Abstract
Objectives
The purpose of this study was to analyze the presence of patellofemoral osteoarthritis (OA) in the medium and long term in patients undergoing reconstruction of the medial patellofemoral ligament (MPFL) with a medial strip of the patellar tendon to treat recurrent patellar instability.
Methods
Retrospective case series of 69 patients (86 knees) who underwent medial MPFL between 2004 and 2016, mean age 26.1 ± 8 years (15 to 45 years), were recorded at a mean follow-up of 72.2 ± 37.5 months (24 to 163 months). Parameters evaluated: age, sex, follow-up period, recurrence, pre-existing chondral lesion, trochlear dysplasia, patellar height, femoral tunnel positioning and patellofemoral OA (Iwano’s classification). Uni and multivariate analysis correlated the variables to patellofemoral OA.
Results
There was patellofemoral OA in only 16.3% (grade 1: 11.6%; grade 2: 3.5%; grade 3: 1.2%) of cases. Univariate analysis showed that only the follow-up period had an independent association with patellofemoral OA (p = 0.028) and multivariate analysis showed that only high-grade (B/C) of trochlear dysplasia had a significant correlation with the occurrence of patellofemoral OA (p = 0.004). There were no recurrences.
Conclusion
Isolated MPFL with a medial strip of the patellar tendon showed a low rate of patellofemoral OA in the medium and long-term follow-up. The presence of high-grade trochlear dysplasia did correlate to patellofemoral OA development.