Abstract

Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tears are a common knee injury among athletes and physically active individuals. There is evidence that the width of the intercondylar notch in the knee joint may play a role in the risk of ACL tears. The objective of this study was to evaluate the relationship between the intercondylar notch width index and the occurrence of unilateral and bilateral anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries, by using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the knee.
Methods: A total of 54 patients who had undergone MRI knee from January 2022 to June 2022 at Yenepoya Medical College Hospital, Mangalore, and who had suffered from ACL injuries were included in this retrospective cross-sectional study. The intercondylar notch width index was calculated from MRI images, and statistical analysis was done using SPSS 22 version software. Chi-square and student's t-test were used as tests of significance.
Results: The majority of patients had suffered injuries to the left knee. The mean intercondylar notch width index was found to be 0.254. Out of the 54 patients, 42 (77.8%) had a notch width index of <0.27, while the rest 12 (22.2%) had a notch width index of >0.27. Of the 54 patients, 16 (29.6%) had interstitial tear, 28 (51.9%) had a partial tear and 10 (18.5%) had a complete tear. The statistical analysis revealed a significant association between a narrow intercondylar notch width index (≤0.27) and the occurrence of ACL tears (p<0.05).
Conclusion: The results of this study suggest that a narrow intercondylar notch width index is significantly associated with the occurrence of ACL tears. Further studies are needed to confirm these findings and to determine the clinical implications of this association