was to determine the effects of posterior root tears of the medial meniscus and their repairs on tibiofemoral joint contact pressure and kinematics. METHODS Nine fresh-frozen cadaver knees were used. An axial load of 1000 N was applied with a custom testing jig at each of four knee-flexion angles: 0 degrees , 30 degrees , 60 degrees , and 90 degrees . The knees were otherwise unconstrained. Four conditions were tested: (1) intact, (2) a posterior root tear of the medial meniscus, (3) a repaired posterior root tear, and (4) a total medial meniscectomy. Fuji pressure-sensitive film was used to record the contact pressure and area for each testing condition. Kinematic data were obtained by using a robotic arm to record the position of the knees for each loading condition. Three-dimensional knee kinematics were analyzed with custom programs with use of previously described transformations. The measured variables were axial rotation, varus angulation, lateral translation, and anterior translation. RESULTS In the medial compartment, a posterior root tear of the medial meniscus caused a 25% increase in peak contact pressure compared with that found in the intact condition (p < 0.001). Repair restored the peak contact pressure to normal. No difference was detected between the peak contact pressure after the total medial meniscectomy and that associated with the root tear. The peak contact pressure in the lateral compartment after the total medial meniscectomy was up to 13% greater than that for all other conditions (p = 0.026). Significant increases in external rotation and lateral tibial translation, compared with the values in the intact knee, were observed in association with the posterior root tear (2.98 degrees and 0.84 mm, respectively) and the meniscectomy (4.45 degrees and 0.80 mm, respectively), and these increases were corrected by the repair. CONCLUSIONS This study demonstrated significant changes in contact pressure and knee joint kinematics due to a posterior root tear of the medial meniscus. Root repair was successful in restoring joint biomechanics to within normal conditions.

Structural Properties of the Anterolateral Capsule and Iliotibial Band of the Knee

Background: The role of the anterolateral capsule in knee stability has recently been advocated by studies reporting that a distinct ligament exists in this area. Defining the structural properties of the anterolateral capsule can provide insight into its contribution to joint stability. The structural properties of the iliotibial band also need to be determined, as it is a common graft used for extra-articular tenodesis. Purpose/Hypothesis: The purpose of this study was to determine the structural properties of the anterolateral capsule and iliotibial band. The hypothesis was that the iliotibial band will have comparable structural properties to the anterolateral capsule because it is generally an accepted graft for extra-articular reconstruction surgeries. Study design: Controlled laboratory study. Methods: Nine human cadaveric knees (average age, 57 ± 10 years) were dissected to assess the presence of a discrete capsular thickness originating from the lateral femoral epicondyle to the lateral tibial plateau between the Gerdy tubercle and the fibular head. For each knee, 2 constructs were prepared: (1) a bone–anterolateral capsule–bone specimen and (2) a strip of iliotibial band attached to the Gerdy tubercle. Structural properties, including ultimate load, ultimate elongation, and stiffness, were determined for the anterolateral capsule and the iliotibial band. After tensile testing, plain radiographs were obtained for evaluation of the Segond fracture. A paired t test was used to compare the structural properties of the anterolateral capsule with the iliotibial band. Significance was set at P < .05. Results: Two of the 9 specimens were found to have a discrete thickening of the anterolateral capsule. The iliotibial band had almost 50% higher ultimate load and nearly 3 times higher stiffness (487.9 ± 156.9 N and 73.2 ± 24.1 N/mm, respectively) compared with the anterolateral capsule (319.7 ± 212.6 N and 26.0 ± 11.5 N/mm, respectively) (P < .05 for both). The anterolateral capsule had about double the ultimate elongation compared with the iliotibial band (15.5 ± 7.3 and 8.6 ± 1.4 mm, respectively; P < .05). Conclusion: The anterolateral capsule demonstrated significantly reduced structural properties compared with the iliotibial band. The anterolateral capsule did not have a higher ultimate load compared with the posteromedial capsule as reported in the literature. Clinical Relevance: The decision to perform an extra-articular reconstruction using an iliotibial band graft should be considered carefully. Unnecessary reconstructions using soft tissue grafts with structural properties that far exceed that of the anterolateral capsule may result in overconstraint of the ACL-reconstructed knee.

