Background: Femoral and tibial tunnel widening (TW) after ACL reconstruction is a phenomenon increasing talk in the literature. It is underlying biological and mechanical causes.
Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between bone tunnel enlargement and two different ACL fixation systems.
Patients and methods: 40 patient underwent ACL reconstruction with hamstring; randomly divided into group A with 20 patients treated with stiff systems (femoral Rigidfix and tibial interference screw), and into group B, with 20 patients treated with morel elastic system (femoral and tibial Tight-rope). Evaluated postoperatively with knee MRI at 40 days, 3 months, 6 months to measure bone tunnel diameters widening.
Results: At 40 days tunnel widening between two groups shows no statistically difference. At 3 months postoperatively, femoral bone tunnel widening amounted on average to 1.84 mm in middle of tunnel and 1 mm at the mouth in joint in group A, and respectively 3.2 mm and 2.5 mm in group B (p<0.05). Tibial tunnel widening was 1.24 mm at the mouth in joint and 1.3 mm in middle in group A and respectively 2.26 mm and 2.43 mm in group B (p<0.05). At 6 months femoral tunnel widening amounted on average to 2.45 mm in middle and 1.35 mm at the mouth in joint in group A and respectively 3.5 mm and 2.7 mm in group B (p<0.01). Tibial tunnel widening amounted on average to 1.27 at mouth in joint and 1 mm in middle of tunnel in group A and respectively 2.6 mm and 2.3 mm in group B (p<0.01).
Conclusions: This study results suggest elastic fixation system increases bone tunnel enlargement after ACL reconstruction with hamstring without correlation with worse clinical performance.
Level of evidence: IV.
Keywords: anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction; clinical outcome; graft fixation methods; tunnel widening.