Assessment of Safety and Functional Outcomes of Arthroscopic Meniscal Repair Surgery Using Surestitch All-Inside...

Introduction Meniscal injuries are prevalent in orthopedic practice, affecting a diverse patient population. In recent times, a notable shift has occurred in the treatment approach for meniscal injuries, favoring repair surgery over the traditional method of meniscectomy. Meniscal repair surgery is a crucial intervention to restore knee function and alleviate symptoms, contributing to improved patient quality of life. Therefore, the present study aimed to assess the safety and functional outcomes of the Surestitch all-inside implants in arthroscopic meniscal repair surgery. Methods From July 2020 to July 2022, 51 patients underwent arthroscopic meniscal repair surgery at Sai Nath Hospital, Maharashtra, India. Patient-reported outcomes, including the International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC) subjective score, Single Assessment Numeric Evaluation (SANE) score, Tegner activity level, and Lysholm knee score, were recorded through telephonic follow-ups. Detailed patient characteristics, diagnoses, and surgery details were retrospectively extracted from medical records. Results The mean age of the recruited patients was 37.75±11.65 years. About 71% of patients were male (n=36/51). Medial meniscal tear was more prevalent than lateral tear (38 vs. eight patients). The remaining five patients had combined medial and lateral meniscal tears. Patient-reported outcomes showed the mean IKDC, Tegner, and Lysholm scores of 87.49±10.21, 6.03±1.38, and 93.45±9.36, respectively. On comparing the mean SANE scores of affected and unaffected contralateral knees, a significant difference in the scores was observed (86.73±15.94 vs. 97.55±6.81, p<0.05). Conclusion Our data suggest favorable and good functional outcomes of the Surestitch all-inside meniscal repair implant in meniscal repair surgery.