Ventral and dorsal aspects of the knee

Patient Profile

• ~250.000 annual incidence
• Women 4-6x higher risk for rupture in “high risk” sports

Pathophysiology

Mechanism of injury
Abrupt deceleration, hyperextension, and rotation on fixated foot; Audible rupture

Source

• Atrophy or weakness; plyometric deficits
• Capsule/ligament damage or degeneration
• Knee valgus; Hip adduction & internal rotation; external rotation of tibia

 Grades

• Grade I: Mild irritation, no rupture
• Grade II: Overstretch with partial rupture
• Grade III: Complete rupture

Acute: Pain- and tissue healing mechanisms align

• Inflammation phase: Dominant inflammatory nociceptive: signs of inflammation, night pain, pulsating, immobilization leads to stiffness, sometimes increases with rest
• Proliferation phase: Dominant mechanical nociceptive: clear on/off behavior, load dependent pain, local, decreases with rest

Chronic: Pain- and tissue healing mechanisms do not align

• Dominant mechanical nociceptive: clear on/off behavior, load dependent pain, local, decreases with rest

Course

Conservative treatment with optional surgery resulted in 50% of patients not needing surgery
Surgical: Rerupture rate in contact sports (25-30%)8, 6-12 months until RTP

History

History of knee trauma; knee exposed to high loads in work, sport, ADLRecent trauma: heard “popping” “snapping”, immediate swelling

• “Giving way” a/p and in rotation is the main criteria
• Feeling of instability in rotatory or a/p direction
• Acute: Marked hematoma and limited ROM; local pain, stinging, deep
• Chronic: Feeling of instability; “giving way” despite healed tissues

Physical Examination

Inspection
Acute: Signs of inflammation; possible hemarthrosis; intraarticular swelling; protective posture
Chronic: Quadriceps/gastrocnemius atrophy, barely any swelling

Functional Testing
Acute: not possible due to symptoms
Chronic: Deep squat, climbing stairs, cutting motion, “giving way” rather described than demonstrated

Active Examination
Acute: limited ROM in Flex/Ext/Rot and pain upon small load
Chronic: end of range limitation in Flex/Ext/Rot; high loads in combination with these movements is painful; balance problems: single leg stance, step-up

Special Testing

Passive Examination
Acute: PROM limited, swelling masks structural instability
Chronic: End or range ROM limited, Structural instability apparent

Differential Diagnosis

1. Subchondral injury
2. Damaged cartilage
3. Gonarthrosis
4. Avulsion fracture biceps femoris
5. Tibial plateau fracture
6. Unhappy triad
7. Pes anserinus irritation
8. Patella luxation
9. PFPS
10. Quadriceps tendon rupture
11. Patella tendon rupture
12. Osgood Schlatter

Strategy

Conservative: coper, isolated injury, >45 years old, linear sports
Surgical: non-coper, multidirectional injury, <45 years old, high-risk sports

Interventions

Post-OP
Reach milestones of each rehabilitation phase before progressing. Adapt to tissue healing phases

Conservative
Identify deficits in strength, neuromuscular control, passive structures

Principles
Concentric before eccentric, slow to fast, low load + high rep to high load + low rep, two-legged to one-legged, pay attention to sport specific demands

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