title: The results of surgical repair of acute tears of the posterior cruciate ligament.
abstract: In 20 patients, the torn posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) was repaired without reinforcement within two weeks after injury. Fourteen patients had a midsubstance tear, and in six the ligament was avulsed from the femur without bone. There were 11 isolated and nine combined injuries. The follow-up period ranged from two to 10.5 years. Postoperatively, all had posterior instability graded from 1+ to 2+. Nevertheless, the subjective results were good in 15 patients, fair in five, and poor in none. Posterior instability did not produce significant functional impairment of the knee for a considerable number of years. Suture alone cannot restore the PCL and is not strong enough to withstand the applied forces on the knee.
authors.affiliation: Orthopaedic Department, Aristotelian University of Thessaloniki, G. Papanikolaou Hospital, Greece.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Pournaras
authors.forename: P P
authors.initials: PP
authors.lastname: Symeonides
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007718:Knee Injuries / Q000601:surgery*; D008297:Male; D016119:Posterior Cruciate Ligament / Q000293:injuries / Q000601:surgery*; D012421:Rupture