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Background: Traumatic knee injury results in a 4- to 10-fold increased risk of post-traumatic osteoarthritis (PTOA). Currently, there are no successful interventions for preventing PTOA after knee injury. The aim of this study is to identify inflammatory proteins that are increased in serum and synovial fluid after acute knee injury, excluding intra-articular fractures., Methods: A literature search was done according to the PRISMA guidelines. Articles reporting about inflammatory proteins after knee injury, except fractures, up to December 8, 2021 were collected. Inclusion criteria were as follows: patients younger than 45 years, no radiographic signs of knee osteoarthritis at baseline, and inflammatory protein measurement within 1 year after trauma. Risk of bias was assessed of the included studies. The level of evidence was determined by the Strength of Recommendation Taxonomy., Results: Ten studies were included. All included studies used a healthy control group or the contralateral knee as healthy control. Strong evidence for interleukin 6 (IL-6) and limited evidence for CCL4 show elevated concentrations of these proteins in synovial fluid (SF) after acute knee injury; no upregulation in SF for IL-2, IL-10, CCL3, CCL5, CCL11, granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF), and granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) was found. Limited evidence was found for no difference in serum concentration of IL-1β, IL-6, IL-10, CCL2, and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) after knee injury., Conclusion: Interleukin 6 and CCL4 are elevated in SF after acute knee injury. Included studies failed to demonstrate increased concentration of inflammatory proteins in SF samples taken 6 weeks after trauma. Future research should focus on SF inflammatory protein measurements taken less than 6 weeks after injury.

Purpose: Little is known about risk factors for sustaining a posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) rupture. Identifying risk factors is the first step in preventing a PCL rupture from occurring. The morphology of the knee in patients who ruptured their PCL may differ from that of control patients. The hypothesis was that the intercondylar notch dimensions, 3-D volumes of the intercondylar notch and, the 3-D volumes of both the ACL and the PCL were correlated to the presence of a PCL rupture., Methods: The magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans of 30 patients with a proven PCL rupture were compared to 30 matched control patients with proven intact ACL and PCL. Control patients were selected from patients with knee trauma during sports but without cruciate ligament injury. Patients have been matched for age, height, weight, BMI, and sex. The volumes of the intercondylar notch and both the ACL and PCL were measured on 3D reconstructions. Second, the bicondylar width, the notch width, and the notch width index were measured of all subjects. The relationship between our measurements and the presence of a PCL rupture was analysed., Results: The results show a significant difference in the volumes of the intercondylar notch and the ACL between patients with a ruptured PCL and control patients. Patients with a PCL rupture have smaller intercondylar notch volumes and smaller ACL volumes. There were no significant differences in the bicondylar width, notch width, and notch width index. In the control patients, a significant correlation between the volume of the PCL and the volume of the ACL was found (0.673, p < 0.001)., Conclusion: Patients with a PCL rupture have smaller intercondylar volumes and smaller ACL volumes when compared to control patients. Second, patients with smaller ACL volumes have smaller PCL volumes. This study shows, for the first time, that there are significant size and volume differences in the shape of the knee between patients with a PCL rupture and control patients., Level of Evidence: IV., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Objective: To assess whether initial non-operative treatment of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) ruptures with optional delayed ACL reconstruction leads to more meniscal procedures compared with early ACL reconstruction during the 2-year follow-up., Methods: We compared the number of meniscal procedures of 167 patients with an ACL rupture, who either received early ACL reconstruction (n=85) or rehabilitation therapy plus optional delayed ACL reconstruction (n=82), participating in the Conservative vs Operative Methods for Patients with ACL Rupture Evaluation trial. Patients were aged 18 to 65 years (mean 31.3, SD 10.5), 60% male sex (n=100). We evaluated the presence and location of meniscal tears by baseline MRI. We analysed and compared how many patients per randomisation group had a meniscal procedure during follow-up in the ACL injured knee, adjusted for sex, body mass index, age group and orthopaedic surgeon., Results: At baseline, 41% of the entire study population (69/167 patients) had a meniscal tear on MRI. During the 2-year follow-up, 25 patients randomised to early ACL reconstruction (29%, 25/85 patients) had a meniscal procedure, compared with 17 patients randomised to rehabilitation plus optional delayed reconstruction (21%, 17/82 patients) (risk ratio 0.67 with 95% CI 0.40 to 1.12, p=0.12). Of these patients who received early ACL reconstruction (n=82) and patients that received delayed ACL reconstruction (n=41), 5% of the patients had an additional isolated meniscal procedure after ACL reconstruction. In patients who received no ACL reconstruction (n=41), 10% (n=4) had an isolated surgical procedure for a meniscal tear during the 2-year follow-up period., Conclusion: Initial non-surgical treatment of ACL ruptures followed by optional delayed ACL reconstruction does not lead to a higher number of meniscal procedures compared with early ACL reconstruction over a 2-year follow-up period., Trial Registration Number: NL 2618., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2023. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)

