Influence of a Concomitant Medial Meniscus Injury on Knee Joint Function and Osteoarthritis Presence after Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction.

<b>(1) Background:</b> The aim of this study was to investigate how a medial meniscus injury accompanying an anterior cruciate ligament rupture affects the clinical outcome 10 years after ACL reconstruction. <b>(2) Methods:</b> A total of 37 patients who received anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR) were included in this retrospective study. Two groups were analyzed at a single follow-up of 10 years: (i) "isolated (ACLR)" (<i>n</i> = 20) and (ii) "ACLR with medial meniscal injury" (<i>n</i> = 17). The following clinical scores were recorded: International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC), the Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS), Lysholm Score and Tegner Activity Score. To determine the degree of osteoarthritis the Kellgren-Lawrence score was used. <b>(3) Results:</b> The "isolated ACLR" study group scored significantly higher (<i>p</i> < 0.05) on the IKDC subjective questionnaire (mean: 88.4) than the "ACLR with medial meniscus injury" group (mean: 81). The KOOS category "activities of daily living" showed significantly better results in the isolated ACLR group (<i>p</i> < 0.05). The "ACLR with medial meniscus injury" group had significantly higher degree of osteoarthritis (<i>p</i> < 0.05). No significant differences were found in all the other clinical scores. <b>(4) Conclusions:</b> The results of this study further indicate that patients with a concomitant medial meniscus injury have slightly more discomfort in everyday life and increased risk of developing osteoarthritis 10 years after surgery.