Bone contusions were prevalent in patients with ACL ruptures, and injuries of the menisci and the MCL tended to increase with the progression of bone contusion. The contrecoup mechanism of bone contusion on the medial compartment resulting from an ACL injury was supported. These results suggest that a higher-energy injury led to a more extensive bone contusion and a greater prevalence of associated injury of other anatomic structures in the knee.

No abstract

Female athletes are more prone to anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury than their male counterparts, presumably because of anatomical, hormonal, and neuromuscular differences. Of these three, only the neuromuscular component can be modified by preventive exercise. We aimed to evaluate the effect of a neuromuscular protocol on the prevention of ACL injury by performing meta-analysis, and to identify essential factors by subgroup analysis. An extensive literature review was conducted to identify relevant studies, and eventually, only seven randomized controlled trials or prospective cohort studies were included in the analysis. The odds ratios (OR) and the confidence interval (CI) for the overall effects of training and of potentially contributory factors were estimated. The OR and the 95% CI for the overall effect of the preventive training were 0.40 and [0.27, 0.60], respectively. Subgroup analysis revealed that an age under 18, soccer rather than handball, pre- and in-season training rather than either pre- or in-season training, and the plyometrics and strengthening components rather than balancing were significant. Meta-analysis showed that pre- and in-season neuromuscular training with an emphasis on plyometrics and strengthening exercises was effective at preventing ACL injury in female athletes, especially in those under 18 years of age. Further study is required to develop a relevant training program protocol of appropriate intensity.

This study provides the geometry of patella and patellar tendon measured on sagittal and axial magnetic resonance images of 172 knees (142 males, 30 females) of 163 subjects (135 males, 28 females) whose mean age was 26.7. The gender difference and the relationship with anthropometry were also given. As for patella, the longitudinal lengths of the whole and articulating surface were 44.6, 32.9 mm, and the thickness was 22.3 mm. The mediolateral width was 45.8 mm, and the central ridge was located 19.9 mm or 43% lateral from the medial border. As for patellar tendon, the longitudinal length was 40.2 mm. The widths of proximal and distal part were 30.3, and 24.0 mm. The thicknesses of proximal and distal part were 3.2, and 5.0 mm. The geometry of the patella and patellar tendon was larger in male than in female (P < 0.001). Anthropometry including weight, height, body mass index corresponds well with the thickness of patella but poorly with the length of patellar tendon. These data can provide useful information in the field of knee surgery and sports medicine.

This study was performed to identify the chronological changes of the knee angle or the tibiofemoral angles in normal healthy Korean children. Full-length anteroposterior view standing radiographs of 818 limbs of 452 Korean children were analyzed. The overall patterns of the chronological changes in the knee angle were similar to those described previously in western or Asian children, but the knee angle development was delayed, i.e., genu varum before 1 yr, neutral at 1.5 yr, increasing genu valgum with maximum a value of 7.8° at 4 yr, followed by a gradual decrease to approximately 5-6° of genu valgum of the adult level at 7 to 8 yr of age. These normative data on chronological changes of knee angles should be taken into consideration when evaluating lower limb alignment in children.