HOME HELP CONTACT US SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:
Sign In to gain access to subscriptions and/or personal tools.

This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Spindler, K. P. Articles by Connor, J. T. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Spindler, K. P. Articles by Connor, J. T. Related Collections Meniscus Operative

Prospective Comparison of Arthroscopic Medial Meniscal Repair Technique

Inside-Out Suture Versus Entirely Arthroscopic Arrows

Kurt P. Spindler, MD^*,, Eric C. McCarty, MD^*, Todd A. Warren, NP, ATC^*, Clinton Devin, MD^* and Jason T. Connor, MS

^* Vanderbilt Sports Medicine Center, Department of Orthopaedics and Rehabilitation, Nashville, Tennessee
Department of Biostatistics & Epidemiology, The Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Cleveland, Ohio

Address correspondence and reprint requests to Kurt P. Spindler, MD, Vanderbilt Sports Medicine Center, 2601 Jess Neely Drive, Nashville, TN 37212

Background: Medial meniscal repairs are commonly performed with inside-out sutures and entirely arthroscopic with arrows, but few comparative evaluations on failures have been performed.

Hypothesis: No differences in failure rates exist between medial meniscal repairs performed with inside-out suture or entirely arthroscopic at the time of anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction.

Study Design: Prospective cohort study.

Materials: A single surgeon performed 47 consecutive inside-out suture repairs from August 1991 to June 1996 and 98 consecutive entirely arthroscopic repairs with arrows from June 1996 to December 1999. All data were derived from a prospective database and rehabilitation was held constant (nonweightbearing 5 weeks). Clinical success was defined as no reoperation for failed medial meniscal repair. Statistical evaluation was by Kaplan-Meier curves and Cox proportional hazards model.

Results: The inside-out suture group had 85% follow-up (40 of 47) with a median 68 months and the entirely arthroscopic group had 87% follow-up (85 of 98) with a median 27 months. There were seven failures in each group. Both Kaplan-Meier curves and the Cox proportional hazards model showed no difference in time to reoperation between techniques (P = 0.85). Three-year success rates (proportions with no reoperations) were 88% for sutures versus 89% for arrows.

Conclusions: Repairs of the longitudinal posterior horn of the medial meniscus during an anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction with nonweightbearing for 5 weeks can be performed with an equivalent high degree of clinical success for both repair techniques.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				R. W. Wright, W. R. Dunn, A. Amendola, J. T. Andrish, J. Bergfeld, C. C. Kaeding, R. G. Marx, E. C. McCarty, R. D. Parker, M. Wolcott, et al. Risk of Tearing the Intact Anterior Cruciate Ligament in the Contralateral Knee and Rupturing the Anterior Cruciate Ligament Graft During the First 2 Years After Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction: A Prospective MOON Cohort Study Am. J. Sports Med., July 1, 2007; 35(7): 1131 - 1134. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				D. Bryant, J. Dill, R. Litchfield, A. Amendola, R. Giffin, P. Fowler, and A. Kirkley Effectiveness of Bioabsorbable Arrows Compared With Inside-Out Suturing for Vertical, Reparable Meniscal Lesions: A Randomized Clinical Trial Am. J. Sports Med., June 1, 2007; 35(6): 889 - 896. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				M. Mesiha, D. Zurakowski, J. Soriano, J. H. Nielson, B. Zarins, and M. M. Murray Pathologic Characteristics of the Torn Human Meniscus Am. J. Sports Med., January 1, 2007; 35(1): 103 - 112. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				C. Weinand, G. M. Peretti, S. B. Adams Jr, L. J. Bonassar, M. A. Randolph, and T. J. Gill An Allogenic Cell-Based Implant for Meniscal Lesions Am. J. Sports Med., November 1, 2006; 34(11): 1779 - 1789. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				J. S. Quinby, S. R. Golish, J. A. Hart, and D. R. Diduch All-Inside Meniscal Repair Using a New Flexible, Tensionable Device Am. J. Sports Med., August 1, 2006; 34(8): 1281 - 1286. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				G. P. Lee and D. R. Diduch Deteriorating Outcomes After Meniscal Repair Using the Meniscus Arrow in Knees Undergoing Concurrent Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction: Increased Failure Rate With Long-term Follow-up Am. J. Sports Med., August 1, 2005; 33(8): 1138 - 1141. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]