TENSILE-STRENGTH OF THE END-WEAVE FLEXOR TENDON REPAIR - AN IN-VITRO BIOMECHANICAL STUDY

A study was designed to investigate the tensile strength of the end-we ave method of tendon repair. Flexor tendons were removed from 13 fresh -frozen human cadavers, transected and repaired,vith the end-weave tec hnique varying from one to five weaves, with two suture techniques, th e commonly used horizontal mattress suture and a new method we have te rmed the cross stitch. The repairs were then tested in tension to fail ure on a Materials Test System (MTS) biomechanical testing device. Com parisons were also made to tensile strengths of intact whole tendons, tendon-bone insertions, and distal reinsertion techniques. Tensile str ength increased linearly with the number of weaves for both suture met hods. The cross stitch was found to have significantly greater strengt h per weave compared to the horizontal mattress suture (P < 0.05). Thr ee out of five trials of five weaves done with the cross stitch actual ly failed at the tendon itself first, rather than through the repair, which was the failure mode for all other trials. The results from this in vitro model suggest that active rehabilitative exercises might saf ely be performed in the immediate post-operative period after procedur es that involve tendon weaving.