Single-bundle ACL reconstruction offers positive results for patients

The original research group included 105 patients (33 women, 70 men) ranging in age from 18-52 years old. A total of 87 patients were available for the 5-year follow-up and were included in the study. All patients underwent post-operative rehabilitation under the same guidelines and supervision of physical therapists. Follow-up exams included multiple subjective and objective evaluation tests, including range of motion (ROM), one-leg-hop test, square-hop test, and knee injury osteoarthritis outcome score (KOOS).

.Patients treated with single or double-bundle ACL reconstruction showed no significant difference in major performance tests," noted lead author Ioannis Karikis from NU Hospital Group in Uddevella, Sweden. "Most notably, 89% of the single-bundle and 84% of the double-bundle groups had a negative pivot-shift test, suggesting both groups had similar knee stability and health."

"While several studies have shown double-bundle ACL reconstruction is preferable over single-bundle, our research suggests both may be successful surgical approaches for patients," commented Karikis. "If nothing else, the double-bundle technique did not offer better performance for patients recovering from ACL surgery."

The study also noted that the presence of osteoarthritis (OA) in patients was similar during follow-up evaluations, regardless of technique used during ACL surgery.