Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction with Quadriceps Tendon Autograft: Two-Year Functional Outcomes
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22326853Keywords:
Anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction, Quadriceps tendon autograft, Hamstring tendon, Bone-patellar tendon-bone, Donor-site morbidityAbstract
Background: Bone-patellar tendon-bone (BPTB) and hamstring tendon (HT) autografts have long dominated anterior cruciate
ligament reconstruction, but quadriceps tendon (QT) autograft has re-emerged as a mainstream option. Objective: To synthesise evidence on QT biomechanics, harvest, donor-site morbidity, and outcomes through two years and beyond, versus BPTB and HT.
Methods: Narrative review of biomechanical, comparative, meta-analysis, imaging, and registry literature. Findings: QT provides a large, mechanically robust graft with donor-site pain markedly lower than BPTB and pooled re-rupture rates lower than HT (2.5% vs 8.7%). Two-year IKDC, Lysholm, and KOOS outcomes are comparable across grafts, with a modest Lysholm advantage for QT. Paediatric and revision evidence is encouraging but still maturing. Conclusions: QT autograft is a validated primary and revision option with favourable donor-site morbidity, though long-term data remain limited.
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