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Background/objective: For radial tears, all-inside suture (AIS) repair was clearly biomechanically superior, compared to conventional trans-capsular suture (TCS) repairs. However, clinical comparative studies of these two repairs techniques have not to be performed. Therefore, the aim of this study was to compare the clinical outcomes after AIS repair and TCS repairs for isolated radial tear at middle segment of lateral meniscus (RTMLM) in stable knees of young athletes. Methods: Twenty-six athletes (mean age, 19.1 years) underwent AIS repair with the double horizontal suture technique, using SutureLasso™ (Arthrex, Naples, FL) for isolated RTMLM (AIS group), and 20 athletes (mean age, 19.0 years) underwent inside-out repair, one of TCS repairs, with tie-grip suture technique (TCS group). All athletes were assessed for preoperative and two-year postoperative Knee injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS). At six-month after repair, the lateral meniscal extrusion on mid-coronal plane on MRI and healing status on second-look arthroscopy were also evaluated in all patients. Results: In both groups, KOOS improved to either good or excellent postoperatively, while complete healing was found in only 23 and 25% at second-look arthroscopy. We identified no group-dependent differences in KOOS or healing status on arthroscopy. However, a close examination of failure rates revealed significant lower rates in AIS group relative to that of TCS group (p = 0.048). Moreover, the change from preoperative to postoperative lateral meniscal extrusion in AIS group was significantly smaller than that in TCS group (p = 0.038). Conclusions: AIS and TCS repairs for RTMLM were comparable in providing satisfactory clinical results with low rates of complete healing on arthroscopy. However, AIS repair could have lower failure rate of healing on arthroscopy and minimize postoperative lateral meniscal extrusion more effectively than TCS repair on MRI.

Purpose: Second-look arthroscopy is invasive but still one of the most useful postoperative evaluation methods since graft morphology including graft tension, graft tear, and synovial coverage can be directly evaluated. However, only a few studies have evaluated transplanted posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) grafts. This study aimed to clarify the PCL graft morphology and chondral damages at second-look arthroscopy after double-bundle PCL reconstruction (PCLR) and to investigate the effects of patient age on these arthroscopic findings. Methods: This study retrospectively included 26 patients who underwent second-look arthroscopy at the time of hardware removal 14 months after double-bundle PCLR for isolated PCL injury from January 2007 to December 2020. The patients were divided into two groups: group A, 39 years or younger (n = 14); and group B, 40 years or older (n = 12). At second-look arthroscopy, the grafts were evaluated based on tension (taut, graft tension as tense as a normal PCL; lax, graft tension looser than a normal PCL, unclassified, completely torn graft), tear (one or more tendon strands torn), and synovial coverage (good, synovial coverage greater than 80% around the graft; fair, synovial coverage greater than 50%; and poor, synovial coverage less than 50%). The chondral damages were evaluated using the Outerbridge classification system. Radiographic posterior tibial translation with gravity sag view as well as clinical outcomes were also evaluated. Results: Anterolateral (AL) graft tension was lax in 8% of the patients, whereas posteromedial (PM) graft tension was lax or unclassified in 24% (p = 0.043). Graft tear was observed only in the PM graft of 19% patients (p = 0.022). Synovial coverage of AL grafts was good or fair in all cases, whereas that of PM grafts was poor in 28% cases (p

Background/objective: For early return to sports after a lateral ankle sprain (LAS) and recurrence prevention, effective rehabilitation and gradual return to sports should be initiated while predicting the return time based on the appropriate severity evaluation immediately after injury. However, since severity evaluations performed in previous studies required large space and stairs and involved high-revel activity, their use as a test and index to evaluate severity after LAS was not appropriate considering convenience and risk of re-injury. Therefore, a quick and simple test was developed to evaluate the severity of acute LAS. This study aimed to verify the association between ankle function for severity evaluation and anterior talofibular ligament (ATFL) injury type by ultrasonography and to clarify the usefulness for acute LAS severity evaluation of the single-leg loading (SLL) test. Methods: In total, 50 patients (34 men, 16 women) out of 58 patients who visited our sports clinic within 3 days after acute LAS and who conformed to the study criteria were included in this study. During the first visit, SLL test and objective/subjective ankle joint evaluation were performed. The SLL test consists of single-leg standing, single-leg heel raising and single-leg hopping, and patients were classified into four levels from 1 to 4 according to results. In addition, ultrasonographic evaluation was performed within 1 week after the first visit to evaluate the type of ATFL injury. Type I was defined as intact ATFL, Type II as swollen ATFL with an almost intact fibrillar pattern and Type III as ATFL appearing swollen with a disrupted fibrillar pattern. The relationship between the SLL test and each evaluation item was investigated using Spearman's correlation coefficient. Results: As a result of the SLL test, 15 patients had Level 1 (30%), 19 Level 2 (38%), 5 Level 3 (10%) and 11 Level 4 (22%). With regard to correlation coefficients of the SLL test, Japanese Society for Surgery of the Foot ankle/hindfoot scale and sports activity were rs = 0.71 (p

