Menu

ACL injury

What is it?

The anterior cruciate ligament is the cord-like structure that prevents the tibia from sliding in relation to the femur and keeps the knee stable when the foot is on the ground.

Injuries to the ACL are usually the result of stretching during the excessive twisting motion of the knee.

Causes

Nowadays, children play more and more intense sports, resulting in an increase in the number of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries.

Symptoms

The main symptoms include a crunching sensation at the time of injury, as well as swelling, pain and a feeling of instability in the knee. Although this sensation may disappear over time, it will return when resuming activities that involve turning or ‘twisting’ of the knee.

Treatments

ACL repair in children is performed via arthroscopy, where the ligament is replaced with a tendon transplanted from the patient’s own body (autograft) or from a parent’s (parental graft) using a technique that is performed with extreme precision to avoid contact with nearby growth plates. Management of this injury requires the expertise of highly specialized and experienced pediatric orthopedic surgeons, such as those at the UCA. Under such conditions, this operation is definitive and offers excellent clinical and functional results, allowing a return to maximum physical activity in under a year.

It is not recommended to delay surgical treatment for a long time, given the high risk of degeneration of the affected joint structures such as the meniscus.

  ACL injury. Paediatric reconstruction without damaging the growth plate (in red).