[Experimental stability of a new implant-free fixation technique in ACL replacement]

The purpose of the study is to establish data on the stability of an ACL replacement. In 40 human cadaver knees, either a mid patellar ligament third with a trapezoid bone block on one side was fixed on the femoral side in a 2-diameter drill hole, or a conventional interference screw fixation was applied. Average primary stability amounted to 570 N (+/- 100 N) for the bone-blocking technique, and to 402 N ( +/- 79 N) for the interference screw fixation. When statistically tested by variance analysis, stability was significantly higher for the bone blocking technique than with interference screw fixation (p < 0.05). Thus, when using a mid-patellar ligament third for ACL reconstruction, the new implant-free technique described here appears to be a practical and reliable method for femoral graft fixation.