Aims: Little is known about the risk factors that predispose to a rupture of the posterior cruciate ligament (PCL). Identifying risk factors is the first step in trying to prevent a rupture of the PCL from occurring. The morphology of the knee in patients who rupture their PCL may differ from that of control patients. The purpose of this study was to identify any variations in bone morphology that are related to a PCL., Patients and Methods: We compared the anteroposterior (AP), lateral, and Rosenberg view radiographs of 94 patients with a ruptured PCL to a control group of 168 patients matched by age, sex, and body mass index (BMI), but with an intact PCL after a knee injury. Statistical shape modelling software was used to assess the shape of the knee and determine any difference in anatomical landmarks., Results: We found shape variants on the AP and Rosenberg view radiographs to be significantly different between patients who tore their PCL and those with an intact PCL after a knee injury. Overall, patients who ruptured their PCL have smaller intercondylar notches and smaller tibial eminences than control patients., Conclusion: This study shows that differences in the shape of the knee are associated with the presence of a PCL rupture after injury. A smaller and more sharply angled intercondylar notch and a more flattened tibial eminence are related to PCL rupture. This suggests that the morphology of the knee is a risk factor for sustaining a PCL rupture. Cite this article: Bone Joint J 2019;101-B:1058-1062.

Purpose: The aim of this systematic review was to present an evidence-based overview of psychometric properties of patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) for children with knee ligament injury., Methods: A systematic search of literature was performed in PubMed, EMBASE and Cochrane databases. The inclusion criteria were diagnostic studies evaluating psychometric properties (validity, reliability, responsiveness) and comprehensibility of PROMs as well as studies including children (age < 18 years) with knee ligament injury. The systematic review was performed following the PRISMA statement., Results: Ten studies were included. Eight studies evaluated psychometric properties of PROMs, and two studies analysed comprehensibility of PROMs. The Pedi-IKDC has been evaluated in four studies and has acceptable psychometric properties. The KOOS-Child is evaluated in one study and has acceptable psychometric properties. The use of adult PROMs in children causes problems in comprehensibility., Conclusion: The Pedi-IKDC is an adequate PROM for children with knee ligament injuries. It is valid, reliable and responsive. The KOOS-Child might be an alternative PROM for the Pedi-IKDC, but has only been evaluated in one study. The clinical relevance of the present systematic review is that adult versions of PROMs are not recommended in children and adolescents., Level of Evidence: III.

