Treatment of tear of the anterior cruciate ligament combined with localised deep cartilage defects in the knee with ligament reconstruction and autologous periosteum transplantation

An acute tear of the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is frequently associated with injuries to the joint cartilage and subchondral bone. These injuries may progress to deep cartilage defects, causing disabling pain, and represent a therapeutic challenge in patients with the combination instability and pain. At our clinic we treat patients with the combined injury with simultaneous ACL reconstruction and autologous periosteum transplantation of the cartilage defect. This report describes the technique for periosteum transplantation of full-thickness cartilage defects in the medial femoral condyle. Our clinical report includes the first 7 patients (6 men and 1 woman, mean age 29.1 years at operation) who have been followed for 2 years or longer of 14 consecutive patients (12 men and 2 women). All patients had suffered a total tear of the ACL and a full-thickness defect of the cartilage at the medial femoral condyle. The cartilage defects had a mean area of 7.3 cm² (range 1.0–13.5 cm²). All patients had disabling instability and medial knee pain when walking. The anterior cruciate ligament was reconstructed with a bone-tendon-bone graft of the central third of the patellar ligament. After preparation of the cartilage lesion, the periosteum transplant was anchored to the underlying bone with suture anchors and fibrin glue. Postoperatively, these patients (n = 7) were initially treated with continuous passive motion, followed by active flexibility training and slowly progressing strength training and weight-bearing activities. At follow-up a mean of 31.3 months (range 24–38 months) later, 6 patients evidenced subjectively stable knees, no pain during rest or when walking, and had returned to not too heavy knee-loading work. One patient had a subjectively stable knee, but felt medial knee pain. Meticulous surgical technique and rigorous postoperative rehabilitation are probably of the greatest importance in this procedure. With the use of suture anchors and fibrin glue, the periosteum transplant can be well adapted to the condylar subchondral bone bed. Received: 14 April 1998 Accepted: 4 September 1998