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. 2018 Oct 3;13(1):245.
doi: 10.1186/s13018-018-0954-3.

Impact of graft and tunnel orientation on patient-reported outcome in anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction using bone-patellar tendon-bone autografts

Christoph J Laux  1 , Erika J Ulbrich  2 , Gustav Andreisek  2 , Magda Marcon  2 , Michael A Fischer  2 , Tarun Mehra  3 , Bernhard D Ciritsis  4
Affiliations

Impact of graft and tunnel orientation on patient-reported outcome in anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction using bone-patellar tendon-bone autografts

Christoph J Laux et al. J Orthop Surg Res. .

Abstract

Background: The optimal positioning of anterior cruciate ligament graft is still controversially discussed. We therefore wanted to determine the tunnel-to-joint (TJA), tunnel-to-shaft (TSA), and graft-tunnel divergence angles which would provide the best outcome, determined by the KOOS (Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score). This study evaluated the clinical influence of graft orientation as measured with the KOOS questionnaire in patients with anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction with bone-patellar tendon-bone autografts.

Methods: We designed a prospective cohort study, with a 1 ¼ year recruitment phase from March 2011 to July 2012 and a minimal follow-up period of 1 year. Inclusion criteria were patients ≥ 18 years of age receiving an ACL reconstruction with bone-patellar tendon-bone autografts at our institution after having suffered an acute ACL rupture. The primary outcome was the KOOS. Independent variables were patient age, gender, laterality of rupture, mechanism of trauma, and type of femoral and tibial fixation, as well as sagittal graft-tunnel divergence, TJA, and TSA, the latter two being assessed on coronal slices of magnetic resonance imaging. Equations modeling the relationship between TJA, TSA, and graft-tunnel divergence with the KOOS overall score were fitted, and the optimum angles were mathematically determined.

Results: In total, 31 patients were included in our study. Our cohort with a median age of 28 years was predominantly male. The mathematically determined optimal placement of the implant in the coronal plane was a TJA of 74.8°, a TSA of 80.1°, and a graft-tunnel divergence angle of 8.5°.

Conclusion: With regard to patient-reported outcome, the optimal graft orientation is provided by a coronal tunnel-to-shaft angle of 80° and tunnel-to-joint angle of 75°, respectively. Interestingly, in our series, patients reported best clinical outcomes with a sagittal graft-tunnel divergence. These results should be validated in larger studies.

Keywords: ACL reconstruction; Anterior cruciate ligament; Bone-patellar tendon-bone; Graft orientation; Outcome.

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Conflict of interest statement

Ethics approval and consent to participate

Patient consent was obtained from all patients prior to study inclusion. The study was approved by the Cantonal Ethics Committee Zurich (ref. 2010-0437).

Consent for publication

Not applicable.

Competing interests

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Publisher’s Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Illustration of ascertained coronal angles: transplant orientation to joint (TOJ), transplant orientation to shaft (TOS), tunnel-to-joint angle (TJA), and tunnel-to-shaft angle (TSA)
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Illustration of ascertained sagittal angles: transplant orientation to joint (TOJ), transplant orientation to shaft (TOS), tunnel-to-shaft angle (TSA), and graft kinging angle (GTD)
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Curve fits for KOOS in function of coronal a tunnel-to-joint angle (TJA) and b tunnel-to-shaft angle (TSA) and c sagittal graft-tunnel divergence (GTD). All three estimated equations are quadratic. The mathematically determined optimum TSA, TJA, and graft kinking values for achieving the best post-surgical results (lowest KOOS, no normalized scale) are marked in green
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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