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Biomechanics of the goat three bundle anterior cruciate ligament

  • Knee
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Knee Surgery, Sports Traumatology, Arthroscopy Aims and scope

Abstract

The goat is a widely used animal model for basic research on the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), but the biomechanical role of the different bundles [intermediate (IM), anteromedial (AM), posterolateral (PL)] of the ACL is unclear. Therefore, the aim of this study is to describe the biomechanical function of the different bundles and evaluate its use for a double bundle ACL reconstruction model. A CASPAR Stäubli RX90 robot with a six degree-of-freedom load cell was used for measurement of anterior tibial translation (ATT) (mm) and in situ forces (N) at 30° (full extension), 60°, 90° as well as rotational testing at 30° in 14 paired goat knees before and after each bundle was cut. When the AM-bundle was cut, the ATT increased significantly at 60° and 90° of flexion (p < 0.05). When the PL-bundle was cut, the ATT increased only at 30°. However, most load was transferred through the big AM-bundle while the PL-bundle shared significant load only at 30°, with only minimal contribution from the IM-bundle at all flexion degrees. The observed biomechanical results in this study are similar to the human ACL observed previously in the literature. Though anatomically discernible, the IM-bundle plays only an inferior role in ATT and might be neglected as a separate bundle during reconstruction. The goat ACL shows some differences to the human ACL, whereas the main functions of the ACL bundles are similar.

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Acknowledgment

The support of the Albert B. Ferguson, Jr. MD Orthopaedic Fund of The Pittsburgh Foundation is gratefully acknowledged.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, University of Pittsburgh, 3471 Fifth Avenue, Suite 1011, Pittsburgh, PA, 15213, USA

    T. Tischer, M. Ronga, A. Tsai, S. J. M. Ingham, M. Ekdahl, P. Smolinski & Freddie H. Fu

  2. Department of Orthopaedic Sport Surgery, Technical University of Munich, Munich, Germany

    T. Tischer

  3. Department of Mechanical Engineering and Material Science, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, USA

    P. Smolinski & Freddie H. Fu

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  1. T. Tischer
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  2. M. Ronga
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  3. A. Tsai
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  4. S. J. M. Ingham
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  5. M. Ekdahl
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  6. P. Smolinski
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  7. Freddie H. Fu
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Correspondence to Freddie H. Fu.

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Tischer, T., Ronga, M., Tsai, A. et al. Biomechanics of the goat three bundle anterior cruciate ligament. Knee Surg Sports Traumatol Arthrosc 17, 935–940 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00167-009-0784-2

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