Lindsey Vonn. Derrick Rose. Tom Brady. Mickey Mantle. They have all fallen victim to the dreaded pop of the knee.
Connecting the femur to the tibia, the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) rupture is one of the most devastating injuries in sports. No other injury has sidelined more athletes for a season or even the rest of a career. And ACL sprains and tears affect more people than just the pros. According to the American Association of Orthopaedic Surgeons, more than 250,000 ACL surgeries are performed annually in the United States, totaling up to more than $500 million in health care costs each year.
Not only is the ACL inelastic and prone to popping, it is incapable of healing itself, causing surgeons to rely on autografts for reconstruction. Most common is the bone-patellar tendon-bone (BPTB) graft, in which the surgeon removes part of the patellar tendon to replace the damaged ACL.
“BPTB autografts have a high incidence of knee pain and discomfort that does not go away,” said Guillermo Ameer, professor of biomedical engineering at the McCormick School of Engineering and professor of surgery at the Feinberg School of Medicine. “By saving the patient’s patellar tendon and using an off-the-shelf product, one may have a better chance of preserving the natural biomechanics of the knee.”
Ameer and his research team are working to engineer such a product by combining three components: polyester fibers that are braided to increase strength and toughness, an inherently antioxidant and porous biomaterial previously created in Ameer’s lab, and calcium nanocrystals, a mineral naturally found in human teeth and bones. His work is described in the paper “A biodegradable tri-component graft for anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction,” which was published in the Nov. 21 issue of the Journal of Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine.
Read more: Researchers Use Nanotechnology to Engineer ACL Replacements
The Latest on: ACL Replacement
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The Latest on: ACL Replacement
- Shivam Mahadevan undergoes ACL reconstruction surgery: All about iton May 8, 2024 at 1:30 am
Shivam Mahadevan underwent ACL reconstruction surgery, emphasizing the importance of rehabilitation for optimal outcomes and knee stability. The surgery involves replacing the torn ACL with a graft ...
- Connacht issue major update as star set to undergo surgery after horror ACL injuryon May 8, 2024 at 12:07 am
CONNACHT Rugby confirmed today that JJ Hanrahan will miss the remainder of the 2024 campaign. The out-half suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury and he’s set to go under the knife.
- UKM launches MUIB innovation to help ACL patients recover quicklyon May 7, 2024 at 9:00 pm
Faculty of Medicine has invented a durable brace known as the Modified UKM Internal Brace (MUIB), used for the replacement of an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) ...
- New ACL implant brings hope to Philadelphia high school quarterback in recovery processon May 7, 2024 at 3:03 pm
ACL injuries are common and often involve difficult surgery and a long recovery, but a new collagen implant is changing that.
- Connacht confirm ACL injury for out-half JJ Hanrahanon May 7, 2024 at 6:42 am
Connacht have been dealt a huge blow, with confirmation that out-half JJ Hanrahan has suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury.
- Surgery is the default treatment for ACL injuries, but it's not the only wayon May 6, 2024 at 8:54 am
The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is an important ligament in the knee. It runs from the thigh bone (femur) to the shin bone (tibia) and helps stabilize the knee joint.
- RB Leipzig confirm ACL tear for Xaver Schlager | OneFootballon May 4, 2024 at 10:27 am
RB Leipzig have confirmed that midfielder Xaver Schlager has torn his ACL and will miss the remainder of the season. The injury will also rule him out for the European championships with Austria this ...
- Doctors say new 'BEAR' procedure could be future of ACL reconstructionon May 2, 2024 at 1:33 pm
"I had to think about it because it was new and not a lot of research yet." The "Bridge-Enhanced ACL Repair" (BEAR) Implant was approved by the FDA in 2020 and is considered the first technology that ...
- ACL injuries more common in women's soccer playerson April 30, 2024 at 1:39 pm
An English study into the causes of ACL injuries to women soccer players has been launched. 'Project ACL' will focus on players in the Women's Super League in England as part of a three-year study.
- FIFPro to launch groundbreaking 'Project ACL' to address knee injury epidemic in women's footballon April 29, 2024 at 1:11 pm
Women athletes are two to six times more likely than men to suffer from a season-ending ACL injury. Football's global union wants to figure out why and what clubs can do about it.
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