Abstract

Background

The aim of the present study was to identify potential race- or gender-specific differences in anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tibial footprint location from the tibia anatomical coordinate system (tACS) origin, investigate the distances from the tibial footprint to the anterior root of the lateral meniscus (ARLM) and the medial tibial spine (MTS), determine how reliable the ARLM and MTS can be in locating the ACL tibial footprint, and assess the risk of iatrogenic ARLM injuries caused by using reamers with various diameters (7–10 mm).

Patients and methods

Magnetic resonance images of 91 Chinese and 91 Caucasian subjects were used for the reconstruction of three-dimensional (3D) tibial and ACL tibial footprint models. The anatomical coordinate system was applied to reflect the anatomical locations of scanned samples.

Results

The average anteroposterior (A/P) tibial footprint location was 17.1 ± 2.3 mm and 20.0 ± 3.4 mm in Chinese and Caucasians, respectively (P < .001). The average mediolateral (M/L) tibial footprint location was 34.2 ± 2.4 mm and 37.4 ± 3.6 mm in Chinese and Caucasians, respectively (P < .001). The average difference between men and women was 2 mm in Chinese and 3.1 mm in Caucasians. The safe zone for tibial tunnel reaming to avoid ARLM injury was 2.2 mm and 1.9 mm away from the central tibial footprint in the Chinese and Caucasians, respectively. The probability of damaging the ARLM by using reamers with various diameters ranged from 0% for Chinese males with a 7 mm reamer to 30% in Caucasian females with a 10 mm reamer.

Conclusions

The significant race- and gender-specific differences in the ACL tibial footprint should be taken in consideration during anatomic ACL reconstruction. The ARLM and MTS are reliable intraoperative landmarks for identifying the tibial ACL footprint. Caucasians and females might be more prone to iatrogenic ARLM injury.

Level of evidence: III, cohort study.

Trial registration: This study has been approved by the ethical research committee of the General Hospital of Southern Theater Command of PLA under the code: [2019] No.10.

Details

Title
Significant race and gender differences in anterior cruciate ligament tibial footprint location: a 3D-based analysis
Author
Zhang, Lihang 1 ; Li, Changzhao 1 ; Zhang, Jiaying 2 ; Zou, Diyang 3 ; Dimitriou, Dimitris 4 ; Xing, Xing 5 ; Tsai, Tsung-Yuan 3 ; Li, Pingyue 1 

 General Hospital of Southern Theater Command of PLA,The First School of Clinical Medicine, Southern Medical University, Guangdong Key Lab of Orthopedic Technology and Implant, Guangzhou, China (GRID:grid.284723.8) (ISNI:0000 0000 8877 7471) 
 Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Department of Graduate School, Guangzhou, China (GRID:grid.411866.c) (ISNI:0000 0000 8848 7685) 
 Shanghai Jiao Tong University, School of Biomedical Engineering and Med-X Research Institute, Shanghai, China (GRID:grid.16821.3c) (ISNI:0000 0004 0368 8293); Engineering Research Center of Digital Medicine and Clinical Translation, Ministry of Education, Shanghai, China (GRID:grid.419897.a) (ISNI:0000 0004 0369 313X); Shanghai Ninth People’s Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Orthopedic Implants and Clinical Translational R&D Center of 3D Printing Technology, Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Shanghai, China (GRID:grid.412523.3) (ISNI:0000 0004 0386 9086) 
 University Hospital Balgrist, Department of Orthopedics, Zurich, Switzerland (GRID:grid.412373.0) (ISNI:0000 0004 0518 9682) 
 Georgetown University, Department of Biostatistics, Bioinformatics and Biomathematics, N.W. Washington, USA (GRID:grid.213910.8) (ISNI:0000 0001 1955 1644); Peking University, Department of Social Medicine and Health Management, School of Public Health, Beijing, People’s Republic of China (GRID:grid.11135.37) (ISNI:0000 0001 2256 9319) 
Pages
33
Publication year
2023
Publication date
Dec 2023
Publisher
Springer Nature B.V.
ISSN
15909921
e-ISSN
15909999
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
ProQuest document ID
2831675074
Copyright
© The Author(s) 2023. This work is published under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ (the “License”). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.