Mechanical and Biological Considerations in Prosthetic Cruciate Replacement

For effective and long-term success of cruciate ligament replacement, the following requirements must be satisfied: (a) placement of the ligament must be isometric; (b) anchoring must benefit from both bone and soft tissue ingrowth; (c) the ligament must be of sufficient strength; (d) the stiffness of the ligament must be matched to that of the natural ligament; and (e) the ligament must retain sufficient strength after being subjected to several millions of tensile stress cycles. Placement has been discussed elsewhere by several workers.