Factors influencing the treatment of posterior cruciate ligament injury.

ABSTRACT

The primary objective was to determine the factors which influence the requirement of surgical treatment of posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) injury. Ninety one PCL injured patients diagnosed in the "Sports Medicine Clinic", Maharaj Nakorn Chiang Mai Hospital from January 1998 to December 2000 were included in the present study. There were 63 males and 28 females with an average age of 29 years. All of the PCL-insufficient knees were initially treated by non-operative method including 3 phases of rehabilitation. They were followed through to the end of December 2003. Analysis showed that the degree of posterior laxity was the only factor that had a statistical significant correlation to failure of conservative treatment. In addition, the need for surgical treatment was not associated with gender age, cause of injury, and concomitant of injury. The authors concluded that PCL injured patients with posterior laxity greater than 10 millimeters should be treated by PCL reconstruction.