PCL and PLC Surgery

While many PCL injuries are managed without surgery, those that require surgery have historically resulted in less than satisfactory results. The PCL is a very strong structure, with different components for a bent or straight knee, and one of its primary functions is to hold the tibia underneath the femur in the optimal position, guiding the tension of all other ligaments in the knee.

Mr O’Bryan often utilises a synthetic ligament to reconstruct this structure, in two components to optimise the bent and straight knee. While synthetic ligaments fail catastrophically for ACL reconstruction, this is not so for PCL and prevents the tibia from eventually stretching bac into a suboptimal position. In some instances a donor graft, or patient’s own graft can be used.

The PLC (posterolateral corner) is a complex group of structures where the fibula and tibia connect to the femur. These structures are often intimately linked with the PCL, and prevent the tibia from rotating off the back of the femur inappropriately.

Mr O’Bryan usually employs a combined approach of repairing the structures of the PLC, as well as reconstructing them to prevent the structures from stretching out. A combination of grafts from the same knee, donor grafts or rarely synthetic graft can be used for these structures.