Secondary surgeries 20 years after surgical and non-surgical treatment of ACL rupture: A population-based cohort study

Abstract

Background: Studies with less than 10 years of follow-up have demonstrated no difference between surgical and non-surgical treatment after an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) rupture; however, long-term effects remain unclear. The aim of this study was to compare the risk of long-term secondary surgical procedures after primary surgical and non-surgical treatment for ACL ruptures. Methods: Patients aged 18-35, registered in the Danish National Patient Registry with an ACL rupture between January 1, 1996 and December 31, 2000 with a minimum of 20 years follow-up were included. The surgically treated group was defined as receiving an ACL reconstruction within 1 year after diagnosis. Major secondary surgical procedures were defined as subsequent ACL surgeries (reconstruction/revision), arthroplasty, deep infection, arthrodesis, or amputation. Minor secondary surgical procedures were defined as meniscal surgery, synovectomy, and manipulation under anesthesia (MUA). Multivariate regression analysis was performed to assess relative risk (RR), adjusted for age and sex. The results are reported with 95% confidence intervals. Results: 7,539 patients had an ACL rupture; 1,970 patients were surgically treated. In the surgically treated group, 5.9% of patients underwent major secondary surgeries; this was 6.1% in the non-surgically treated group, yielding an adjusted RR of 1.05 (0.85;1.30). There were 43.9% minor secondary surgeries in the surgically treated group and 49.1% in the non-surgically treated group, yielding an adjusted RR of 1.29 (1.20;1.39). Conclusions: No significant differences in the rate of major secondary surgical procedures between the groups, the non-surgical group was associated with a higher risk of minor secondary surgeries.

Morphometric MRI Evaluation of Three Autografts Used in Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction in Athletes

“…The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is one of the main knee joint ligamentous stabilizers, and loss of its function following a traumatic event often results in instability, especially in movements involving rotation or a sudden change of direction [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]. Chronic ACL rupture often precipitates damage to the other stabilizing and anatomical elements of the knee joint, such as the menisci and the articular cartilage, resulting in secondary knee osteoarthritis [ 4 , 5 , 6 ].…”