Does bone debris in anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction really matter? A cohort study of a protocol for bone debris debridement

• Main Authors: Imam Mohamed A., Abdelkafy Ashraf, Dinah Feroz, Adhikari Ajeya
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: EDP Sciences 2015-01-01
• Series: SICOT-J
• Subjects: Bone debris; Anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction; Debridement; Cyclops lesion; Protocol
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1051/sicotj/2015014

Background: The purpose of the current study was to determine whether a systematic five-step protocol for debridement and evacuation of bone debris during anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR) reduces the presence of such debris on post-operative radiographs. Methods: A five-step protocol for removal of bone debris during arthroscopic assisted ACLR was designed. It was applied to 60 patients undergoing ACLR (Group 1), and high-quality digital radiographs were taken post-operatively in each case to assess for the presence of intra-articular bone debris. A control group of 60 consecutive patients in whom no specific bone debris protocol was applied (Group 2) and their post-operative radiographs were also checked for the presence of intra-articular bone debris. Results: In Group 1, only 15% of post-operative radiographs showed residual bone debris, compared to 69% in Group 2 (p < 0.001). Conclusion: A five-step systematic protocol for bone debris removal during arthroscopic assisted ACLR resulted in a significant decrease in residual bone debris seen on high-quality post-operative radiographs.