scholarly journals Treatment After Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injury: Panther Symposium ACL Treatment Consensus Group

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (6) ◽  
pp. 232596712093109
Author(s):  
Theresa Diermeier ◽  
Benjamin B. Rothrauff ◽  
Lars Engebretsen ◽  
Andrew D. Lynch ◽  
Olufemi R. Ayeni ◽  
...  

Treatment strategies for anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries continue to evolve. Evidence supporting best-practice guidelines for the management of ACL injury is to a large extent based on studies with low-level evidence. An international consensus group of experts was convened to collaboratively advance toward consensus opinions regarding the best available evidence on operative versus nonoperative treatment for ACL injury. The purpose of this study was to report the consensus statements on operative versus nonoperative treatment of ACL injuries developed at the ACL Consensus Meeting Panther Symposium 2019. There were 66 international experts on the management of ACL injuries, representing 18 countries, who were convened and participated in a process based on the Delphi method of achieving consensus. Proposed consensus statements were drafted by the scientific organizing committee and session chairs for the 3 working groups. Panel participants reviewed preliminary statements before the meeting and provided initial agreement and comments on the statement via online survey. During the meeting, discussion and debate occurred for each statement, after which a final vote was then held. Ultimately, 80% agreement was defined a priori as consensus. A total of 11 of 13 statements on operative versus nonoperative treatment of ACL injury reached consensus during the symposium. Overall, 9 statements achieved unanimous support, 2 reached strong consensus, 1 did not achieve consensus, and 1 was removed because of redundancy in the information provided. In highly active patients engaged in jumping, cutting, and pivoting sports, early anatomic ACL reconstruction is recommended because of the high risk of secondary meniscal and cartilage injuries with delayed surgery, although a period of progressive rehabilitation to resolve impairments and improve neuromuscular function is recommended. For patients who seek to return to straight-plane activities, nonoperative treatment with structured, progressive rehabilitation is an acceptable treatment option. However, with persistent functional instability, or when episodes of giving way occur, anatomic ACL reconstruction is indicated. The consensus statements derived from international leaders in the field will assist clinicians in deciding between operative and nonoperative treatment with patients after an ACL injury.

2020 ◽  
Vol 28 (8) ◽  
pp. 2390-2402 ◽  
Author(s):  
Theresa Diermeier ◽  
◽  
Benjamin B. Rothrauff ◽  
Lars Engebretsen ◽  
Andrew D. Lynch ◽  
...  

Abstract Treatment strategies for anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries continue to evolve. Evidence supporting best practice guidelines for the management of ACL injury is to a large extent based on studies with low-level evidence. An international consensus group of experts was convened to collaboratively advance toward consensus opinions regarding the best available evidence on operative vs. non-operative treatment for ACL injury. The purpose of this study is to report the consensus statements on operative vs. non-operative treatment of ACL injuries developed at the ACL Consensus Meeting Panther Symposium 2019. Sixty-six international experts on the management of ACL injuries, representing 18 countries, were convened and participated in a process based on the Delphi method of achieving consensus. Proposed consensus statements were drafted by the Scientific Organizing Committee and Session Chairs for the three working groups. Panel participants reviewed preliminary statements prior to the meeting and provided the initial agreement and comments on the statement via an online survey. During the meeting, discussion and debate occurred for each statement, after which a final vote was then held. Eighty percent agreement was defined a-priori as consensus. A total of 11 of 13 statements on operative v. non-operative treatment of ACL injury reached the consensus during the Symposium. Nine statements achieved unanimous support, two reached strong consensus, one did not achieve consensus, and one was removed due to redundancy in the information provided. In highly active patients engaged in jumping, cutting, and pivoting sports, early anatomic ACL reconstruction is recommended due to the high risk of secondary meniscus and cartilage injuries with delayed surgery, although a period of progressive rehabilitation to resolve impairments and improve neuromuscular function is recommended. For patients who seek to return to straight plane activities, non-operative treatment with structured, progressive rehabilitation is an acceptable treatment option. However, with persistent functional instability, or when episodes of giving way occur, anatomic ACL reconstruction is indicated. The consensus statements derived from international leaders in the field will assist clinicians in deciding between operative and non-operative treatments with patients after an ACL injury. Level of evidence V.


