Outcome of Isolated PCL Tibial Avulsion Fractures Treated with Cannulated Cancellous Screw Fixation

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Abstract

Background: The posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) presents commonly as avulsion fractures from the tibial attachment site. Isolated tears of the PCL can be caused by a fall on the flexed knee or dashboard injury in road traffic accident. Such a mechanism (the upper tibia driven posteriorly with the knee flexed) may produce PCL disruption as the only clinically detectable instability. For the PCL avulsion fractures fixation, there are various methods available like closed reduction and internal fixation (CRIF), open reduction and internal fixation (ORIF), and arthroscopic fixation. This study was performed to assess the result of PCL avulsion fracture managed with ORIF with cannulated cancellous screw. Methods: We performed ORIF using cannulated cancellous screws with the posterior approach in 11 patients with isolated PCL tibial avulsion injuries. The minimum follow-up period was 6 months. The results were assessed radiologically and clinically. The spectrum of outcomes following PCL tibial avulsion fracture were measure using the Lysholm knee scoring system and range of motion (ROM) of the knee joint. Results: 63.6, 27.3, and 9.1 percent of the cases had excellent, good, and moderate fracture healing, respectively. Conclusion: PCL tibial avulsion fractures managed with open reduction with cannulated cancellous screw fixation yields good functional outcome with less complications.