Background: The Pedi International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC) and Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS) child are validated questionnaires for children with knee disorders. The aim of this study was to translate these questionnaires in Dutch and to recommend which questionnaires should - based on their psychometric properties - be used in clinical practice., Methods: The English Pedi-IKDC and KOOS-Child were translated by the forward-backward procedure. Subsequently, content validity of the Pedi-IKDC and KOOS-Child was evaluated by both patients (n = 18) and experts (n = 18). To evaluate construct validity and interpretability participants with knee disorders (n = 100) completed the Numeric Rating Scale Pain, Lysholm Knee Scoring Scale, EuroQol-5 Dimension, Pedi-IKDC and KOOS-Child at baseline. Participants completed the anchor question, Pedi-IKDC and KOOS-child two weeks (n = 54) and one year (n = 71) after baseline, for evaluating the test-retest reliability and responsiveness. Psychometric properties were interpreted following the COnsensus-based Standards for the selection of health Measurement INstruments (COSMIN) criteria., Results: The Pedi-IKDC showed adequate test-retest reliability (intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) 0.9; standard error of measurement (SEM) 8.6; smallest detectable change (SDC) 23.8), adequate content validity (> 75% relevant), adequate construct validity (75% confirmed hypotheses), low floor or ceiling effects (scores between 5 and 95) and adequate responsiveness (> 75% confirmed hypotheses). The KOOS-Child showed an adequate test-retest reliability (ICC 0.8-0.9; SEM 8.9-16.9; SDC 24.7-46.9), adequate content validity (> 75% relevant, except KOOS-Child subscale ADL), adequate construct validity (75% confirmed hypotheses), low floor and ceiling effects (scores between 5 and 95, except KOOS-Child subscale activities of daily living and Sport/play) and moderate responsiveness (40% confirmed hypotheses)., Conclusions: The Pedi IKDC showed better psychometric properties than the KOOS-Child and should therefore be used in children with knee disorders.

Background: Hamstring tendons are often used as autografts for anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction. However, no systematic review has been performed describing consequences such as hamstring tendon regeneration rate and determinants of hamstring tendon regeneration., Purpose: To summarize the current literature regarding hamstring tendon rate regeneration, the time course of regeneration, and determinants of hamstring regeneration., Study Design: Systematic review., Methods: A search was performed in the Embase, Medline (OvidSP), Web of Science, Cochrane, PubMed, and Google Scholar databases up to June 2014 to identify relevant articles. A study was eligible if it met the following inclusion criteria: tendons were harvested, regeneration at harvest site was assessed, population size was at least 10 human subjects, full-text article was available, and the study design was either a randomized controlled trial, prospective cohort study, retrospective cohort study, or case control study. A risk of bias assessment of the eligible articles was determined. Data describing hamstring tendon regeneration rates were pooled per time period., Results: A total of 18 publications met the inclusion criteria. The mean regeneration rate for the semitendinosus and gracilis tendons was, in all cases, 70% or higher. More than 1 year after harvesting, 79% (median [IQR], 80 [75.5-90]) of the semitendinosus tendons and 72% (median [IQR], 80 [61-88.5]) of the gracilis tendons were regenerated. No significant differences in regeneration rate could be found considering patient sex, age, height, weight, or duration of immobilization. Results did not clearly show whether absence of regeneration disadvantages the subsequent hamstring function. Five studies measured the regeneration rate at different moments in time., Conclusion: Hamstring tendons regenerated in the majority of patients after ACL reconstruction. The majority of the hamstring tendon regeneration was found to occur between 1 month and 1 year after harvest. No significant determinants for hamstring tendon regeneration could be identified because of a lack of research. The function and strength of the regenerated hamstring remained unclear., (© 2014 The Author(s).)

Purpose: Well-designed validity studies on the clinical diagnosis of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury are scarce. Our purpose is to assess the diagnostic value of ACL-specific medical history assessment and physical examination between primary and secondary care medical specialists., Methods: Medical history assessment and physical examination were performed by both an orthopaedic surgeon and a primary care physician, both blinded to all clinical information, in a secondary care population. A knee arthroscopy was used as reference standard. A total of 60 participants were divided into an index group with an arthroscopically proven complete ACL rupture and a control group with an arthroscopically proven intact ACL., Results: The orthopaedic surgeon recognized 94 % of the participants with an ACL rupture through a positive medical history combined with a positive physical examination; of the participants with an intact ACL, 16 % were misclassified by the orthopaedic surgeon. The primary care physician recognized 62 % of the participants with an ACL rupture and misclassified 23 % of the participants with an intact ACL. Physical examination appeared to have no additional value for the primary care physician., Conclusions: Combined medical history and physical examination have strong diagnostic value in ACL rupture diagnostics performed by an orthopaedic surgeon, whereas for the primary care physician, only medical history appeared to be of value. For current practice, this could mean that only orthopaedic surgeons can perform an ACL physical examination with accuracy., Level of Evidence: III.

