Arthroscopic side-to-side repair for complete radial posterior lateral meniscus root tears

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to determine the radiographic, second-look, and functional outcomes after arthroscopic side-to-side repair for complete radial posterior lateral meniscus root tears (PLMRTs). METHODS: Patients who underwent arthroscopic side-to-side repair for complete radial PLMRTs were identified. Clinical assessment consisted of symptoms (locking, catching, giving way and effusion), examinations of joint-line tenderness and McMurray test, and subjective scores of International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC), Lysholm, and Tegner. In addition, postoperative MRI scan and second-look arthroscopy were performed to assess the healing status of the repaired meniscus. RESULTS: Twenty-nine patients met the inclusion criteria. The mean age was 25.41 years. The mean follow-up period was 26.68 months. During the follow-up, none of the patients had symptoms of meniscal retear, lateral joint-line tenderness or a positive McMurray test. The postoperative subjective scores of IKDC, Lysholm, and Tegner improved significantly compared to the preoperative values (P = 0.01). Postoperative MRI scan showed that 28/29 (96.6%) patients achieved meniscus healing. Twenty-two patients underwent second-look arthroscopy, among whom 19 (86.4%) patients showed complete meniscus healing and 3 (13.6%) patients showed partial healing. CONCLUSION: Arthroscopic side-to-side repair was a valuable surgical repair technique for complete radial PLMRTs, which leaded to significant improvements in both objective and subjective functional outcomes with a high rate of meniscus healing. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level IV, case series.