The effect of drill hole angle on the initial stress states and subsequent healing of a MCL reconstruction

Ligament reconstruction involves replacing an injured ligament tissue with a graft tissue, which is usually attached within drill holes in bones. Presently, surgical methods are being sought that would improve the healing of reconstructions.;The hypothesis was that the angulation of the drill holes for the graft tissue would alter the healing of the ligament reconstruction. This hypothesis was based on the premise that the angle of the drill hole relative to the "line of action" of the graft would affect the mechanical environment experienced by the transplanted tissue, thereby influencing its healing process.;To test this hypothesis, two finite element models representing ligament reconstructions under two drill hole configurations were built. The two configurations of ligament reconstruction were also performed surgically on a lapine model and analysed histologically at different healing intervals.;Results showed that drill hole angulation plays only a minor role in the healing of this ligament reconstruction, while biological differences between bones plays a major role.