OBJECTIVETo investigate the clinical results of surgical treatment for acute posterolateral structures(PLS) injuries of knee joint.

METHODSTwelve patients (12 knees) with acute PLS injuries were treated from May 2006 to October 2008, including 9 males and 3 females, ranging in age from 23 to 47 years, with an average of 31 years. Nine patients had posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) injuries, 3 patients had both anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and PCL injuries, and 7 patients had articular capsule injuries. The knee joint was explored under arthroscope and the meniscuses were repaired firstly, then the ACL was rebuilt, as well as the PCL and PLS at the same time. The popliteus muscle tendon unit(PMTU) and the lateral collateral ligament (LCL) were anatomy reconstructed using variant tendon according to the degree of injury. The cruciate ligament reconstructed and fixed after the PLS reconstruction. The capsule tears were treated by reinforced suture techniques in the end. IKDC and Lysholm score were used to evaluate the postoperative knee joint function.

RESULTSAll the patients were followed up, and the duration ranged from 12 to 24 months,with an average of (16.5 +/- 3.2) months. According to IKDC standard, 8 cases restored to normal (grade A), 3 cases near to normal(grade B) and 1 poor (grade C). The preoperative Lysholm joint function score was (39.6 +/- 3.1) and improved to (85.1 +/- 2.2) after surgery. All the patients were satisfied with their operation because of no-swelling and no-pain of the knee joint.

CONCLUSIONThe acute PLS injuries should be repaired with anatomy reconstruction of the PMTU and LCL which were the most important structure of the PLS. The operative procedure required accurate establishment of the bone tunnel, protection of fibular nerve, and avoiding the incision of the variant tendon, thus can make the PLS more stable after the reconstruction.