Arthroscopic Repair of Delaminated Acetabular Articular Cartilage in Femoroacetabular Impingement

Lesions to articular cartilage can be difficult to treat and directly impact surgical outcome in hip arthroscopy. This article describes a direct cartilage suture repair technique for a young, active individual with full-thickness acetabular cartilage delamination. Lesions of this type are commonly seen with femoroacetabular impingement. A 17-year-old boy presented with bilateral hip pain greater in the right than left. Arthroscopic intervention for the right hip included direct cartilage repair for the cartilage lesion, osteoplasty for femoroacetabular impingement, repair for an anterior labral tear, capsular plication for iliofemoral ligament laxity, and psoas lengthening. Twelve weeks postoperatively, a standard capsular plication, osteoplasty, and chondroplasty were performed on the left hip. At follow-up, the patient reported feeling 95% normal. He noted that the right and left hips were essentially the same. Symptoms consisted of stiffness after prolonged sitting and mild pain following sports. The patient reported being pain free 90% of the time, with pain 2/10 at worst. He scored a 96 on the modified Harris Hip Score, 93 on the Hip Outcome Score Activities of Daily Living subscale, and 81 on the Hip Outcome Score Sports subscale. Overall, the patient was satisfied with the outcome. The direct cartilage repair, in addition to osteoplasty, anterior superior labral repair, iliofemoral capsular plication, and psoas lengthening, produced an excellent outcome in this young, active patient.

Does the lateral intercondylar ridge disappear in ACL deficient patients

The aim of this study was to determine whether there is a difference in the presence of the lateral intercondylar ridge and the lateral bifurcate ridge between patients with sub-acute and chronic ACL injuries. We hypothesized that the ridges would be present less often with chronic ACL deficiency. Twenty-five patients with a chronic ACL injury were matched for age and gender to 25 patients with a sub-acute ACL injury. The lateral intercondylar ridge and lateral bifurcate ridge were scored as either present, absent, or indeterminate due to insufficient visualization by three blinded observers. The kappa for the three observers was .61 for the lateral intercondylar ridge and .58 for the lateral bifurcate ridge. The lateral intercondylar ridge was present in 88% of the sub-acute patients and 88% of the chronic patients. The lateral bifurcate ridge was present in 48% of the sub-acute and 48% of the chronic patients. This matched-pairs case–control study was unable to show a difference in the presence of the femoral bony ridges between patients with acute and chronic ACL injuries. The authors would suggest looking for the ridges as a landmark of the native ACL insertion site during ACL reconstruction in both acute and chronic ACL injuries.

Stabilization of adolescent both-bone forearm fractures: a comparison of intramedullary nailing versus open reduction and internal fixation.

Objectives: To compare flexible intramedullary (IM) nailing with open reduction and internal fixation (ORIF) with plates and screws in the treatment of adolescent both-bone forearm fractures. Design: Retrospective comparative study. Setting: Level I trauma center. Patients/Participants: Sixty-one skeletally immature adolescents (mean age, 13.9 years; range, 11.5-16.9 years) treated operatively for both-bone forearm fractures from 1997 to 2007. Patients with Monteggia, Galeazzi, intra-articular, and pathologic fractures were excluded. Intervention: Forty-six patients (mean age, 14.1 years) underwent ORIF and 15 patients (mean age, 13.3 years) underwent flexible IM nailing. Main Outcome Measures: Time to fracture union, forearm rotation, magnitude and location of maximal radial bow, and complications. Results: There was no difference in mean time to union between the IM nailing (8.5 weeks) and ORIF (8.9 weeks) groups, although the study did not have sufficient power to detect a difference. Eighty-three percent of patients in both groups regained full forearm rotation. Although radial bow magnitude was comparably restored in both groups, the mean location of maximal radial bow was translated distally in the IM nailing group (67.2%) compared with the ORIF group (60.1%, P < 0.001) and a previously reported normal value (60.4%, P < 0.001). There were no major complications in the IM nailing group and five major complications in the ORIF group. Conclusions: Flexible IM nailing of both-bone form fractures in adolescents was safe and effective in our small series; we had less complications when compared with conventional ORIF. Although flexible IM nailing results in distal translation of the radial bow, forearm rotation is not compromised.

Anterolateral rotatory instability of the knee.

AbstractRecent publications have generated renewed interest in the anatomy of the anterolateral capsule. Knowledge of the biomechanical function of the anterolateral components is lacking. Further research is required to evaluate the influence of the anterolateral capsule on rotatory laxity of the knee. The role of surgical procedures, such as an extra-articular tenodesis or lateral plasty, has to be defined based on quantification of the injury. This article seeks to summarize the current literature and discusses the role of the anterolateral capsule and reconstructive techniques in combined ligamentous knee trauma. Level of evidence V.