2019 ◽  
Vol 47 (7) ◽  
pp. 1583-1590 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michella H. Hagmeijer ◽  
Mario Hevesi ◽  
Vishal S. Desai ◽  
Thomas L. Sanders ◽  
Christopher L. Camp ◽  
...  

Background: Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury is one of the most frequent orthopaedic injuries and reasons for time loss in sports and carries significant implications, including posttraumatic osteoarthritis (OA). Instability associated with ACL injury has been linked to the development of secondary meniscal tears (defined as tears that develop after the initial ACL injury). To date, no study has examined secondary meniscal tears after ACL injury and their effect on OA and arthroplasty risk. Purpose: To describe the rates and natural history of secondary meniscal tears after ACL injury and to determine the effect of meniscal tear treatment on the development of OA and conversion to total knee arthroplasty (TKA). Study Design: Cohort study; Level of evidence, 3. Methods: A geographic database of >500,000 patients was reviewed to identify patients with primary ACL injuries between January 1, 1990, and December 31, 2005. Information was collected with regard to ACL injury treatment, rates/characteristics of the secondary meniscal tears, and outcomes, including development of OA and conversion to TKA. Kaplan-Meier and adjusted multivariate survival analyses were performed to test for the effect of meniscal treatment on survivorship free of OA and TKA. Results: Of 1398 primary ACL injuries, the overall rate of secondary meniscal tears was 16%. Significantly lower rates of secondary meniscal tears were noted among patients undergoing acute ACL reconstruction within 6 months (7%) as compared with patients with delayed ACL reconstruction (33%, P < .01) and nonoperative ACL management (19%, P < .01). Of the 235 secondary meniscal tears identified (196 patients), 11.5% underwent repair, 73% partial meniscectomy, and 16% were treated nonoperatively. Tears were most often medial in location (77%) and complex in morphology (56% of medial tears, 54% of lateral tears). At the time of final follow-up, no patient undergoing repair of a secondary meniscal tear (0%) underwent TKA, as opposed to 10.9% undergoing meniscectomy and 6.1% receiving nonoperative treatment ( P = .28). Conclusion: Secondary meniscal tears after ACL injury are most common among patients undergoing delayed surgical or nonoperative treatment of their primary ACL injuries. Secondary tears often present as complex tears of the medial meniscus and result in high rates of partial meniscectomy.


Author(s):  
Theresa Diermeier ◽  
Benjamin B Rothrauff ◽  
Lars Engebretsen ◽  
Andrew D Lynch ◽  
Eleonor Svantesson ◽  
...  

Treatment strategies for anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries continue to evolve. Evidence supporting best practice guidelines for the management of ACL injury is to a large extent based on studies with low-level evidence. An international consensus group of experts was convened to collaboratively advance towards consensus opinions regarding the best available evidence on operative versus non-operative treatment for ACL injury.The purpose of this study was to report the consensus statements on operative versus non-operative treatment of ACL injuries developed at the ACL Consensus Meeting Panther Symposium 2019. Sixty-six international experts on the management of ACL injuries, representing 18 countries, convened and participated in a process based on the Delphi method of achieving consensus. Proposed consensus statements were drafted by the Scientific Organising Committee and Session Chairs for the three working groups. Panel participants reviewed preliminary statements prior to the meeting and provided initial agreement and comments on the statement via online survey. During the meeting, discussion and debate occurred for each statement, after which a final vote was then held. Eighty per cent agreement was defined a priori as consensus. A total of 11 of 13 statements on operative veresus non-operative treatment of ACL injury reached consensus during the symposium. Nine statements achieved unanimous support; two reached strong consensus; one did not achieve consensus; and one was removed due to redundancy in the information provided.In highly active patients engaged in jumping, cutting and pivoting sports, early anatomical anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR) is recommended due to the high risk of secondary meniscus and cartilage injuries with delayed surgery, although a period of progressive rehabilitation to resolve impairments and improve neuromuscular function is recommended. For patients who seek to return to straight plane activities, non-operative treatment with structured, progressive rehabilitation is an acceptable treatment option. However, with persistent functional instability or when episodes of giving way occur, anatomical ACLR is indicated. The consensus statements derived from international leaders in the field will assist clinicians in deciding between operative and non-operative treatment with patients after an ACL injury.Level of evidence: V


2020 ◽  
Vol 48 (7) ◽  
pp. 1657-1664 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jelle P. van der List ◽  
Frans J.A. Hagemans ◽  
Dirk Jan Hofstee ◽  
Freerk J. Jonkers

