[Suture - the Current Trend of Medial Meniscus Lesion Treatment].

URPOSE OF THE STUDY The aim of this study was to summarise the current approaches to diagnostics and therapy of the medial meniscus tear, and to evaluate the short-term results of meniscus repair by outside-in and all-inside techniques. MATERIALS AND METHODS The study included 24 patients who underwent medial meniscus repair for vertical longitudinal tear 10 mm or longer in length localised in the rear two-thirds of meniscus in the red-red or red-white zone at the author's workplace between June 2012 and December 2014. As regards the method, either outside-in or all-inside techniques were used, or the combination of both. The Steadman technique was used in cases of LCA ruptures. Before the surgery standard radiographs of the knee joint of each patient were taken. The Lysholm Knee Score was used to evaluate the function of the knee pre- and postoperatively. The Barrett's criteria were used to evaluate the healing of repaired meniscus. The clinical success was defined as an absence of any of such criteria. The satisfaction of the patients was evaluated by the visual analogue scale (VAS). The patients were followed up for 13.5 (6-36) months. RESULTS The functional results presented by Lysholm Knee Score demonstrate the improvement of all patients. When comparing the score measured before and after the surgery, this score increased from 67.1 ± 11.4 (24-81) preoperatively to 90.4 ± 13.0 (34-100) postoperatively. The outcome was excellent in 11 patients (45.8 per cent), good in 12 patients (50.0 per cent), and poor in one patient (4.2 per cent). According to the Barrett's criteria, 19 repaired menisci were healed (79.2 per cent) = success rate. In five patients at least one of the monitored criteria was positive. In these cases, the result was considered a failure. Patient satisfaction averaged at 8.0 ± 1.5 (3-10). Only one patient with the concurrent anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tear with poor functional result, positive Barrett's criteria and VAS 3 agrees with the proposed revision surgery. Regarding possible complications, no neurovascular injury, deep vein thrombosis (DVT) or deep infection were reported. DISCUSSION The results presented in this research correspond to the outcomes of other authors, in particular as regards the shortterm follow-up. Other authors state that even the long-term results of Lysholm Knee Score related to meniscus repair are considerably better than the results after meniscectomy. When assessing the Barrett's criteria, the success rate of 79.2 per cent (19 patients) was reached; therefore, the failure rate was 20.8 per cent (5 patients). These results are comparable with the results of other authors whose success rate of meniscus repair ranges between 60 and 90 per cent. Based on the assessment of the VAS patient's satisfaction, the average rate of 8.0 points (3-10) was reached. A similar average rate of the patient's satisfaction amounting to 8.35 ± 1 (6-10) was reached in a similar designated study of Keyhani et al. carried out in 2015. Regarding possible complications, no neurovascular injury, deep vein thrombosis (DVT) or deep infection were reported. Similar observation of the low complication rate can be seen in the research studies of other authors. CONCLUSIONS Our short-term follow-up revealed that the postoperative results of Lysholm Knee Score considerably improved, the satisfaction rate of the patients was high and the failure rate is entirely in line with the values stated in literature. The results of our study confirm that in the indicated cases the meniscus repair is an effective method of treatment of vertical longitudinal tears located in both RR and RW zones. The preserved meniscus is considerably supportive to ensure stability of the knee joint, in particular in the event of concurrent rupture of anterior cruciate ligament, and to prevent early osteoarthritic changes. Nevertheless, it is necessary to carry out further randomized clinical studies with a larger number of patients and a longerterm follow-up to confirm our results. Key words:meniscus tear, meniscus repair, outside-in and all-inside technique, evaluation of results.