[Clinical results and complications of meniscal repair in children and adolescents].

Introduction: there is scarce information on meniscal repair in the paediatric population in terms of outcomes of this technique. The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical outcomes and complications of meniscal repair in paediatric population with isolated lesions, associated with ACL rupture and discoid meniscus with unstable lesions.

Material and methods: data from 78 patients 18 years of age, with arthroscopic diagnosis of isolated meniscal lesion, associated with ACL tear or discoid meniscus, in whom arthroscopic repair was performed, were retrospectively analyzed for demographic characteristics, surgical technique, and perioperative complications. Functional results were assessed with the Lysholm and Pedi-IKDC scales. Time to repair failure was defined as the interval between meniscal repair and revision (re-repair or subtotal meniscectomy).

Results: mean age was 14 years (SD 3.1, range 3-19). The patients in group C were significantly younger (15.4 years in group A vs 14.9 in group B vs 12.1 in group C, p = 0.001). The average follow-up was 33.8 months. The mean Lysholm score and Pedi-IKDC were 96.1 points (range, 76-100) and 93.8 points (range, 59.8-100), respectively. The overall failure rate was 14.1% (11/78). There were 4 (13%) failures in group A, 3 failures (12%) in group B, and 5 failures (17%) in group C (p = 0.429). We found a tendency towards a greater number of failures in bucket handle injuries (p = 0.08) and a significant association when 4 sutures were used (p = 0.041).

Conclusion: in this series, meniscal repair demonstrated a clinical success rate of 85.9%. Patients with discoid meniscus, bucket handle injuries, and those who required a greater number of sutures had a higher risk of failure. Repair should be considered the first surgical treatment option for most meniscal injuries in children and adolescents.