Summary
Maintaining adequate tension when knotting large diameter monofilament sutures can
be challenging, especially without surgical assistance. A self-locking knot is described
for lateral fabellotibial suture stabilisation of the canine cranial cruciate ligament
deficient stifle. The self-locking knot enables maintenance of tension during tying
and the knot can be tied by an unassisted surgeon. The inherent ability of the knot
to maintain tension on the fabellotibial suture is due to the first throw of the knot
creating a locking-loop effect. Increasing the tension on the suture material is readily
achieved by applying traction on the free ends and tightening the first throw of the
knot to remove the slack created. When the suture is tightened sufficiently four additional
square throws are applied to the knot.
A self-locking knot is described for lateral fabellotibial suture stabilisation of
the canine cranial cruciate ligament deficient stifle. The inherent ability of the
knot to maintain tension on the suture material is due to the first throw of the knot
creating a locking-loop effect. Tension on the knot can be readily adjusted and the
knot may be tied by an unassisted surgeon.
Keywords
Self-locking knot - lateral fabellotibial suture - cranial cruciate ligament
