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The Effect of Screw Insertion Torque on Tendons Fixed with Spiked Washers

Bruce D. Beynnon, PhD, Christopher M. Meriam, MD, Steven H. Ryder, Braden C. Fleming, PhD and Robert J. Johnson, MD

Department of Orthopaedics and Rehabilitation, McClure Musculoskeletal Research Center, University of Vermont, Burlington, Vermont

Presented at the 41st annual meeting of the Orthopaedic Research Society, Orlando, Florida, February 1995.

Address correspondence and reprint requests to Bruce D. Beynnon, PhD, Department of Orthopaedics & Rehabilitation, McClure Musculoskeletal Research Center, Stafford Hall, Room 438, University of Vermont, Burlington, VT 05405-0084

The long-term success of a hamstring tendon graft depends not only on the type of device that is used for fixation but also on the mechanical interlocking of the soft tissue between the fixation device and bone. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of screw insertion torque on the structural properties of soft tissue fixed to bone with a spiked metal washer. Two bovine tendons, one similar in size to a human semitendinosus tendon and the other similar in size to a human gracilis tendon, were secured to a bovine femur using a figure-of-8 technique with screws and metal spiked washers. A single load to failure was applied at 25 mm/sec. A significant positive linear correlation was observed between fixation screw insertion torque magnitude and the ultimate failure load value. An increase in the fixation screw insertion torque produced an increase in the ultimate failure load value. Similarly, there was a significant positive linear correlation between fixation screw insertion torque magnitude and the average maximum linear load value. No relationship was detected between screw insertion torque magnitude and the linear stiffness values of the tendon-fixation construct, indicating that a reproducible model was used. This study demonstrates that screw insertion torque is an important variable that controls the initial strength of soft tissue fixation to bone.

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