Reconstruction of the anterior cruciate ligament in athletes, using a fascia lata graft: a review with preliminary results of a new concept.

This paper describes a new concept for the intra-articular reconstruction of the anterior cruciate ligament in competitive athletes. The concept includes careful selection of patients, the use of fascia lata as a graft, an operative technique which includes notchplasty and isometric placement of the graft, as well as aggressive rehabilitation according to Wolff's law. The majority of the patients were able to return to their preinjury activity level in their sport without major complications such as rerupture. A longer follow-up period is needed, however, to evaluate the long-term results of the concept.