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Letter

Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

Dear Editor:

I read with interest the article by Otto et al. entitled "Five-Year Results of Single-Incision Arthroscopic Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction with Patellar Tendon Autograft" (March/April 1998, pages 181 to 188). I would like to clear up a confusing point. The article has the words "single-incision" ACL reconstruction in the title, but in the second paragraph of the text describing the operative technique (page 182), the article mentions that two 2-cm longitudinal incisions were used for harvesting the graft. I am confused as to whether the report documents the results of single-incision arthroscopic reconstruction because the surgical technique involves using two incisions for the ACL reconstruction.

I am well aware of Dr. Pinczewski’s high-quality work in this area, but I would be grateful if this point could be clarified.

Author’s Response

Edmonton, Alberta, Canada

Although the title of our paper did use the words "single-incision," we did use two small incisions to harvest the patellar tendon graft. (This is the preferred method used by Dr. Pinczewski. It is more cosmetically appealing than the usual long, single incision; however, it is more difficult to perform. This technique is not widely used in North America.) Otherwise, the remainder of the reconstructive technique was similar to a standard "single-incision" or "endoscopic" technique whereby femoral tunnel preparation and femoral-sided graft fixation is performed from within the knee. This differs from the standard "two-incision" technique in which femoral tunnel preparation and femoral-sided graft fixation is performed via a second incision on the lateral aspect of the distal femur.

Although we initially submitted our paper to The American Journal of Sports Medicine as an "endoscopic" technique, the editor requested that we use "single-incision" to clarify to the readership the reconstructive technique used. One might have to reconsider the use of this terminology if a graft harvest through two small incisions becomes more popular.

This Article Full Text (PDF) Free Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted 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 Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Holt, M. Articles by Otto, D. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Holt, M. Articles by Otto, D.