Early arthroscopic debridement of posterior cruciate ligament calcification after symptom presentation led to immediate recovery: a case report

Abstract Background We report a rare case of posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) calcification, which has only been reported in two case studies on PubMed. Case presentation A 71-year-old man developed left popliteal pain in the morning without any history of trauma and the pain became severe that night. On the following day, he presented to our department. The patient could not flex his left knee at all due to pain and swelling. CT and MRI scans showed calcification behind the PCL with mild osteoarthritic changes and accumulation of synovial fluid in the joint. Synovial fluid analysis did not reveal any crystals. Blood tests at first admission showed inflammation, hyperglycemia, and low blood uric acid levels. Although the patient’s knee joint was injected with steroids, his symptoms did not improve. Thus, we performed arthroscopic surgery two days after symptoms had appeared. Intraoperatively, we observed a white, soft tissue in the synovial membrane behind the PCL. Part of this tissue was collected for histological analysis, which revealed sparse fibers with calcium deposits. Immediately after surgery, the patient’s symptoms were completely gone. Afterward, the patient remained asymptomatic one month after surgery. Conclusion This is the first reported case of debridement of PCL calcification and ossification that was performed soon after symptoms appeared. In addition, we demonstrated that early debridement led to complete recovery.