ALL-INSIDE ANTERIOR CRUCIATE LIGAMENT RECONSTRUCTION USING SEMITENDINOSUS TENDON AND SOFT THREADED BIODEGRADABLE INTERFERENCE SCREW FIXATION

A modification of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction usin g a minimally invasive and endoscopic all-inside technique is presente d. Both the femoral and tibial socket are approached through the joint so that there is no open tibial tunnel, which otherwise often causes significant pain and discomfort during early rehabilitation. The autol ogous semitendinosus tendon is harvested with a bone plug attached to its tibial insertion. The triple-stranded semitendinosus tendon is loo ped around the adjacent bone plug and fixed at the original tibial att achment site of the ACL using a soft threaded biodegradable poly-(D,L- lactide) interference screw. The screw is inserted endoscopically in a n inside-out direction. In the femoral socket the graft is fixed witho ut a bone plug directly to the tunnel wall using the biodegradable scr ew. The free part of the graft is thus not longer than the intra-artic ular distance, which may increase stiffness of the construct.