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Cartilage morphology at 2–3 years following anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction with or without concomitant meniscal pathology

  • Knee
  • Published:
Knee Surgery, Sports Traumatology, Arthroscopy Aims and scope

Abstract

Purpose

To examine differences in cartilage morphology between young adults 2–3 years post-anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR), with or without meniscal pathology, and control participants.

Methods

Knee MRI was performed on 130 participants aged 18–40 years (62 with isolated ACLR, 38 with combined ACLR and meniscal pathology, and 30 healthy controls). Cartilage defects, cartilage volume and bone marrow lesions (BMLs) were assessed from MRI using validated methods.

Results

Cartilage defects were more prevalent in the isolated ACLR (69 %) and combined group (84 %) than in controls (10 %, P < 0.001). Furthermore, the combined group showed higher prevalence of cartilage defects on medial femoral condyle (OR 4.7, 95 % CI 1.3–16.6) and patella (OR 7.8, 95 % CI 1.5–40.7) than the isolated ACLR group. Cartilage volume was lower in both ACLR groups compared with controls (medial tibia, lateral tibia and patella, P < 0.05), whilst prevalence of BMLs was higher on lateral tibia (P < 0.001), with no significant differences between the two ACLR groups for either measure.

Conclusions

Cartilage morphology was worse in ACLR patients compared with healthy controls. ACLR patients with associated meniscal pathology have a higher prevalence of cartilage defects than ACLR patients without meniscal pathology. The findings suggest that concomitant meniscal pathology may lead to a greater risk of future OA than isolated ACLR.

Level of evidence

III.

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Acknowledgments

This study was supported by the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC, project Grant 628850).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Health, Exercise and Sports Medicine, Department of Physiotherapy, School of Health Sciences, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, Australia

    Xinyang Wang, Kim L. Bennell, Tim V. Wrigley, Karine Fortin, Ans Van Ginckel & Adam L. Bryant

  2. School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Alfred Hospital, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC, Australia

    Yuanyuan Wang & Flavia M. Cicuttini

  3. Centre for Musculoskeletal Research, Griffith University, The Gold Coast, QLD, Australia

    David J. Saxby, Alasdair R. Dempsey, Nicole Grigg & David G. Lloyd

  4. School of Psychology and Exercise Science, Murdoch University, Perth, WA, Australia

    Alasdair R. Dempsey

  5. Orthopaedic Surgery and Sports Medicine Centre, The Gold Coast, QLD, Australia

    Christopher Vertullo

  6. OrthoSport Victoria, Epworth Richmond, Melbourne, VIC, Australia

    Julian A. Feller & Tim Whitehead

  7. La Trobe University Medical Centre, Melbourne, VIC, Australia

    Julian A. Feller

Authors
  1. Xinyang Wang
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  2. Yuanyuan Wang
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Correspondence to Adam L. Bryant.

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Wang, X., Wang, Y., Bennell, K.L. et al. Cartilage morphology at 2–3 years following anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction with or without concomitant meniscal pathology. Knee Surg Sports Traumatol Arthrosc 25, 426–436 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00167-015-3831-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00167-015-3831-1

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