Les kystes du ligament croisé antérieur : à propos de 24 cas

The purpose of this study is to present clinical and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) features of ganglion cysts of the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL). Such cysts are rare and often unsuspected. We reviewed a series of 24 ganglion cysts of the ACL (7 females, 17 males) between 1998 and 2004. The mean age was 45 years old (25–74). All patients presented with knee pain. The mean follow-up was 25 months (6–48). All patients had a preoperative MRI, which confirmed the diagnosis. Seventeen patients had an arthroscopic treatment and 7 were treated with percutaneous aspiration and steroid injection under. Fourteen patients were evaluated with the International knee Documentation Committee (IKDC) subjective score. Computed tomography or ultrasound guidance. MRI demonstrated 16 mucoid degenerative cysts of the ACL and 8 well circumscribed ganglion cysts with a fluid collection. The surgical pathology confirmed 13 mucoid cysts and 4 ganglion cysts; 2 recurrences were observed after surgical treatment. After percutaneous aspiration, we observed 3 recurrences, 2 failures and one vascular complication. We observed two types of ACL cysts, which could be differentiated on the MRI. Percutaneous treatment was less reliable than surgical treatment. The percutaneous aspiration should be reserved to the ganglion cysts with fluid collection, while arthroscopy is indicated for the failure cases. We recommend resection for the mucoid cysts. An aggressive resection of the ACL may compromise the knee stability so that the patient must be informed preoperatively. In theses cases, aspiration was often inefficient.