Background: Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tears can either be treated nonoperatively with physical therapy and then treated operatively if persistent instability is present, or be directly treated operatively. Advantages of early ACL reconstruction surgery include shorter time from injury to surgery and potentially fewer meniscal injuries, but performing early ACL reconstruction in all patients results in surgery in patients who might not need ACL reconstruction. It is important to assess in which patients nonoperative treatment is successful and which patients will require ACL reconstruction and thus might be better treated surgically in an earlier phase. Purpose: To identify patient characteristics that predict the success of nonoperative treatment. Study Design: Cohort study (Prognosis); Level of evidence, 2. Methods: All patients with complete ACL injuries who were evaluated between 2014 and 2017 at our clinic were included. The minimum follow-up was 2 years. The initial treatment and ultimate ACL reconstruction were reviewed. Univariate analysis was performed using Mann-Whitney U tests and chi-square tests and multivariate analysis using binary logistic regression. Results: A total of 448 patients were included with a median age of 26 years and median Tegner level of 7 and mean Tegner level of 6.4. At initial consultation, 210 patients (47%) were treated nonoperatively with physical therapy and 126 of these patients (60%) ultimately required ACL reconstruction. Nonoperative treatment failed in 88.9% of patients <25 years of age, 56.0% of patients 25 to 40 years, and 32.9% of patients >40 years ( P < .001); and 41.9% of patients with Tegner level 3 to 6, and 82.8% of patients with Tegner level 7 to 10. Age <25 years (odds ratio [OR], 7.4; P < .001) and higher Tegner levels (OR, 4.2; P < .001) were predictive of failing nonoperative treatment in multivariate analysis. Patients in the failed nonoperative group had longer time from diagnosis to surgery than the direct reconstruction group (6.2 vs 2.2 months; P < .001), and more frequently had new meniscal injuries (17.4% vs 3.1%; P < .001) at surgery. Conclusion: Nonoperative treatment of ACL injuries failed in 60% of patients and was highly correlated with age and activity level. In patients aged 25 years or younger or participating in higher-impact sports, early ACL reconstruction should be considered to prevent longer delay between injury and surgery, as well as new meniscal injuries.


2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (6) ◽  
pp. 232596712093082 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sean J. Meredith ◽  
Thomas Rauer ◽  
Terese L. Chmielewski ◽  
Christian Fink ◽  
Theresa Diermeier ◽  
...  

Background: A precise and consistent definition of return to sport (RTS) after anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury is lacking, and there is controversy surrounding the process of returning patients to sport and their previous activity level. Purpose: The aim of the Panther Symposium ACL Injury Return to Sport Consensus Group was to provide a clear definition of RTS after ACL injury and a description of the RTS continuum as well as provide clinical guidance on RTS testing and decision-making. Study Design: Consensus statement. Methods: An international, multidisciplinary group of ACL experts convened as part of a consensus meeting. Consensus statements were developed using a modified Delphi method. Literature review was performed to report the supporting evidence. Results: Key points include that RTS is characterized by achievement of the preinjury level of sport and involves a criteria-based progression from return to participation to RTS and, ultimately, return to performance. Purely time-based RTS decision-making should be abandoned. Progression occurs along an RTS continuum, with decision-making by a multidisciplinary group that incorporates objective physical examination data and validated and peer-reviewed RTS tests, which should involve functional assessment as well as psychological readiness. Consideration should be given to biological healing, contextual factors, and concomitant injuries. Conclusion: The resultant consensus statements and scientific rationale aim to inform the reader of the complex process of RTS after ACL injury that occurs along a dynamic continuum. Research is needed to determine the ideal RTS test battery, the best implementation of psychological readiness testing, and methods for the biological assessment of healing and recovery.


