Knee Morphology and Proximal Tibial Bone Quality around the Posterior Cruciate Ligament Insertion Site Affect Injury Patterns
Year: 2025
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Background: Several studies have investigated the morphological risk factors contributing to posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) injury. However, no study has focused on the injury patterns of intrasubstance tears or tibial avulsion fractures in relation to morphologies and regional bone quality. This study aimed to investigate the impact of the knee morphology and regional bone quality of the proximal tibia on the PCL injury pattern. Methods: This retrospective study compared the radiological features of 76 patients with PCL injuries (PI group) and 76 matched patients with normal PCL (control group). The PI group was divided into 2 subgroups: PCL avulsion fracture (PAF subgroup; n = 43) and PCL intrasubstance tear (PIT subgroup; n = 33). Measurements included the coronal notch width index, coronal tibial slope, medial and lateral posterior tibial slopes, and medial tibial depth. Three Hounsfield unit average measurements were taken from the proximal tibia around the PCL insertion site to create a summative measure of overall bone quality. Results: < 0.001) were independent risk factors for PCL tibial avulsion fractures. Conclusions: Lower notch width index and medial tibial depth are associated with PCL injuries. Shallower medial tibial depth and lower Hounsfield unit measurements around the PCL insertion site were associated with an increased incidence of PCL avulsion fractures. These findings may assist clinicians in identifying patients at risk of distinct PCL injury patterns.
Source: Clinics in Orthopedic Surgery
DOI: 10.4055/cios24440
Language: English
Subfield: Surgery
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W4410289778