Bone and Joint Institute
Five- and six-strand hamstring grafts consistently produce appropriate graft diameters for anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2021
Journal
KNEE SURGERY SPORTS TRAUMATOLOGY ARTHROSCOPY
URL with Digital Object Identifier
10.1007/s00167-020-06313-w
Abstract
Purpose Hamstring tendon graft diameter less than 8 mm has been correlated with an increased risk of anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR) graft failure. The purpose of this study was to measure and compare the diameter of 3-, 4-, 5-, and 6-strand gracilis and semitendinosus (ST) hamstring tendon (HT) ACLR grafts, and to determine if there is a correlation between anthropometric data, HT length, and diameter of the HT ACLR graft. Methods Male patients (n = 78) undergoing primary or revision ACLR with a HT autograft between July 2018 and March 2020 were recruited. Pre-operative anthropometric data was collected. Gracilis and ST tendons were harvested and the length and diameter measured. The following HT graft configurations were prepared in each patient: triple ST; double gracilis + double ST; double gracilis + triple ST; triple gracilis + triple ST. Paired t-tests and Pearson's correlation coefficients were used to assess demographics, anthropometrics, graft diameter, and tendon length. A non-parametric test was used to compare femoral and tibial ACL graft diameters of the 3-, 4-, 5-, and 6-strand HT graft configurations. Results For the femoral end, 10%, 19%, 69% and 86% of the patients achieved graft diameters of equal to or greater than 8 mm in 3-, 4-, 5- and 6-strand HT graft configurations respectively. For the tibial end, 27%, 10%, 83%, and 92% of the patients achieved graft diameters of equal to or greater than 8 mm in 3-, 4-, 5-, and 6-strand HT graft configurations respectively. The largest increases in HT graft diameters were noted between the femoral end of 6- vs. 3-strand grafts (mean difference 1.7 +/- 0.5 mm;p < 0.001) and between the tibial end of 6- vs. 4-strand grafts (mean difference 2.0 +/- 0.5 mm;p < 0.001). Height and leg length were moderately positively correlated with ST tendon length (r = 0.54-0.51) and gracilis tendon length (r = 0.52-0.45), and thigh and shank lengths were moderately positively correlated with ST tendon length (r = 0.43 and 0.40, respectively). Conclusion Traditional 4-strand HT ACL autografts in male patients undergoing ACLR in the United Arab Emirates result in graft diameters less than 8 mm in the majority of patients.
