EFFECT OF FEMORAL CONDYLE CONFIGURATION ON DISABILITY AFTER AN ANTERIOR CRUCIATE LIGAMENT RUPTURE - 100 PATIENTS FOLLOWED FOR 5 YEARS

We measured the configuration of the femoral condyles on lateral radio graphs in 100 consecutive, prospectively-studied patients with a compl ete rupture of the anterior cruciate ligament, with or without associa ted lesions of the menisci and collateral ligaments. The patients had mainly low-to-moderate activity demands, and in all the patients the c ruciate tear was primarily treated non-operatively. A quotient was cal culated from the measurements of sagittal depth and axial height in or der to describe the geometry of the femoral condyles. Measurements wer e reproducible with an intra- and interobserver coefficient of correla tion of 0.89-0.98. At follow-up, after 5 (3-6) years, 16 patients had developed disability leading to reconstructive surgery. The remaining 84 patients did not have any major functional limitations, but some ha d reduced their activity level. Individual variations in the articular geometry were found with a more spherical shape of the femoral condyl es in the patients where non-operative treatment had failed. Our findi ngs indicate that articular geometry is of importance for function aft er an anterior ligament lesion.