Avoiding graft-tunnel length mismatch in anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction: the single-bone plug technique

Anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction, using autogenous bone-patellar tendon-bone (BTB) as a graft material, is commonly performed in the setting of anterior cruciate ligament insufficiency. Although bone-patellar tendon-bone autograft has an extensive track record, showing excellent clinical results, donor-site morbidity and graft-tunnel mismatch can still be problematic for a subset of patients. In the setting of a tendon graft that is too long, adequate interference screw fixation cannot be obtained, typically resulting in a tibial-sided bone plug that achieves less than 15 to 20 mm of bone in the distal tibial tunnel. We present an easy and effective technique for avoiding the graft-tunnel mismatch problems that commonly occur in patients who have an excessively long patellar tendons. This technique involves a simple preoperative planning algorithm that ultimately results in a single tibial-sided plug harvest. Bony interference fixation is then obtained on the femoral side and soft-tissue fixation on the tibial side. This technique allows for satisfactory graft fixation while avoiding the donor-site morbidity associated with patellar bone plug harvest.