Comparative study between peroneus longus, semitendinosus tendon, and quadriceps tendon graft for anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction: short-term results

Abstract

Background Several graft options exist for ACL. The traditional options are patellar tendon (PT), hamstring tendons (HT) and quadriceps tendon (QT). Nevertheless, they have some disadvantages. In recent decades, several efforts were exerted to find more graft sources for ACL reconstruction. One of these grafts is the peroneus longus tendon (PLT) autograft. This study was done to compare the results of soft tissue grafts; HT, PLT and QT for ACLR. Patients and Methods This is a prospective comparative study over 75 patients with deficient anterior cruciate ligament. Patients were admitted to El Hadra University Hospital between June 2019 till September 2020. Patients were classified randomly into 3 groups. The first group (Group A) were treated with ACLR using hamstring tendon (n=25). The second group (Group B) were treated using peroneus longus autograft (n=25). The third group (Group C) were treated using quadriceps tendon graft. All groups were matched for age, gender and duration from injury to surgery. Functional evaluation was done using Lysholm score, modified Cincinnati scale, IKDC score and VAS. The functional score of the ankle was assessed with the American Orthopedic Foot and Ankle Score and the Foot and Ankle Disability Index score at the end of follow up. Results There was no statistically significant difference between the 2 groups regarding the Lysholm, Tegner, IKDC, VAS, Kujala scores. However, there was a statistically significant difference regarding the SCAR score. Conclusion Peroneus longus tendon is a reliable alternative for ACL reconstruction especially in patients with inadequate or prematurely amputated hamstring autograft.