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This study assessed the tensile properties of hamstring and patellar tendon anterior cruciate ligament reconstructions in older cadaveric knees (age range, 48 to 79 years). Mechanical testing to failure was conducted by translating the tibia anteriorly at 1 mm/sec with the knee in 20 degrees of flexion. The strongest gracilis-semitendinosus graft fixation technique (103% of intact anterior cruciate ligament) had the tendons doubled and secured with soft tissue washers (P 0.05). Both types of grafts failed most often on the tibial side. With appropriate fixation, both grafts approximated the intact anterior cruciate ligament in strength, but only patellar tendon grafts secured with interference screws were comparable in stiffness.
Steiner et al. (1994) studied this question.