The effects of lateral meniscal allograft transplantation techniques on tibio-femoral contact pressures.
This paper reports a series of comparative tests in vitro, that examined how meniscectomy and meniscal allografting affected tibio-femoral joint contact pressure. Knees were loaded in axial compression and pressure maps obtained from the lateral compartment using Fuji Prescale film inserted below the meniscus. This was repeated after meniscectomy, and then after meniscal allografting with fixation by a bone plug for the insertional ligaments, plus sutures. Finally, the pressure, when the allograft was secured by sutures alone, was measured. The peak pressure rose significantly after meniscectomy, and then was reduced significantly by both allograft methods so that it was not significantly different to normal. Allografts fixed by sutures only allowed slightly higher contact pressure than when they had bone fixation. This study suggests that meniscal allografting should have a chondroprotective effect and that there is a small advantage from adding bony fixation to suture fixation.
McDermott
Ian D
ID
Mechanical Engineering Department, Imperial College London, Exhibition Road, London, SW7 2AZ, UK.
Lie
Denny T T
DT
Edwards
Andrew
A
Bull
Anthony M J
AM
Amis
Andrew A
AA
D000328:Adult; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002102:Cadaver; D005269:Femur / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008023:Ligaments, Articular / Q000601:surgery; D008592:Menisci, Tibial / Q000601:surgery / Q000637:transplantation*; D008875:Middle Aged; D019637:Orthopedic Procedures / Q000379:methods*; D011312:Pressure; D013536:Suture Techniques; D013537:Sutures; D013977:Tibia / Q000502:physiology* / Q000601:surgery; D014184:Transplantation, Homologous; D016474:Weight-Bearing