Advantages And Disadvantages Of Patellar

There is a controversy over ACL reconstruction techniques. On the one hand, doctors argue that the patellar tendon autograft is the best technique. On the other hand, they argue that the hamstring autograft is the best technique. I believe that the best technique depends on the patient and their activity levels. People who compete in sports at a higher level than high school or college for four years would benefit more from a patellar tendon graft. People who do not participate competitively in sports for a long period of time are likely to benefit more from a hamstring graft. Making the right choice in reconstruction techniques is important to patients and their rehabilitation.
The ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) is one of four main ligaments …show more content…
The patellar tendon graft is the strongest graft initially after surgery (Lowe). While this is scientific fact, the hamstring graft has proven similar stability based on the Lachman test (Bhandari, Farrokhyar, and Poolman). Doctors Bhandari, Farrokhyar, and Poolman state, “sensitivity analysis focusing on state of the art hamstring graft fixation techniques further weakens the evidence that bone patellar tendon-bone autographs provide better stability.” By providing this information from a study, it is shown that there is not a significant difference between the stability of the two types of autografts. A smaller number of future revisions have been found in patients who received the patellar tendon graft than patients who received the hamstring graft. However, the statistics are not overwhelmingly different. Patellar tendon grafts result in a 2.8% revision, while hamstring grafts result in a 4.2% revision rate (Geier). Many will argue that the patellar tendon graft is stronger, but the strength difference between the grafts is not …show more content…
Relative to this issue, the hamstring graft has been proven to have the least amount of post-operative pain (Lowe). The pain related to the patellar tendon graft is an issue because it often leads to and increased chance for patellar tendonitis and patella fracture (Lowe). Due to the increased pain, the patellar tendon graft causes the initial rehabilitation to be more difficult. The hamstring graft provides the patient with an easier start to rehabilitation, which is extremely important to the healing process. An easier start to rehabilitation provides the patient with a better attitude to continue and push through the entire rehabilitation process, which is crucial to recovery. Difficult initial rehabilitation can create a negative attitude and cause patients to quit