Abstract
Objectives:
To assess the influence of suture shape, tape or thread, in the development of suture cut-out damage by modifying the contact area at the tissue-suture interface in transtibial repair of the posterior meniscal root, and to analyze its relation with the initial biomechanical properties of the meniscus-suture complex.
Methods:
Twenty medial porcine menisci were randomized in two groups depending on the suture shape: thread or tape. The sutured menisci were first subjected to 1000 cycles of [10,30]N load at 0.5 Hz; stiffness, residual displacement and displacement at 30 N were computed. Following this, load-to-failure testing was conducted at 0.5mm/s and stiffness, ultimate failure load and displacement were determined. During tests, the tissue-suture interface was recorded using a high-resolution camera.
Results:
In cyclic tests, cut-out progression at suture insertion points was not observed for any specimen of either group and no differences were found between groups for any parameter. In load-to-failure test, all specimens failed by suture cut-out and suture tape had a greater ultimate load (221.61(sd=43.77)N vs 291.58(sd=78.98)N, p=0.03) with no other differences.
Conclusions:
In a porcine model simulating a repaired posterior meniscal root, there is no evidence of suture cut-out progression using thread or tape of the same material until high loading levels close to the ultimate load. Accordingly, the larger meniscus-suture contact area of tape compared to thread does not reduce displacements under cyclic loads representative of current rehabilitation protocols in the early postoperative period but increases resistance to tissue cut-through during load-to-failure, producing a higher ultimate load.