Abstract
Background
There have been few studies investigating the correct anatomical femoral and tibial tunnel placement in double bundle anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction.
Objective
To compare anteromedial (AM) and posterolateral (PL) tunnel positions in anatomical double bundle ACL reconstruction in human cadaver and patient knees.
Materials and methods
Fifteen fresh-frozen non-paired adult human knees and 27 patients (27 knees) were evaluated. In the cadaver knees, AM and PL bundles were identified by their difference in tension patterns. Their femoral centers were marked with a K-wire, and cut from the femoral insertion site. After this, each bundle was divided at the tibial side. The center of each bundle insertion was again marked with a K-wire, and 5–7-mm tunnels were drilled with transportal or outside-in technique. In patient knees, each tunnel was made according to the native ACL foot print and bony landmarks using transtibial technique (n = 5) and transportal technique (n = 22). Tunnel placement was evaluated using a C-arm X-ray device and 3D CT. For the femoral side assessment, Bernard and Hertel’s technique was used. For the tibial side assessment, Amis and Jakob’s technique was used.
Results
The femoral AM tunnel in the cadaver knees was placed in a significantly deeper position when compared to patient knees. There was no significant difference in the AM vertical placement or in the PL tunnel placement in the femur. No significant differences were observed in the tibial tunnel placements between cadaver and patient knees.
Conclusion
In vivo positioning of the femoral AM bundle differed significantly from the in vitro positioning.
Similar content being viewed by others
Abbreviations
- ACL:
-
Anterior cruciate ligament
- AM:
-
Anteromedial bundle
- PL:
-
Posterolateral bundle
References
Buoncristiani AM, Tjoumakaris FP, Starman JS, Ferretti M, Fu FH (2006) Anatomic double-bundle anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction. Arthroscopy 22:1000–1006
Colombet P, Robinson J, Christel P et al (2006) Morphology of anterior cruciate ligament attachments for anatomic reconstruction: a cadaver study. Arthroscopy 22:984–992
Edwards A, Bull AM, Amis AA (2007) The attachments of the anteromedial and posterolateral fibre bundles of the anterior cruciate ligament. Part 1: Tibial attachment. Knee Surg Sports Traumatol Arthrosc 15:1414–1421
Edwards A, Bull AM, Amis AA (2008) The attachments of the anteromedial and posterolateral fibre bundles of the anterior cruciate ligament. Part 2: Femoral attachment. Knee Surg Sports Traumatol Arthrosc 16:29–36
Fu FH, Shen W, Starman JS, Okeke N, Irrang JJ (2008) Primary anatomic double-bundle anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction. A preliminary 2-year prospective study. Am J Sports Med 36:1263–1274
Ho JY, Gardiner A, Shah V, Steiner ME (2009) Equal kinematics between central anatomic single-bundle and double-bundle anterior cruciate ligament reconstructions. Arthroscopy 25:464–472
Darcy SP, Kilger RH, Woo SL, Debski RF (2006) Estimation of ACL forces by reproducing knee kinematics between sets of knees: a novel noninvasive methodology. J Biomech 39:2371–2377
Giron F, Cuomo P, Edwards A, Amis BullAM, AA AgliettiP (2007) Double-bundle “anatomic” anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction: a cadaveric study of tunnel positioning with a transtibial technique. Arthroscopy 23:7–13
Mae T, Shino K, Miyama T et al (2001) Single versus two-femoral socket anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction technique: biomechanical analysis using a robotic simulator. Arthroscopy 17:708–716
Muneta T, Koga H, Mochizuki T et al (2007) A prospective randomized study of 4-strand semitendinosus tendon anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction comparing single-bundle and double bundle techniques. Arthroscopy 23:618–628
Yagi M, Wong EK, Kanamori A, Debski RE, Fu FH, Woo SL (2002) Biomechanical analysis of anatomic anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction. Am J Sports Med 30:660–666
Yasuda K, Kondo E, Ichiyama H, Tanabe Y, Tohyama H (2006) Clinical evaluation of anatomic double-bundle anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction procedure using hamstring tendon grafts: comparisons among 3 different procedures. Arthroscopy 22:240–251
Neven E, D’Hooghe P, Bellemans J (2008) Double-bundle anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction: a cadaveric study on the posterolateral tunnel position and safety of the lateral structures. Arthroscopy 24:436–440
Tsukada H, Ishibashi Y, Tsuda E, Fukuda A, Toh S (2008) Anatomical analysis of the anterior cruciate ligament femoral and tibial footprints. J Orthop Sci 13:122–129
Zantop T, Wellmann M, Fu FH, Peterson W (2008) Tunnel positioning of anteromedial and posterolateral bundles in anatomic anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction: anatomic and radiographic findings. Am J Sports Med 36:65–72
Iriuchishima T, Tajima G, Ingham SJ et al (2009) Intercondylar roof impingement pressure after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction in a porcine model. Knee Surg Sports Traumatol Arthrosc 17:590–594
Iriuchishima T, Tajima G, Ingham SJ, Shen W, Smolinski P, Fu F (2010) Impingement pressure in the anatomical and non anatomical anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction: a cadaver study. Am J Sports Med 38:1611–1617
Zantop T, Diermann N, Schumacher T, Schanz S, Fu FH, Petersen W (2008) Anatomical and nonanatomical double-bundle anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction: importance of femoral tunnel location on knee kinematics. Am J Sports Med 36:678–685
Ferretti M, Ekdahl M, Shen W, Fu FH (2007) Osseous landmarks of the femoral attachment of the anterior cruciate ligament: an anatomic study. Arthroscopy 23:1218–1225
Staubli HU, Rauschning W (1994) Tibial attachment area of the anterior cruciate ligament in the extended knee position, anatomy and cryosections in vitro complemented by magnetic resonance arthrography in vivo. Knee Surg Sports Traumatol Arthrosc 2:138–146
Bernard M, Hertel P, Hornung H, Cierpinski TH (1997) Femoral insertion of the ACL: radiographic quadrant method. Am J Knee Surg 10:14–22
Purnell ML, Larson AI, Clancy W (2008) Anterior cruciate ligament insertions on the tibia and femur and their relationships to critical bony landmarks using high-resolution volume-rendering computed tomography. Am J Sports Med 36:2083–2090
Luites JW, Wymenga AB, Blankevoort L, Kooloos JG (2007) Description of the attachment geometry of the anteromedial and posterolateral bundles of the ACL from arthroscopic perspective for anatomical tunnel placement. Knee Surg Sports Traumatol Arthrosc 15:1422–1431
Steckel H, Fu FH, Baums MH, Klinger HM (2009) Arthroscopic evaluation of the ACL double bundle structure. Knee Surg Sports Traumatol Arthrosc 17:782–785
Steckel H, Starman JS, Baums MH, Klinger HM, Schultz W, Fu FH (2007) Anatomy of the anterior cruciate ligament double bundle structure: a macroscopic evaluation. Scand J Med Sci Sports 17:387–392
Iriuchishima T, Tajima G, Ingham SJ et al (2010) Evaluation of the tunnel placement in the anatomical double-bundle ACL reconstruction: a cadaver study. Knee Surg Sports Traumatol Arthrosc 18:1226–1231
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Iriuchishima, T., Tajima, G., Shirakura, K. et al. In vitro and in vivo AM and PL tunnel positioning in anatomical double bundle anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction. Arch Orthop Trauma Surg 131, 1085–1090 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00402-011-1308-3
Received:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00402-011-1308-3