2021 ◽  
pp. 036354652110171
Author(s):  
Lukas Willinger ◽  
Kiron K. Athwal ◽  
Andy Williams ◽  
Andrew A. Amis

Background: Biomechanical studies on anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries and reconstructions are based on ACL transection instead of realistic injury trauma. Purpose: To replicate an ACL injury in vitro and compare the laxity that occurs with that after an isolated ACL transection injury before and after ACL reconstruction. Study Design: Controlled laboratory study. Methods: Nine paired knees were ACL injured or ACL transected. For ACL injury, knees were mounted in a rig that imposed tibial anterior translation at 1000 mm/min to rupture the ACL at 22.5° of flexion, 5° of internal rotation, and 710 N of joint compressive force, replicating data published on clinical bone bruise locations. In contralateral knees, the ACL was transected arthroscopically at midsubstance. Both groups had ACL reconstruction with bone–patellar tendon–bone graft. Native, ACL-deficient, and reconstructed knee laxities were measured in a kinematics rig from 0° to 100° of flexion with optical tracking: anterior tibial translation (ATT), internal rotation (IR), anterolateral (ATT + IR), and pivot shift (IR + valgus). Results: The ACL ruptured at 26 ± 5 mm of ATT and 1550 ± 620 N of force (mean ± SD) with an audible spring-back tibiofemoral impact with 5o of valgus. ACL injury and transection increased ATT ( P < .001). ACL injury caused greater ATT than ACL transection by 1.4 mm (range, 0.4-2.2 mm; P = .033). IR increased significantly in ACL-injured knees between 0° and 30° of flexion and in ACL transection knees from 0° to 20° of flexion. ATT during the ATT + IR maneuver was increased by ACL injury between 0° and 80° and after ACL transection between 0° and 60°. Residual laxity persisted after ACL reconstruction from 0° to 40° after ACL injury and from 0° to 20° in the ACL transection knees. ACL deficiency increased ATT and IR in the pivot-shift test ( P < .001). The ATT in the pivot-shift increased significantly at 0° to 20° after ACL transection and 0° to 50° after ACL injury, and this persisted across 0° to 20° and 0° to 40° after ACL reconstruction. Conclusion: This study developed an ACL injury model in vitro that replicated clinical ACL injury as evidenced by bone bruise patterns. ACL injury caused larger increases of laxity than ACL transection, likely because of damage to adjacent tissues; these differences often persisted after ACL reconstruction. Clinical Relevance: This in vitro model created more realistic ACL injuries than surgical transection, facilitating future evaluation of ACL reconstruction techniques.


Author(s):  
Emil Vutescu ◽  
Sebastian Orman ◽  
Edgar Garcia-Lopez ◽  
Justin Lau ◽  
Andrew Gage ◽  
...  

Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) rupture is a common injury in young athletes. To restore knee stability and function, patients often undergo ACL reconstruction (ACLR). Historically, there has been a focus in this population on the epidemiology of ACL injury, the technical aspects of ACL reconstruction, and post-operative functional outcomes. Although increasingly recognized as an important aspect in recovery, there remains limited literature examining the psychological aspects of post-operative rehabilitation and return to play following youth ACL reconstruction. Despite technical surgical successes and well-designed rehabilitation programs, many athletes never reach their preinjury athletic performance level and some may never return to their primary sport. This suggests that other factors may influence recovery, and indeed this has been documented in the adult literature. In addition to restoration of functional strength and stability, psychological and social factors play an important role in the recovery and overall outcome of ACL injuries in the pediatric population. Factors such as psychological readiness to return-to-play (RTP), motivation, mood disturbance, locus of control, recovery expectations, fear of reinjury, and self-esteem are correlated to the RTP potential of the young athlete. A better understanding of these concepts may help to maximize young patients’ outcomes after ACL reconstruction. The purpose of this article is to perform a narrative review of the current literature addressing psychosocial factors associated with recovery after ACL injury and subsequent reconstruction in young athletes. Our goal is to provide a resource for clinicians treating youth ACL injuries to help identify patients with maladaptive psychological responses after injury and encourage a multidisciplinary approach when treating young athletes with an ACL rupture.


2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 232596712090369
Author(s):  
Sadanori Shimizu ◽  
Tsuyoshi Nagase ◽  
Tomohiko Tateishi ◽  
Teruhiko Nakagawa ◽  
Masamitsu Tsuchiya

