WHATS NEW IN ANTERIOR CRUCIATE LIGAMENT REPAIR?
I generally recommend surgical repair of all dogs having a cruciate-deficient stifle, unless predisposing medical conditions contradict anesthesia or surgery. Surgical repair of the cranial cruciate-deficient stifle may take many forms. The vast number of surgical procedures developed to return stability to the unstable stifle suggests that no technique is ideal. The technique selected is often based on the age and weight of the patient, duration of injury and surgeon’s preference. Factors to consider when deciding on a type of repair include signalment, intended use of the pet, duration of injury, type of injury (partial or complete tear), amount of instability, concomitant meniscal injury, patient morbidity and postoperative management. At the present time there is no surgical technique for management of the cruciate-deficient stifle that has been shown to be unequivocally superior. Signalment My personal preference is to repair small dogs (45 lbs) with a tibial plateau leveling oste
