Use of a novel extracapsular bone anchor system for stabilisation of cranial cruciate ligament insufficiency

To evaluate early clinical experiences using the novel extracapsular bone anchor Ruby system for stabilisation of the cranial cruciate ligament deficient stifle in the dog and report short-term outcome and complications for 17 clinical cases.

Seventeen dogs with cranial cruciate ligament insufficiency were treated using the Ruby system. Dogs were eligible if diagnosed via orthopaedic examination with unilateral or bilateral cranial cruciate ligament instability without any comorbidities. Subjective lameness assessments on a 0 to 4 scale were made pre-operatively and at six to eight weeks post-operatively; complications were also recorded. Lameness was also assessed on a visual analogue scale at six to eight months post-operatively.

All cases had substantial improvement in lameness following surgery. Mean post-operative lameness grade was 1·18 (±0·53) out of 4, compared to a grade of 3·06 (±0·9) before surgery, and owner assessment at six to eight months after surgery was also positive. There were major complications that required surgical intervention in one dog.

The Ruby system is a feasible method of extracapsular stabilisation with comparable outcomes and complication rates to previously reported methods of addressing cranial cruciate ligament insufficiency. Further work is required to acquire more data on objective outcome measurement and mechanisms of failure.