Management of knee arthroscopy portals

Area of Science:

• Orthopedics
• Surgical Techniques
• Wound Management

Background:

• Suture material use for knee arthroscopy portal closure has declined.
• Adhesive tape is often used, presumed superior to leaving portals open.
• Evidence comparing adhesive tape to open management is limited.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare wound healing, complications, and patient satisfaction between open and adhesive tape closure of knee arthroscopy portals.
• To evaluate the efficacy and safety of leaving knee arthroscopy portals open versus using adhesive tape.

Main Methods:

• A prospective study involving 87 patients (92 knees) and 183 portals.
• Portals were managed either by leaving them open (123 portals) or closing with adhesive tape (60 portals).
• Follow-up assessments for wound healing and complications were conducted at 2 weeks and 6 weeks post-operatively.

Main Results:

• Complication rates were similar between groups: 10% (6/60 portals) in the adhesive tape group and 10.56% (13/123 portals) in the open group.
• No major or long-term complications were reported for either management method.
• Statistical analysis showed no significant difference between open and adhesive tape closure for portals (P = 0.908) or knees (P = 0.954).

Conclusions:

• Leaving knee arthroscopy portals open is an acceptable and safe method of management.
• Adhesive tape offers no significant advantage over leaving portals open in terms of complications or healing.
• These findings support the open management of knee arthroscopy portals as a viable alternative.