Objective To evaluate the clinical results of bioabsorbable interference screw in knee ligament reconstruction. Methods From April 2002 to August 2004, 39 patients with knee ligament injury were treated, including 33 males and6 females with a median age of 25 years (15 to 65 years). The involved ligament included 29 anterior cruciate ligament of knee(ACL), 6 posterior cruciate ligament of knee(PCL)，4 combined ACL and PCL, 3 medial collateral or lateral collateral ligaments of knee point and 1 posterolateral complex injury of knee. All of patients underwent anatomic ligament reconstructions under arthroscopy or open surgery by autografts and fixation with bioabsorbable interference screw. Results All 34 patients were followed up 6 to 28 months (mean 13.7months). The patients were evaluated by Lysholm knee functional scales, the knee scores were 43.6±13.4 before operation and 85.4±16.3 after operation, showing significant difference (Plt;0.05). There was no limitation of rangeof motion and loosening of the screw. However, one case suffered from infection, and 3 cases suffered from effusion and synovitis after surgery and recovered after management. Conclusion Bioabsorbable interference screw fixation is a reliable method in knee ligament reconstruction and is effective to restore knee joint stability.
Objective To compare clinical outcome of bioabsorbable interference screws (BS) with metal Interference screws (MS) for restruction of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL). Methods The electronic databases (PubMed, EMbase, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, CBM, CNKI, and VIP) were searched in order to retrieve randomized controlled trials (RCTs) about comparing BS with MS for restruction of ACL. In addition, reference lists from original studies and review articles were handsearched. The Jadad’s scale and Cochrane collaboration’s RevMan 5.0 software were used for assessing trial methodological quality and data analyses. Results Eleven RCTs were included. There were 935 participants that met inclusion criteria in all studies. Results of Meta-analyses showed the MS group had a higher Lysholm score. However, no significant differences were found in Lanchman Test, IKDC Data and KT1000 result between patients treated by BS and by MS. Conclusion Bioabsorbable interference screws provide equivalent clinical outcomescompared with metal interference screws. However, further confirmation is required because of varieties of types and complex compositions.