Study Design: Systematic literature review., Objectives: To summarize and evaluate research on factors predictive of progression to surgery after nonoperative treatment for an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) rupture., Background: Anterior cruciate ligament rupture is a common injury among young, active individuals. Surgical reconstruction is often required for patients who do not regain satisfactory knee function following nonsurgical rehabilitation. Knowledge of factors that predict the need for surgical reconstruction of the ACL would be helpful to guide the decision-making process in this population., Methods: A search was performed for studies predicting the need for surgery after nonoperative treatment for ACL rupture in the Embase, MEDLINE (OvidSP), Web of Science, CINAHL, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, PubMed, and Google Scholar digital databases from inception to October 2013. Two reviewers independently selected the studies and performed a quality assessment. Best-evidence synthesis was used to summarize the evidence of factors predicting the need for surgical reconstruction after nonoperative treatment for an ACL rupture., Results: Seven studies were included, 3 of which were of high quality. Based on these studies, neither sex (strong evidence) nor the severity of knee joint laxity (moderate evidence) can predict whether, soon after ACL injury, a patient will need ACL reconstruction following nonoperative treatment. All other factors identified in this review either had conflicting or only minimal evidence as to their level of association with the need for surgical reconstruction. Noteworthy is that 1 high-quality study reported that the spherical shape of the femoral condyle was predictive of the need for ACL reconstruction., Conclusion: Sex and knee joint laxity tests do not predict the need for ACL reconstruction soon after an ACL rupture. Independent validation in future research will be necessary to establish whether knee shape is a predictive factor., Level of Evidence: Prognosis, level 1a-.

Objective: The pathophysiology of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) rupture leading to knee osteoarthritis (OA) remains largely unknown. It seems that bone loss occurs after ACL rupture. The purpose of our study was to determine bone mineral density (BMD) changes in the knee after ACL rupture during 2-year follow-up period and to compare BMD changes between the injured and healthy contralateral knee., Design: Patients were included in an observational prospective follow-up study within 6 months after ACL trauma and evaluated for 2 years. Patients were treated operatively or non-operatively. At baseline and at the one- and 2-year follow-ups, BMD was measured in six regions of the tibia and femur for both knees (medial, central, lateral) using a Dual-energy X-ray Absorptiometry (DXA) scanner., Results: One hundred forty-one patients were included, with the following characteristics: 66% were male, median age at baseline was 25.3 (inter-quartile range 11.3) years, and 63% were treated operatively. After 1 year, BMD was significantly lower in all regions of the injured knee of the operatively treated patients compared to baseline. After 2 years, BMD was significantly increased, but remained lower than the baseline levels. In all regions for all measurements, the mean BMD was significantly lower in the injured knee than in the healthy contralateral knee., Conclusions: During a 2-year follow-up period after ACL rupture, the BMD level in the injured knee was found to be lower than in the healthy contralateral knee. In operatively treated patients, the BMD decreased in the first year and increased in the second follow-up year., (Copyright © 2013 Osteoarthritis Research Society International. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Purpose: To evaluate which questionnaire, the Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS) or the International Knee Documentation Committee Subjective Knee Form (IKDC subjective), is most useful to evaluate patients with recent anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) ruptures or those within 1 year of an ACL reconstruction., Methods: Patients with recent (0-6 months) ACL ruptures or those with indications for ACL reconstruction were included. All patients completed the questionnaires shortly after trauma or preoperatively and again 1 year later. The KOOS has 5 subscales, each scored separately. The IKDC subjective consists of one total score. The following measurement properties of the KOOS and IKDC subjective were assessed: content validity (n = 45), construct validity (n = 100), test-retest reliability (n = 50), and responsiveness (n = 50)., Results: Regarding content validity, 2 KOOS subscales (Pain and Activities of Daily Living) were scored as nonrelevant. Two of the 18 questions on the IKDC subjective were assessed as nonrelevant. Only the KOOS subscale Sport and Recreation Function had acceptable construct validity (79% confirmation of the predefined hypotheses). None of the KOOS subscales had a sufficient score for responsiveness (<75% confirmation of the predefined hypotheses). The IKDC subjective scored acceptable for construct validity (84% confirmation of the predefined hypotheses) and responsiveness (86% confirmation of the predefined hypotheses). All KOOS subscales and the IKDC subjective had a reliability (intraclass correlation coefficient [ICC]) of 0.81 or higher., Conclusions: The IKDC subjective is more useful than the KOOS questionnaire to evaluate both patients with recent ACL ruptures and those in the first year after ACL reconstruction., Level of Evidence: Level III, prognostic validation study., (Copyright © 2013 Arthroscopy Association of North America. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: Accurate and precise tunnel placement is critical to the success of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction. A new development, computer-assisted surgery, aids in placement of the ACL bone tunnels during surgery. Our hypothesis was that computer-assisted ACL reconstruction would allow more accurate and precise tunnel placement compared with conventional surgery., Methods: In a prospective, double-blind, randomized clinical study, 100 patients eligible for ACL reconstruction with a transtibial technique were stratified by surgeon and randomized to either conventional or computer-assisted surgery. Measurement of femoral and tibial tunnel placement with use of three-dimensional computed tomography (CT) was used as the primary outcome to compare conventional ACL surgery with computer-assisted surgery., Results: The placement of the femoral tunnel did not differ between groups (mean, 39.7% of the proximal-distal distance on the intracondylar axis [Blumensaat line] in the conventional group compared with 39.0% in the computer-assisted surgery group; p = 0.70). The anterior-posterior positioning of the tibial tunnel on the tibial plateau also did not differ significantly (38.9% in the conventional group compared with 38.2% in the computer-assisted surgery group; p = 0.58). There was no significant difference in the precision of either the femoral or the tibial tunnel placement between the two groups., Conclusions: There was no significant difference in either the accuracy or the precision of tunnel placement between conventional and computer-assisted ACL reconstruction.

