Effect of Delayed Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction on Repair of Concomitant Medial Meniscus Tears in Young Athletes.

BACKGROUND: Delayed anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction (ACLR) is associated with an increased risk of meniscal injury. Limited data are available regarding the relationship between surgical delay and meniscal repairability in the setting of ACLR in young patients. PURPOSE: To determine whether time from ACL injury to primary ACLR was associated with the incidence of medial and/or lateral meniscal repair in young athletes who underwent meniscal treatment at the time of ACLR. STUDY DESIGN: Case-control study; Level of evidence, 3. METHODS: Records were retrospectively reviewed for patients aged 13 to 25 years who underwent primary ACLR between January 2017 and June 2020 by surgeons from a single academic orthopaedic surgery department. Demographic data were collected, and operative reports were reviewed to document all concomitant pathologies and procedures. Univariable and multivariable logistic regression analyses were used to determine factors associated with meniscal repair, including time elapsed from ACL injury to surgery. RESULTS: Concomitant meniscal tears were identified and treated in 243 of 427 patients; their mean age was 17.9 ± 3.3 years, and approximately half (47.7%) of patients were female. There were 144 (59.3%) medial tears treated and 164 (67.5%) lateral tears treated; 65 (26.7%) patients had both medial and lateral tears treated. Median time from ACL injury to ACLR was 2.4 months (interquartile range, 1.4-4.7 months). Adjusted univariate analysis showed a statistically significant correlation between medial meniscal repair and time to surgery, with a 7% decreased incidence of medial meniscal repair per month elapsed between injury and surgery (odds ratio, 0.93 per month; 95% CI, 0.89-0.98; P = .006). No similar relationship was found between lateral meniscal repair and time to surgery (odds ratio, 1.02; 95% CI, 0.99-1.06; P = .24). CONCLUSION: In the setting of concomitant ACL and meniscal injuries, surgical delay decreased the incidence of medial meniscal repair in young athletes by 7% per month from time of injury.

Effect of Increased Time to Surgery on the Ability of MRI to Rule Out Medial Meniscal Tears in Young Athletes With ACL Injury.

Background: The prevalence of meniscal tears in patients with anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury increases with extended time between injury and ACL reconstruction. Purpose/Hypothesis: The purpose of this study was to determine if there is a relationship between time from magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to ACL reconstruction and the predictive value of MRI to diagnose meniscal tears in the young active population. It was hypothesized that increased time between MRI and ACL reconstruction would lead to a decrease in the negative predictive value of MRI in diagnosing meniscal tears, as more injuries may accrue over time in the ACL-deficient knee. Study Design: Case series; Level of evidence, 4. Methods: Included were patients aged 13 to 25 years at the authors' institution who underwent primary ACL reconstruction from January 2017 to June 2020. Time from MRI to surgery as well as descriptions of medial and lateral meniscal tears on both MRI and operative reports were documented. Time from MRI to surgery was divided into 4 intervals: 0 to 6 weeks, >6 weeks to 3 months, >3 to 6 months, and beyond 6 months. Multivariable analysis was used to determine the positive and negative predictive values of MRI in diagnosing a meniscal tear as compared with arthroscopic findings. Results: A total of 432 patients were included with a mean age of 17.9 ± 3.4 years. The mean time from MRI to surgery was 70.5 ± 98 days. There was a significant decrease in the negative predictive value of MRI to identify a medial meniscal tear in patients who underwent ACL reconstruction >6 months after imaging (odds ratio, 0.16 [95% CI, 0.05-0.53]; P = .003). This same relationship was not shown for lateral meniscal tears, nor was any other predictor significant. Conclusion: The utility of MRI to rule out a medial meniscal tear significantly diminished in the young athletic population when >6 months passed between MRI and ACL reconstruction. These data suggest these tears occur between the time of the MRI and surgery and that the medial meniscus is more susceptible than the lateral meniscus to new injury once the ACL has torn.

Antiviral Prescribing Among Patients at an Ambulatory Cancer Center With Laboratory-Confirmed Influenza.

Among 133 cancer outpatients diagnosed with influenza between 2016 and 2018, 110 (83%) were prescribed oseltamivir. Among 109 with a known symptom onset date, 53% presented for care and 31% were prescribed oseltamivir within 48 hours. Patient/provider education and rapid diagnostics are needed to improve early oseltamivir use among cancer patients with influenza.

Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction with 4-Strand Hamstring Tendon Construct May be Biomechanically Superior to 5-Strand Hamstring Tendon Construct When Using Femoral Suspensory Fixation.

Purpose: To compare stiffness, strain, and load to failure of 4- versus 5-strand hamstring anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction human tendon allografts with femoral suspensory and tibial interference screw fixation. Methods: Allograft hamstring tendons were used to create 10 four-strand (4S) and 10 five-strand (5S) grafts. Grafts were fixed to a uniaxial electromechanical load system via a femoral cortical suspensory button and a bioabsorbable interference screw in bone analogue. Grafts were cycled from 100 Newtons (N) to 250 N for 1,000 repetitions at 0.5 hertz before load to failure testing. Cyclic displacement was defined as the difference in graft length from the first 20 to 30 cycles compared with the last 10 cycles. Trials were recorded on a high-definition camera to allow for digital image correlation analysis. Results: Cyclic displacement more than 1,000 cycles was significantly lower in the 4S compared with the 5S group (0.87 vs 1.11 mm, P = .037). Digital image correlation analysis confirmed that the fifth strand elongated more than the other 4 strands in the 5S constructs (6.1% vs 3.9%, P = .032). Load to failure was greater in the 4S compared with the 5S group but not statistically significant (762 vs 707 N, P = .35). Stiffness was similar between constructs (138.5 vs 138.3 N/mm, P = .96). Conclusions: Compared with cyclically loaded 4S hamstring grafts, the 5S grafts had significantly increased displacement over time in a model of femoral suspensory and tibial interference screw fixation. Clinical Relevance: Anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction with hamstring tendon autograft is a commonly performed surgery with excellent outcomes. It has been shown that graft diameter influences these outcomes. As surgeons use larger grafts, it is important to investigate how these constructs may affect the outcomes of surgery.