Lateral femoral chondral lesions are more frequent when an anterior cruciate ligament tear is concomitant with a lateral femoral notch sign, but do not progress over time.

BACKGROUND: The lateral femoral notch sign (LFNS) is caused by an impact to the lateral femoral condyle during a pivot shift injury and affects 25% to 33% of patients with an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) rupture. The primary aim of this study was to compare the incidence of chondral lesions 1year after ACL reconstruction, while taking into consideration preoperative chondral damage, in patients with and without a preoperative LFNS. The primary outcome measure was the presence of chondral lesions involving the lateral femoral condyle, confirmed on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) using the Outerbridge classification, at 1year postoperative. The secondary outcome measures were bone bruise of the lateral femoral condyle confirmed on MRI, the International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC), Lysholm and Tegner functional scores taken 1year after surgery. METHODS: Sixty patients were included-30 with preoperative LFNS and 30 without-in a retrospective, comparative study of prospectively collected data on patients operated between August 2018 and December 2020. RESULTS: A lateral femoral chondral lesion 1year after surgery was significantly more common in the group with a preoperative LFNS (37% [n=11] versus 13% [n=4] in the group without a preoperative LFNS, p=0.036). Adjusting the statistical analysis for preoperative body mass index (BMI) did not impact these results (adjusted odds ratio [OR]=3.83 [95%CI: 1.03-14.24]; p=0.045). Adjusting for a preoperative lateral femoral chondral lesion had an impact on these results (adjusted OR=0.78 [95%CI: 0.12-5.08]; p=0.793). This indicates that a preoperative LFNS is not significantly and independently associated with a lateral femoral chondral lesion at 1year postoperative when the analysis is adjusted for a preoperative lateral femoral chondral lesion. However, having a preoperative lateral femoral chondral lesion is significantly correlated with the presence of a lateral femoral chondral lesion 1year after the surgery (adjusted OR=63.31 [95%CI: 5.94-674.8]; p=0.001). There were no significant differences in terms of bone bruise on MRI (p=1.0), or for the IKDC (p=0.310), Lysholm (p=0.416) and Tegner (p=0.644) functional scores. The LFNS was still present in 21 out of 30 patients (70%) at 1year postoperative. The preoperative LFNS was significantly smaller in the group without a chondral lesion compared to the group with a chondral lesion 1year after the surgery (median=2.30mm [IQR: 1.40; 3.00] versus 3.10mm [IQR: 2.50; 3.40]; p value=0.045). CONCLUSIONS: Patients with a preoperative LFNS are three times more likely to have a chondral lesion in the notch region 1year after surgery. These chondral lesions are concomitant to the injury and do not progress over time. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: III.

Evaluation of the All-Inside Technique for the Repair of Lateral Meniscus Root Tears at 1 Year After ACL Reconstruction.

Background: The presence of a lateral meniscus root tear (LMRT) in patients with an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tear makes the knee more unstable and increases the risk of osteoarthritis and osteonecrosis. An all-inside suture repair technique without bone tunnels has been proposed to treat LMRT. Purpose: To compare the 1-year postoperative findings between patients who underwent ACL reconstruction combined with LMRT repair (LMRT group) and patients who underwent isolated ACL reconstruction (control group). Study Design: Cohort study; Level of evidence, 3. Methods: The LMRT group consisted of 19 patients, and the control group consisted of 56 patients. In this study, the authors compared the postoperative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings (meniscal extrusion, ghost sign, and hyperintensity in the tibial plateau beneath the LMRT), functional outcomes (International Knee Documentation Committee [IKDC], Lysholm, and Tegner scores), and reoperation rate between groups. The primary endpoint was analyzed by comparing, in the LMRT group, the 1-sided 97.5% confidence interval (CI) of the mean lateral meniscal extrusion at 1 year to the limit of noninferiority (fixed at 0.51). To take into account imbalanced baseline characteristics between groups, adjusted mean meniscal extrusion (with 1-sided 97.5% CI) was assessed using a linear regression model. Results: The mean follow-up was 12.2 months (range, 7.7-14.7 months) in the control group and 11.5 months (range, 7.1-13.0 months) in the LMRT group (P = .06). For meniscal extrusion, the LMRT group was noninferior to the control group. The mean meniscal extrusion was 2.19 mm (97.5% CI, -infinity to 2.68 mm) in the LMRT group and 2.03 mm (97.5% CI,-infinity to 2.27 mm) in the control group, indicating that the upper boundary of the 1-sided 97.5% CI in the LMRT group was less than the noninferiority threshold of 2.78 (ie, 2.27 mm + 0.51 mm = 2.78 mm). There was a statistically significant difference in the IKDC score between the LMRT and control groups (77.2 ± 8.1 vs 80.3 ± 7.3, respectively; P = .04). There was no between-group difference in the other MRI parameters, the Lysholm and Tegner scores, or the reoperation rate. Conclusion: There was no significant difference in extrusion on MRI or clinical outcomes at 1-year follow-up in patients who underwent ACL reconstruction with all-inside LMRT repair compared with patients who did not have an LMRT.

Masquelet's induced membrane technique associated with Reamer Irrigation Aspiration grafting and intramedullary Nailing (MaRIAN) for chronic diaphyseal osteomyelitis of the lower limb.

INTRODUCTION: Masquelet's induced membrane technique offers a definitive contribution to the treatment of diaphyseal osteomyelitis. To overcome its drawbacks while maintaining its principles, technical modifications have been proposed: antibiotic cement, femoral intramedullary autograft harvested by RIA (Reamer Irrigation Aspiration) and interlocking nails. MATERIAL AND METHOD: This retrospective study gathered patients with chronic osteomyelitis of the femur or tibia. The first surgical stage consisted of bone resection in the healthy zone and use of a gentamicin cement spacer to fill the bone defect. The second stage consisted of the placement of a statically locked intramedullary nail associated with a bone autograft using the RIA technique. RESULTS: Among this group of 12 men with diaphyseal osteomyelitis; 9 tibial and 2 femoral, and 1 knee nonunion, the mean bone defect was 7.3cm (±6.7). The mean time between the 2 stages was 2.7months (±3) with a mean antibiotic period of 3.25weeks (±3). There was a femoral diaphyseal fracture at the donor site, and a wrong trajectory intraoperatively during the RIA. Two patients with tibial nonunion presented with nail rupture without septic recurrence. A septic recurrence was healed by removal of the nail. At a minimum follow-up of 18months, with an average of 5years, consolidation was complete without infectious recurrence. Despite the statistical weakness related to the size of the cohort, the resumption of early weight bearing (OR=-7.68 95% CI [-13.33 to -2.08] (p=0.01)) and nail dynamization seemed to have an impact on the formation of complete consolidation (OR=-0.86 95% CI [-1.39 to -0.33] (p=0.007)). DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: This short series, compared to the literature, demonstrated that the proposed technical modifications improved the overall management of this rare and challenging condition while maintaining the reliability of the original technique. Dynamization was also seen to be of particular interest. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: IV, retrospective study.