As impossible as it may sound, two Belgian knee surgeons have discovered a new part of the human body. The new part has been named the anterolateral ligament (ALL). The ALL is present in 97 percent of all human knees and may play a significant role in how patients recover from anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tears.
ALL was discovered by Dr. Steven Claes and Dr. Johan Bellemans from University Hospitals Leuven who have been conducting research into ACL tears over the past four years.
They looked into a theory made by a French surgeon in 1879, which claimed that an unknown ligament existed on the anterior of the human knee. After conducting a broad cadaver study using macroscopic dissection techniques, Claes and Bellemans found this theory to be correct. Their research showed that pivot shift occurs when there is additional injury in the ALL.
The discovery, which was detailed in the Journal of Anatomy, could signal a breakthrough for the future of treatment for ACL injuries.
No comments:
Post a Comment