Purpose: To compare the clinical effectiveness of cryotherapy after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction using 2 different wound dressings, conventional postoperative gauze dressings and polyurethane semipermeable transparent film dressings. Methods: In total, 60 patients who had undergone arthroscopic anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction with an autogenous patellar tendon were assigned to 2 groups. The surgical wound was covered with 5 sheets of gauze with an elastic bandage (control group) in 30 patients and film dressing was used (film group) in the remaining 30 patients. Silicone drainage catheters were inserted at the intercondylar notch, beside the distal outlet of the tibial tunnel for 2 days. After 1 hour of cooling using the device, the knee was chilled with an ice bag every 2 hours until the next morning. The severity of pain was evaluated by the number of times an analgesic, 50 mg of diclofenac sodium suppositories, had to be administered in the 24 hours after surgery. The amount of drainage during the following 2 days, the range of motion at 21 days, the change of hemoglobin concentration at 1 and 7 days, and C-reactive protein (CRP) at 1 and 7 days were examined. Results: The number of patients who used an analgesic was 18 in the control group and 7 in the film group (P = .003). The amount of drainage was 165.2 ± 72.9 mL in the control group and 289.7 ± 77.6 mL in the film group (P < .001). The postoperative CRP value was 0.77 ± 0.65 mg/dL at 1 day in the control group and 0.39 ± 0.42 mg/dL in the film group (P = .009). No statistical difference was seen for hemoglobin concentration at 1 or 7 days, CRP at 7 days or range of motion at 21 days. Conclusions: In this study, we found that film dressing enhanced the effect of cryotherapy with respect to pain control, wound drainage, and inflammation immediately after surgery compared with traditional gauze dressing with elastic wrap. Level of Evidence: III, case–control study.

Context: Yoga improves physical and respiratory functions in healthy inactive middle-aged people. Aim: This study aimed to assess the effects of 8 weeks of asana and asana with pranayama lessons in order to clarify the influence of two different combinations of yoga practice on physical and respiratory functions in healthy inactive middle-aged people. Subjects and Methods: A total of 28 participants (mean age: 52.7 years) were divided into a yoga asana (YA) group and YA with pranayama (YAP) group. Participants attended a 70-min session once a week for 8 weeks. The YA group practiced basic asana without specific breathing instructions, while the YAP group practiced basic asana with specific breathing instructions (pranayama). Respiratory function was measured with an autospirometer. Physical function assessments included the 30-s chair stand test and upper and lower extremity flexibility. All tests were assessed at baseline and after 8 weeks of intervention. Statistical Analysis: Changes in scores were analyzed with the paired t-test for each group. Pre-post results were compared for all the measured values. P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: Both groups showed significant improvements in physical and overall respiratory functions after the 8-week yoga intervention. However, the maximal inspiratory pressure and lower extremity flexibility improved only in the YAP group. Conclusions: The 8-week yoga intervention for healthy inactive middle-aged people improved the overall respiratory and physical functions, and the inclusion of pranayama had the added benefit of improving inspiratory muscle strength and global body flexibility.

In young athletes, radial tear of the midbody on the semilunar lateral meniscus in stable knees is most common. Conventionally, for this type of tear, meniscectomy has been considered as a first-line treatment. However, meniscectomy does not prevent degenerative change. Therefore, repair is another treatment option for a full radial tear, though this type of tear can be difficult to repair because of the lack of a vascular supply. Compared with conventional transcapsular suture techniques (e.g., inside-out/outside-in techniques or all-inside techniques with implants), all-inside suture (AIS) repair techniques can avoid bunching of the meniscus to the capsule. AIS is considered suitable for restoration of normal structure and movement of the meniscus after repair, which can be advantageous for meniscal healing. However, AIS repair for an isolated radial tear at the midbody of the lateral meniscus has rarely been reported. Therefore, we applied the AIS repair technique for isolated radial tear at the midbody of the semilunar lateral meniscus using a QuickPass SutureLasso with 2-0 FiberWire. This procedure is easier and less invasive, shortening the gap by drawing each stump of the meniscus in the direction of the circumference.

