Development of a National Cruciate Ligament Surgery Registry

BACKGROUND: No prospective surveillance system exists for monitoring the outcome of cruciate ligament surgery. PURPOSE: This article is intended to describe the development and procedures of the Norwegian National Knee Ligament Registry (NKLR), including baseline results from the first 2 years of operation. STUDY DESIGN: Cohort study (prevalence); Level of evidence, 1. METHODS: The NKLR was established on June 7, 2004 to collect information prospectively on all cases of cruciate ligament reconstruction surgery in Norway. Information on the details of surgery is gathered through a registration form completed by the surgeon postoperatively, and a validated knee outcome score form is completed by the patients preoperatively and at follow-ups on all patients at 2, 5, and 10 years postoperatively. Hospital compliance was examined in 2005 and 2006. RESULTS: A total of 2793 primary cruciate ligament reconstruction surgeries were registered by 57 hospitals. This corresponds to an annual population incidence of primary anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction surgeries of 34 per 100,000 citizens (85 per 100 000 citizens in the main at-risk age group of 16-39 years). After 21 months of operation, the NKLR had an overall compliance of 97% when compared with the hospital records. CONCLUSIONS: A national population-based cruciate ligament registry has been developed, implemented, and maintained in Norway. The registry will each year enroll approximately 1500 primary cruciate ligament reconstruction cases. It is expected that inadequate procedures and devices can be identified, as well as prognostic factors associated with good and poor outcomes, at least for the most frequent categories.