Doctors performing the all too common anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) repair have two choices of body parts to turn to when grafting a new tendon: they can use one from the knee or from the hamstring. Now comes a study that should put an end to cocktail party debate among orthopedic surgeons about which is better. The Los Angeles Times reports on research that followed 180 people who had ACL reconstruction surgery for 15 years. Half of the patients had a knee tendon graft, and the others had a hamstring tendon graft. The researchers found that those who had the knee tendon graft had much worse results than those who had the hamstring graft after 15 years. The hamstring group reported less knee pain and discomfort but higher levels of activity than the knee tendon group. Wait, there’s more: Among those in the hamstring tendon group, 77 percent could do at least strenuous activities,compared with 62 percent in the knee group. When it came to assessing pain while kneeling, 26 percent of the hamstring group and 42 percent of those in the knee group said they had aches. The knee group also reported worse results for osteoarthritis and loss of motion. The bottom line: Go with the hammy.
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Saturday, May 31, 2025
Tim,
mI ran across this article and thought you and Janet might find it of interest.
Dad
Symptoms such as mobility of the knee, pain and swelling were measured at two years, five, seven, 10 and 15 from the baseline. If you have decided you are a candidate for surgery is important to be mentally and physically prepared.
ACL surgery is completed through a small incision in the knee and into the incision, through which the tool or by cutting a huge incision in the knee.