We report an extremely rare case of both recurrent lateral patella dislocation and medial patellofemoral instability, following prior operations to correct patella maltracking. Manual translation of the patella revealed medial and lateral instability with a positive apprehension sign. 3-D computer modelling of kinematics based on MRI data demonstrated that the patella deviated laterally at full extension and translated medially with knee flexion. The medial and lateral patellofemoral ligaments were reconstructed simultaneously with hamstring tendons, alleviating peripatellar pain and patellar instability in both directions.

Background: Mucoid degeneration of the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is mostly observed in middle-aged patients with knee pain and limited range of motion. Although arthroscopic resection of the degenerated ACL is the treatment of choice following the failure of conservative management, the extent of the excision and subsequent ACL reconstruction for postoperative knee instability remains controversial. Case reports: We present four cases of mucoid degeneration of the ACL in patients aged

There is controversy about the treatment for unstable full radial posterior lateral meniscus tears, particularly that involving the posterior root. Some surgeons have advocated repairing these types of meniscus tears using various techniques, but their methods are somewhat technical. We developed the technique for an all-inside repair for full radial posterior lateral meniscus tears using the Meniscal Viper (Arthrex, Naples, FL). A doubled thread is passed through 1 edge of the radial tear by the Meniscal Viper and is kept in place without tying the knot. The Meniscal Viper is used again to set a new thread, repeating the same procedure to another edge of the tear. At this step, 2 doubled threads are passed through each stump of the tear, and both a loop end and 2 free ends of each thread are located outside of the joint. Then, 2 doubled threads pass the third thread into its own loop, pulling it out. Finally, the third thread becomes the mattress suture over the radial tear site and is fastened by sliding knot techniques. This procedure makes it easy to strictly, smoothly, and less invasively shorten the gap by drawing each stump of the meniscus in the direction of the circumference.

This study assessed the effectiveness of autologous bone marrow stromal cell transplantation for the repair of full-thickness articular cartilage defects in the patellae of a 26-year-old female and a 44-year-old male. These two patients presented in our clinic because their knee pain prevented them from walking normally. After thorough examination, we concluded that the knee pain was due to the injured articular cartilage and decided to repair the defect with bone marrow stromal cell transplantation. Three weeks before transplantation, bone marrow was aspirated from the iliac crest of each patient. After erythrocytes had been removed by use of dextran, the remaining nucleated cells were placed in culture. When the attached cells reached subconfluence, they were passaged to expand in culture. Adherent cells were subsequently collected, embedded in a collagen gel, transplanted into the articular cartilage defect in the patellae, and covered with autologous periosteum. Six months after transplantation, clinical symptoms (pain and walking ability) had improved significantly and the improvement has remained in effect (5 years and 9 months posttransplantation in one case, and 4 years in the other), and both patients have been satisfied with the outcome. As early as 2 months after transplantation, the defects were covered with tissue that showed slight metachromatic staining. Two years after the first and 1 year after the second transplantation, arthroscopy was performed and the defects were repaired with fibrocartilage. Results indicate autologous bone marrow stromal cell transplantation is an effective approach in promoting the repair of articular cartilage defects.

We report a thirteen-year-old tennis player with knee hemarthrosis caused by low factor XIII activity. She visited our hospital because of medial peripatellar pain for two years. Although there was no abnormal sign in X-ray or MRI, diagnostic arthroscopy was performed. It revealed some cartilage debris, medial plica and complete septum of suprapatellar plica. Removing the debris by washing out and resecting the medial plica, she could return to play tennis without perioperative symptom. Two months after the first operation, her knee got swelling without any apparent cause. Since 20 ml blood was aspirated twice and MRI revealed suprapatellar mass, we performed arthroscopy again. Suprapatellar mass was old blood clot covered with complete suprapatellar plica. Resection of suprapatellar plica and washing out blood clot were performed, and severe postoperative hemarthrosis was progressively occurred. As factor XIII level was 54% preoperatively, we diagnosed that this condition was caused by low activity level of the factor and administered factor XIII concentrates. The level got improved to 129% and then hemarthrosis gradually relieved. She had no signs of recurrence. We should keep in mind of low factor XIII activity case in case of unexplained postoperative hemarthrosis after arthroscopy because consumption of the factor might promote this condition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]