Background: Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury is one of the most common traumatic injuries in professional sumo wrestlers. Further, ipsilateral reinjuries or contralateral ACL injuries after ACL reconstruction can occur in sumo wrestlers. The incidence of ipsilateral reinjury and contralateral ACL injury after ACL reconstruction ranges from 3% to 13% in a healthy athletic population. Purpose: To investigate the current status of second ACL injuries after ACL reconstruction in sumo wrestlers. Study Design: Case series; Level of evidence, 4. Methods: Between 1988 and 2015, a total of 139 primary ACL reconstructions were performed in professional sumo wrestlers at our hospital. After exclusion of cases of multiple ligament knee reconstruction and patients in whom the contralateral ACL had been injured previously, 110 cases were included in this study. We investigated the number of second injuries, time from primary reconstruction to second injury, treatment method, and change in official sumo ranking after second injuries. The chi-square test, Student t test, and Fisher exact text were used for statistical analysis. Results: Among 110 wrestlers who underwent ACL reconstruction, second injuries after primary ACL reconstruction occurred in 22 cases (20.0%). Among them, 14 cases (12.7%) entailed ipsilateral reinjury, 11 (10.0%) entailed contralateral injury, and 3 involved combined rerupture and contralateral injury. As for surgical treatment, 5 revision ACL reconstructions were performed for ipsilateral reinjury (35.7%), and 7 ACL reconstructions were performed for contralateral injury (63.6%). Surgical treatment was not performed for the remaining cases. Wrestlers who were treated by revision or contralateral ACL reconstruction after the second injury were demoted in rank for 3 to 4 tournaments but overtook the nonoperative treatment group in ranking by 2 years postoperatively; all athletes initially were demoted in rank after the second injury. Conclusion: This study is the first to investigate instances of ipsilateral reinjuries and contralateral ACL injuries after ACL reconstruction in professional athletes in heavyweight combat sports. The incidences of ipsilateral reinjury and contralateral ACL injury after ACL reconstruction in professional sumo wrestlers were relatively higher than those reported in previous studies.


Author(s):  
Sean J Meredith ◽  
Thomas Rauer ◽  
Terese L Chmielewski ◽  
Christian Fink ◽  
Theresa Diermeier ◽  
...  

ObjectivesA precise and consistent definition of return to sport (RTS) after anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury is lacking, and there is controversy surrounding the process of returning patients to sports and their previous activity level. The aim of the Panther Symposium ACL Injury RTS Consensus Group was to provide a clear definition of RTS after ACL injury and description of the RTS continuum, as well as provide clinical guidance on RTS testing and decision-making.MethodsAn international, multidisciplinary group of ACL experts convened as part of a consensus meeting. Consensus statements were developed using a modified Delphi method. Literature review was performed to report the supporting evidence.ResultsKey points include that RTS is characterised by achievement of the preinjury level of sport and involves a criteria-based progression from return to participation to RTS, and ultimately return to performance. Purely time-based RTS decision-making should be abandoned. Progression occurs along an RTS continuum with decision-making by a multidisciplinary group that incorporates objective physical examination data and validated and peer-reviewed RTS tests, which should involve functional assessment as well as psychological readiness. Consideration should be given to biological healing, contextual factors and concomitant injuries.ConclusionThe resultant consensus statements and scientific rationale aim to inform the reader of the complex process of RTS after ACL injury that occurs along a dynamic continuum. Research is needed to determine the ideal RTS test battery, the best implementation of psychological readiness testing and methods for the biological assessment of healing and recovery.


2018 ◽  
Vol 47 (1) ◽  
pp. 52-58 ◽  
Author(s):  
Einar Andreas Sivertsen ◽  
Kari Bente Foss Haug ◽  
Eirik Klami Kristianslund ◽  
Anne-Marie Siebke Trøseid ◽  
Jari Parkkari ◽  
...  

Background: Several single-nucleotide variants (SNVs) in collagen genes have been reported as predisposing factors for anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tears. However, the evidence is conflicting and does not support a clear association between genetic variants and risk of ACL ruptures. Purpose: To assess the association of previously identified candidate SNVs in genes encoding for collagen and the risk of ACL injury in a population of elite female athletes from high-risk team sports. Study Design: Cohort study; Level of evidence, 2. Methods: A total of 851 female Norwegian and Finnish elite athletes from team sports were included from 2007 to 2011. ACL injuries acquired before inclusion in the cohort were registered by interview. The participants were followed prospectively through 2015 to record new complete ACL injuries. Six selected SNVs were genotyped ( COL1A1: rs1800012, rs1107946; COL3A1: rs1800255; COL5A1: rs12722, rs13946; COL12A1: rs970547). Results: No associations were found between ACL rupture and the SNVs tested. Conclusion: The study does not support a role of the 6 selected SNVs in genes encoding for collagen proteins as risk factors for ACL injury. Clinical Relevance: Genetic profiling to identify athletes at high risk for ACL rupture is not yet feasible.


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