Glenohumeral Findings on Magnetic Resonance Imaging Correlate With Innings Pitched in Asymptomatic Pitchers

Background: In recent years, there has been a documented increase in the number of professional baseball players on the disabled list and the total number of days on the disabled list. Pitchers account for the largest number of disabled list reports. Purpose: To examine the relationship between magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings in asymptomatic professional pitchers and subsequent time on the disabled list (DL). Study Design: Cohort study (Prognosis); Level of evidence, 2. Methods: A total of 21 asymptomatic professional pitchers from a single Major League Baseball (MLB) organization underwent preseason MRIs of their dominant shoulder from 2001 to 2010. Asymptomatic was defined as no related DL stays in the 2 seasons before the MRI. These studies were reevaluated by a fellowship-trained musculoskeletal radiologist who was blinded to patient name, injury history, and baseball history. A second investigator who was blinded to the MRI results collected demographic data, total career number of innings pitched, and any subsequent DL reports for each subject. Results: The mean age at the time of MRI was 29.04 years (range, 20-39 years). Eleven of 21 pitchers had a rotator cuff tear (RCT): 9 had an articular surface tear (AST), and 2 had a full-thickness rotator cuff tear (FTT). Ten had superior labral anterior posterior (SLAP) tears, and 13 had either anterior or posterior labral tears. There was a statistically significant relationship between the number of innings pitched and presence of an RCT (AST + FTT). The mean number of career innings pitched by those with an RCT was 1014 compared with a mean of 729 innings pitched in pitchers without an RCT (P < .01). In addition, the number of career innings pitched was moderately correlated with presence of RCT (r = 0.46) and presence of superior and anterior/posterior labral tears (r = 0.43). There were no statistically significant findings between any single preseason MRI finding and subsequent time on the DL. Conclusion: The MRI findings in asymptomatic MLB pitchers do not appear to be related to near future placement on the DL. However, there was a significant difference in numbers of innings pitched between pitchers who had an RCT and those who did not and a moderate correlation between innings pitched and the presence of RCT as well as the presence of labral lesions. This finding supports the notion that RCT and labral injury in pitchers may result from repetitive overhead motion with subsequent strain on the rotator cuff tendons and glenoid labrum. Asymptomatic shoulder lesions in professional baseball pitchers appear to be more frequent than previously thought.

Ultrasound-guided aspiration of symptomatic intraneural ganglion cyst within the tibial nerve

Intraneural ganglia are rare non-neoplastic cysts caused by the accumulation of thick mucinous (mucoid) fluid within the epineurium of peripheral nerves, encased in a dense fibrous capsule [1, 2]. These cysts cause compression of adjacent nerve fascicles, resulting in leg paresthesias, pain, weakness, muscle denervation, and atrophy [3]. The peroneal (fibular) nerve at the level of the fibular neck is most commonly affected [4–6]. Involvement of other peripheral nerves surrounding articular surfaces (including the radial, ulnar, median, sciatic, tibial and posterior interosseous nerves) has been previously described [6–21]. Tibial intraneural ganglia in the knee region are particularly rare, with fewer than 15 reported cases in the literature [2, 8–15]. Although their ultrasound (US) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) appearance has been previously documented [8–15, 22], to our knowledge no one has reported the ultrasound-guided aspiration of a symptomatic intraneural ganglion cyst within the tibial nerve.

Factors that influence the intra-articular rupture pattern of the ACL graft following single-bundle reconstruction

PurposesThe number of revision anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) surgeries performed annually continues to rise. The purpose of this study was to determine the most common rupture pattern in ACL revision cases after previous single-bundle reconstruction. The second aim was to determine the relationship between rupture pattern and patient-specific factors (age, gender, time between the initial ACL reconstruction and re-injury, and etiology/mechanism of failure) and surgical factors (graft type, tunnel angle).MethodsThis was a cohort study of 60 patients that underwent revision ACL surgery after previous single-bundle ACL reconstruction. Three sports medicine–trained orthopedic surgeons reviewed the arthroscopic videos and determined the rupture pattern of the grafts. The rupture pattern was then correlated to the above-mentioned factors.ResultsThe inter-observer agreement had a kappa of 0.7. The most common rupture pattern after previous single-bundle ACL reconstruction is elongation of the graft. This is different from the native ACL, which displays more proximal ruptures. With the use of autograft tissue and after a longer period of time, the rupture pattern in revision surgery is more similar to that of the native ACL.ConclusionThe most common rupture pattern after previous single-bundle reconstruction was elongation of the graft. Factors that influenced the rupture pattern were months between ACL reconstruction and re-injury and graft type.Level of evidenceCohort study, Level IV.