Abstract

based on the clinical and operative findings in sixty - eight knees with acute tears of the medial - compartment and cruciate ligaments, a standardized terminology and classification of knee ligament instability is presented. With an intact posterior cruciate ligament, anteromedial, anterolateral, or posterolateral rotatory instability may occur, but not true posteromedial rotatory instability. With the posterior, medial, or lateral instability may be found. After acute complete ligament tears the knee is relatively painless. There is usual ly no swelling, locking, or functional impairment for walking, but the patient is disabled for running, cutting, pivoting, and twisting. With an isolated medial - compartment tear, the abduction stress test is positive at 30 degrees of flexion and negative at zero degrees. With an associated acute tear the posterior cruciate ligament, the posterior drawer test is often negative, and themost specific testfor an acute tear of this ligament is a positive abduction stress test with the knee at zero degree of flexion. Rupture of the anterior cruciate ligament is not the primary cause of a positive anterior drawer test. This test is most consistently positive with the tears of the meniscotibial ligament and less so with meniscofemoral tears. An associated tear of the anterior cruciate ligament or posterior oblique ligament augments a positive anterior drawer test. Verf.-Referat