primary repair of the anterior cruciate ligament: a review of recent literature (2016-2017)

Background: anterior cruciate ligament (acl) reconstruction using tendon or ligament autograft is the current gold standard surgical technique for acute acl ruptures. however, acl repair surgical procedures are reappearing as an optimistic treatment alternative for acute proximal ruptures. the purpose of this annotation is to review the current role of primary repair of the acl. methods: a cochrane library and pubmed (medline) search related to the role of acl repair in acute acl rupture was analyzed. results: arthroscopic acl repair can accomplish good short-run outcomes with knee stability and resumption of sport activity in children, with proximal acl avulsion tear. reported results of open primary repair in adult patients with proximal tears are excellent, which ratifies there may be a possible role for primary repair as management for proximal acl tears. conclusion: recent reports suggest that refixation of the acl is a possible treatment alternative in selected patients. only time will tell whether the long-run results are similar to those obtained following acl reconstruction.