ROLE OF ANTHROPOMETRIC DATA IN THE PREDICTION OF 4-STRANDED HAMSTRING GRAFT SIZE IN ANTERIOR CRUCIATE LIGAMENT RECONSTRUCTION

Objectives To evaluate whether pre-operative anthropometric data can predict the diameter and length of hamstring tendon autograft for anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction Materials and Methods This was a cohort study with 169 patients who underwent single-bundle ACL reconstruction with 4-stranded hamstring autografts. Height, weight, body mass index (BMI), gender, race, age and smoking status were recorded pre-operatively. Diameter and functional length of the 4-stranded autograft was recorded intra-operatively. Multiple regression analysis was used to determine the relationship between the anthropometric measurements and size of autografts. Results The strongest correlation between hamstring autograft diameter and length was height and weight. This correlation was stronger in females. BMI had a moderate correlation with the diameter of the graft in females. Females had a significantly smaller graft both in diameter and length when compared with males. The following regression analysis equation was obtained for females:Graft diameter = 0.012+0.034*Height+0.026*Weight ( R2=0.358, p=0.004)The following regression equation was obtained for males:Graft diameter = 5.130+0.012*Height+0.007*Weight ( R2=0.086, p=0.002) Conclusion Pre-operative anthropometric data has a positive correlation with the diameter of 4 stranded hamstring autografts. This data can be utilised to predict the autograft diameter and may be useful for pre-operative planning and patient counseling for graft selection