COMPLICATIONS OF THE SCREW/WASHER TIBIAL FIXATION TECHNIQUE FOR KNEE LIGAMENT RECONSTRUCTION

To evaluate the presence of pain at the site of the surgical incision and the need to remove the tibial fixation screw in anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction, in relation to sex and body mass index (BMI).

A group of 265 patients who underwent ACL reconstruction with ipsilateral flexor tendon grafts from the thigh in which the tibial fixation technique consisted of using a cortical screw and metal washer, between July 2000 and November 2007, were evaluated.

176 patients were evaluated for an average of 33.3 ± 19.5 months; median of 29.5 months; IIQ: 17-45 months; minimum of 8 and maximum of 87 months. There was no statistical difference regarding complaints of pain at the site of the screw (p = 0.272) and the need to remove the tibial screw (p = 0.633) between sexes. There was no statistical difference regarding complaints of pain at the site of the screw (p = 0.08) and the need to remove the tibial screw (p = 0.379) according to BMI.

The pain complaint rate at the screw site from the screw and metal washer method used for tibial fixation in ACL reconstruction was of the order of 25%, and the screw had to be removed in 10.8% of the cases. There was no predominance of pain complaints at the surgical wound between the sexes. There was a greater tendency to complain about pain among patients with BMI < 25. There was no predominance of screw and washer removal between the sexes or between individuals with different BMIs.