Patients with a quadriceps tendon shorter than 60 mm require a patellar bone plug autograft in anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction

Purpose To assess the length and thickness of the quadriceps tendon (QT) and anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) to predict the required QT length for individual ACL reconstruction. Methods Thirty patients (9 females, 21 males; mean age 24.5 years; mean height 169.3 cm) who underwent ACL reconstruction using the QT with a bone plug autograft were enrolled. The length and thickness of the QT on preoperative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) were compared with those measured under direct visualization. The ACL length was measured on preoperative MRI and three-dimensional computed tomography after ACL reconstruction. The QT length on MRI was compared with the required graft length, and the factors related to an adequate QT length were assessed. Results The mean QT length on MRI was 60.8 ± 1.3 mm and was significantly positively correlated with the QT length under direct visualization ( P