Posterolateral corner reconstruction

Area of Science:

• Orthopedic Surgery
• Sports Medicine
• Knee Biomechanics

Background:

• Posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) injuries often occur with concurrent damage to the knee's lateral structures.
• Grade III laxity in PCL injuries is a significant indicator of potential posterolateral corner involvement.
• Isolated PCL reconstruction may not fully address instability when the posterolateral corner is also compromised.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe a surgical technique for posterolateral reconstruction in the knee.
• To evaluate the efficacy of combined PCL and posterolateral reconstruction for restoring knee stability.
• To highlight the importance of addressing combined injuries for optimal patient outcomes.

Main Methods:

• Description of a specific posterolateral reconstruction surgical procedure.
• Utilizes allograft tissue and interference screw fixation (autograft is an alternative).
• Performed in conjunction with an intra-articular PCL reconstruction.

Main Results:

• The described posterolateral reconstruction procedure, when combined with PCL reconstruction, successfully restores rotary and posterior knee stability.
• This combined approach addresses the complex instability associated with concomitant PCL and posterolateral corner injuries.
• The technique provides a viable surgical option for managing these combined knee ligament injuries.

Conclusions:

• Suspect lateral structure compromise in PCL injuries with grade III laxity.
• Combined PCL and posterolateral reconstruction is essential for restoring stability in these cases.
• This surgical approach effectively restores both rotary and posterior knee stability.