Abstract
Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) rupture is one of the most common knee injuries in
young active patients, negatively impacting their sports activity. Clinical presentation
typically includes a history of trauma accompanied by edema, pain, functional limitation,
and a sense of joint instability. There are various clinical signs and MRI findings
suggestive of the injury, although arthroscopy remains the definitive diagnostic method.
Treatment goals aim to achieve optimal rehabilitation and functional recovery, early
return to sports, and prevention of joint damage that could lead to premature knee
degeneration. In partial tears, there is no consensus on whether to preserve the remaining
bundle or perform total ligament reconstruction. Regarding the choice of surgical
technique, anatomical reconstruction has been preferred, and for graft selection,
autograft has been chosen, although there are different valid therapeutic options
based on each patient's characteristics. This review presents the case of a 36-year-old
male diagnosed with a partial ACL tear with an intact posterolateral bundle, following
an axial load injury mechanism with the knee in flexion, clinically presenting with
pain, limited mobility, and joint instability of the knee. Due to the patient's clinical
and imaging characteristics, arthroscopy was chosen as the diagnostic and therapeutic
method. Based on arthroscopic findings, ligament augmentation with a bone-patellar
tendon-bone autograft was performed, due to the mechanical advantages of the anatomical
positioning of the bone tunnels offered by the surgical technique, as well as the
biological advantages, such as preservation of joint proprioception, bone integration,
and functional benefits of graft selection.
Keywords
anterior cruciate ligament - ligament augmentation - autograft - bone-tendon-bone
graft - arthroscopy
