Is Tourniquet Use Necessary for Arthroscopic Meniscal Repair

Abstract

Background To determine the necessity of tourniquet use in arthroscopic meniscal repair by comparing outcomes including arthroscopic visibility, operative time, postoperative pain and subjective function of the knee joint. Methods This was a retrospective, single-centre, single-surgeon study. A total of 148 patients who underwent arthroscopic meniscal repair were allocated to the tourniquet group (n=82) or the nontourniquet group (n=66). The primary outcome measures were arthroscopic visibility and operative time. The secondary outcomes were postoperative pain measured by a visual analogue scale and subjective function of the knee joint measured by The International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC) and Lysholm scores. Results The 2 groups did not differ in terms of age, male‒female ratio, body mass index, or operative side. There was no significant difference between the 2 groups regarding arthroscopic visibility and operative time. At 1 week postoperatively, the VAS score and Lysholm score of the nontourniquet group were better than those of the tourniquet group (P<0.05). The VAS score, Lysholm score, and IKDC score at 6 weeks and 3 months postoperatively were significantly improved compared to the preoperative status in both groups (P < 0.05). However, there was no significant difference in these indexes between the two groups at 6 weeks and 3 months postoperatively (P > 0.05). Conclusions Tourniquet use for arthroscopic meniscal repair does not affect primary outcome or secondary outcomes. Based on the results of the analysis, the use of a tourniquet is no longer advisable for routine arthroscopic meniscal repair. Level of Evidence：LEVEL III