Background: The Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS) was constructed in Sweden. This questionnaire has proved to be valid for several orthopedic interventions of the knee. It has been formally translated and validated in several languages, but not yet in Dutch. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the clinimetric properties of the Dutch version of the KOOS questionnaire in knee patients with various stages of osteoarthritis (OA)., Methods: The Swedish version of the KOOS questionnaire was first translated into Dutch according to a standardized procedure and second tested for clinimetric quality. The study population consisted of patients with different stages of OA (mild, moderate and severe) and of patients after primary TKA, and after a revision of the TKA. All patients filled in the Dutch KOOS questionnaire, as well as the SF-36 and a Visual Analogue Scale for pain. The following analyses were performed to evaluate the clinimetric quality of the KOOS: Cronbach's alpha (internal consistency), principal component analyses (factor analysis), intraclass correlation coefficients (reliability), spearman's correlation coefficient (construct validity), and floor and ceiling effects., Results: For all patients groups Cronbach's alpha was for all subscales above 0.70. The ICCs, assessed for the patient groups with mild and moderate OA and after revision of the TKA patients, were above 0.70 for all subscales. Of the predefined hypotheses 60% or more could be confirmed for the patients with mild and moderate OA and for the TKA patients. For the other patient groups less than 45% could be confirmed. Ceiling effects were present in the mild OA group for the subscales Pain, Symptoms and ADL and for the subscale Sport/Recreation in the severe OA group. Floor effects were found for the subscales Sport/Recreation and Qol in the severe OA and revision TKA groups., Conclusion: Based on these different clinimetric properties within the present study we conclude that the KOOS questionnaire seems to be suitable for patients with mild and moderate OA and for patients with a primary TKA. The Dutch version of the KOOS had a lower construct validity for patients with severe OA on a waiting list for TKA and patients after revision of a TKA. Further validation studies on the Dutch version of the KOOS should also include a knee specific questionnaire for assessing the construct validity.