Fifty patients whose surgical approach violated the arterial geniculate circulation to the patella were evalu ated to determine the subsequent effect on patella viability. Comparative postoperative radionuclide scans in 100 knees, 50 control and 50 surgical, revealed an avascular insult in only 7 knees (14%). It appears that the intratendinous circulation described by Björkström and Goldie1 protects the patella from an avascular insult in the presence of geniculate arterial disruption.
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