Four-Strand Hamstring Diamond Braid Technique for Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction
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Surgical Retrieval, Isolation and In vitro Expansion of Human Anterior Cruciate Ligament-derived Cells for Tissue Engineering Applications
Published on: April 30, 2014
Hee-Yon Park1, Brandon Gardner1, Joo Yeon Kim1
1Advanced Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine, San Francisco, California, U.S.A.
Several factors affect the success of an anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction, including graft origin, type, and morphology. Hamstring and bone-patellar tendon-bone autografts are the most widely used, and there are many different techniques of graft preparation with each. In this Technical Note and accompanying video, a 4-strand hamstring autograft technique is described that uses a simple diamond-type braid to produce a more ovoid morphology with increased cross-sectional area. Increased graft diameters have been associated with higher success rates and more positive long-term outcomes. Therefore, this braiding construct may provide additional tensile strength with increased resistance to failure than grafts that are otherwise undersized using conventional techniques.
Several factors affect the success of an anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction, including graft origin, type, and morphology. Hamstring and bone-patellar tendon-bone autografts are the most widely used, and there are many different techniques of graft preparation with each. In this Technical Note and accompanying video, a 4-strand hamstring autograft technique is described that uses a simple diamond-type braid to produce a more ovoid morphology with increased cross-sectional area. Increased graft diameters have been associated with higher success rates and more positive long-term outcomes. Therefore, this braiding construct may provide additional tensile strength with increased resistance to failure than grafts that are otherwise undersized using conventional techniques.
