Anterior Cruciate Ligament Stratified Accelerated Repair or Reconstruction Single blind randomised controlled trial for patients with proximal ACL injuries treatment with ACL repair v ACL reconstruction (ACL STARR) (ACLSTARR-UK)

Research summary

The Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) is an important band of tissue that supports the knee. It is a strong structure in the centre of the knee which attaches the femur (thigh bone) to the tibia (shin bone). It is often injured during sport. Injury to the ACL can lead to the knee becoming unstable and giving way. An unstable knee can cause damage to other parts of the knee like the cartilage or meniscus (shock absorbers), which can lead to osteoarthritis (OA) developing in later life. There are different surgical options for people with an ACL injury. The most common is reconstruction, which uses tissue from other parts of the body, such as the hamstrings, to act as a replacement. This is a successful operation but involves damage to bones from drilling holes and removal of tissue from elsewhere in the body. An alternative approach is to reattach the original ligament back from where it has torn in a “repair” rather than reconstruction. By preserving the ligament, avoiding tissue harvest and bone drilling, ACL repair could provide faster recovery, better medium to long term stability, and might reduce likelihood of OA in the future. We aim to conduct a comparative study to find out which is the best technique, reconstructing the ligament or repairing it, as measured by a questionnaire about knee function at 24 months. People who have injured their ACL, who may be suitable for either operation, will be invited to join the study. Participants will be randomly allocated to one of the two types of ACL surgery. They won't be told which surgery they have had. Participants will be asked to complete a pain score at 3 and 6 weeks after surgery. Then they will be asked to complete questionnaires relating to their knee at 6-, 12- and 24-months post-surgery.

Principal Investigator

Mr Alex Shearman

Contact us

Email: gail.lang@ndorms.ox.ac.uk

IRAS number

317530