title: A comparison of various types of fixation devices for protection of the posterior cruciate ligament against a posterior drawer force.
abstract: We compared four different fixation devices to determine which offers the greatest relative protection to the posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) against elongation with an applied posterior drawer force. We designed a system to monitor and record the change in distance between an approximate origin and insertion of the PCL as known forces were applied posteriorly to the tibia with the femur fixed. Six fresh cadaver knees were used in this investigative series. They were first tested with the PCL intact, then with the PCL transected, and then with the various fixation devices applied. After comparing the results with transarticular pins and quadrilateral and anterior half-frame external fixators, we found that transarticular fixation offers significantly greater protection to the PCL. This study may prove to be helpful to the orthopaedist when selecting ancillary fixation for posterior cruciate repair or reconstruction.
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001696:Biomechanical Phenomena; D002102:Cadaver; D006801:Humans; D007719:Knee Joint / Q000502:physiology / Q000601:surgery*; D008023:Ligaments, Articular / Q000502:physiology / Q000601:surgery*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009983:Orthopedic Equipment