Where are we? What do we need?

Excerpt

In this issue of the journal, a paper on “Global perspectives” of ACL surgery is published [1]. Trends and new techniques are interesting and need to highlight and carefully criticised using rigid scientific methods. At the same time, it is important to understand what surgeons are doing in their everyday live. In this paper, more than 200 well-known knee surgeons gave their opinions about the “best available” treatment of primary ACL injury and ACL revision surgery. The important question is whether we are moving forward, or if the old methods are still valid. Some 30 years ago, all ACL surgery was performed using wide-open arthrotomy (incision length often 25–30 cm, often immobilisation and prolonged hospital stay) and the results were in many studies claimed to be good and excellent in the many (even the majority of) patients. So, what has changed? What is new? …