Ulrich Bosch

BACKGROUND: Studies of traumatic knee dislocations have failed to provide a consensus regarding the best method of treatment. PURPOSE: Our purpose was to evaluate the results after surgical repair or reconstruction versus nonsurgical treatment and to compare the influence of prognostic factors. STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective study. METHODS: Eighty-nine patients were treated for traumatic knee dislocation. Surgical repair or reconstruction of the cruciate ligaments was performed in 63 patients (repair, 49; reconstruction, 14). In 26 patients, nonsurgical treatment was undertaken. RESULTS: At an average follow-up of 8.2 years, the mean Lysholm and Tegner scores were 75 and 3.7, respectively. The outcome in the surgical group was better than in the nonsurgical group. The scores were higher in patients who were 40 years of age or younger, who had sports injuries rather than motor vehicle accident injuries, and who had undergone functional rehabilitation rather than immobilization. CONCLUSIONS: Surgical repair or reconstruction of the cruciate ligaments was superior to nonsurgical treatment. Functional rehabilitation was the most important positive prognostic factor. Surgical repair or reconstruction of the cruciate ligaments is mandatory to achieve sufficient stability for functional rehabilitation. In cases of cruciate ligament avulsion, repair with transosseous fixation is a reasonable alternative to reconstruction, provided that it is performed within 2 weeks of trauma.

Bone marrow stromal cells (BMSCs) play a central role in the repair and regeneration of mesenchymal tissues. For tissue engineering of ligaments and tendons, both stimulation of cell proliferation and differentiation with increased expression of essential extracellular matrix proteins and cytoskeletal elements are desirable. This study analyzes the effect of low-dose (3 ng/mL) fibroblast growth factor 2 (FGF-2) and high-dose FGF-2 (30 ng/mL) on proliferation (bromodeoxyuridine content, spectrophotometry), differentiation (transcription of collagen I, collagen III, fibronectin, elastin, alpha-smooth muscle actin, and vimentin, reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction, and cell density and apoptosis (annexin V, fluorescence-activated cell sorting) of human BMSCs, and compares the results with those of a control group without FGF-2. Low-dose FGF-2 triggered a biphasic BMSC response: on day 7, cell proliferation reached its maximum and was significantly higher compared with the other groups. On days 14 or 28, collagen I, collagen III, fibronectin, and alpha- smooth muscle actin mRNA expression was significantly enhanced in the presence of low-dose FGF-2. In contrast, high-dose FGF-2 did not stimulate differentiation or proliferation. Vimentin mRNA was expressed only in cultures with low-dose and high-dose FGF-2 after 14 and 28 days. Cell density was significantly higher in cultures with low-dose FGF-2 compared with the group with high-dose FGF-2 on days 7, 14, and 28. The apoptosis rate remained stable, at a rather high level, in all groups. Microscopic investigation of the cell cultures with low-dose FGF-2 showed more homogeneous, dense, fibroblast-like, spindle-shaped cells with long cell processes compared with cultures with high-dose, or no FGF-2. Low-dose FGF-2 may be useful for tissue engineering of ligaments and tendons by increasing BMSC proliferation and stimulating mRNA expression of specific extracellular matrix proteins and cytoskeletal elements.

At the cellular level, dynamic strain plays a key role in cell stimulation and organization of the extracellular matrix. Although positive effects of physical strain on tendon tissue are well known, little knowledge exists on how mechanical strain affects tendon cells. In this study, human tendon fibroblasts from patellar tendon were cultured on silicone dishes. Subsequently, cyclic biaxial mechanical strain was applied to the dishes for 15, 30, and 60 minutes using a specially developed cell stretching system. After the fibroblasts were strained, cells were tested for proliferation at 6, 12, and 24 hours. As a control, cells were grown on silicone dishes but did not receive any strain. A biphasic response in proliferation was observed for the 15- and 60-minute strain periods: at 6 hours and 24 hours there was more proliferation than at 12 hours. After a strain duration time of 30 minutes, a lower proliferation rate was measured compared with control levels. This study shows that application of mechanical stress to tendon fibroblasts resulted in an alteration of cellular proliferation depending on the stress time. Our results may implicate future modifications in the treatment of ligament and tendon injuries.