Surgical repair of large OCD lesions of the stifle

Early identification of OCD lesions and surgically screwing down the “flap” appears to have a good prognosis for recovery to normal function. More work needs to be done to determine case selection and applicability to other lesions.
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Reattachment of osteochondritis dissecans lesions in the lateral femoral trochlear ridge with bioabsorbable screws in yearling standardbreds
J Equine Vet Sci. 2023 Feb 9;104242.
Authors
Andrea Bertuglia 1 , Marcello Pallante 2 , Giada Pillon 3 , Daniela Valle 3 , Eleonora Pagliara 3 , Riccio Barbara 4
Affiliations

1 Dipartimento di Scienze Veterinarie, Università degli Studi di Torino, Italia. Electronic address: andrea.bertuglia@unito.it.
2 Dipartimento di Scienze Medico-Veterinarie, Università degli Studi di Parma, Italia.
3 Dipartimento di Scienze Veterinarie, Università degli Studi di Torino, Italia.
4 Equine Practice, Torino, Italia.

Abstract

This case series describes an alternative surgical technique to obtain reattachment of osteochondritis dissecans (OCD) lesions in the lateral trochlear ridge of the femur (LTRF) as well as the clinical and radiological outcome of treated cases. Four Standardbred yearlings (6 lesions in total) underwent surgical fixation of large OCD defects in the LTRF under arthroscopic guidance. Reattachment of the OCD lesions was obtained using 3.0/3.7 mm headless bio-compression and absorbable poly-L-lactic acid (PLLA) screws, inserted perpendicularly to the cartilage surface through the lesion. All horses were discharged from the hospital without complications. Clinical and radiological follow-up were collected and reviewed at 6 and 12 months post-operatively. Successful healing of the OCD lesions occurred in all cases based on radiographic evaluations, associated with a reduction of femoro-patellar effusion. All horses presented in this case series were able to enter regular training program as racehorses.

Keywords: Stifle; arthroscopy; lateral trochlear ridge; osteochondral lesion; osteochondral reattachment; poly-L-lactic acid screws.

Copyright © 2023. Published by Elsevier Inc.