Abstract
The prevalence of soft tissue graft in anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction, as well as the preference for bioabsorbable fixation continues to grow in clinical practice. This paper presents one complication related to biocomposite screw fixation used in ACL reconstruction found in clinical practice associated with a retrieval analysis of a broken biocomposite interference screw made by PLLA-HA (75% PLLA, 25% HA), arthroscopically removed from the tibial site at 8 months after ACL reconstruction with soft tissue autograft in a young patient. The fragment of broken screw was analysed in terms of surface and structural analysis following an established implant retrieval protocol. The retrieved implant surface shows cracks and breakdown signs characteristic to the final phase of resorption but incomplete probably due to biomechanical stress. The present study is important since it is one of the few cases recorded for both a composite implant as well as for an early complication, supporting the idea that the breakage of biocomposite screws should be considered during ACL reconstruction. Keywords: biocomposite screw, biodegradable polymer, ACL reconstruction, retrieval analysis, SEM