ArticleThe American journal of sports medicine2026
The Rectus Femoris Tendon as a Graft for Combined ACL and Anterolateral Reconstruction: A Biomechanical Evaluation.
Article in The American journal of sports medicine, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Cited by 5 papers.
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Who cites it
5 citing papers in PubMed.
- Rectus Femoris Autograft Harvesting: Tips and Tricks.Arthroscopy techniques · 2026Article
- Rectus Femoris Tendon Autograft in Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction: Narrative Review.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Review
- Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction: Clinical Outcomes and Biomechanical Considerations of Graft Selection-A Narrative Review.Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 2026Review
- Beyond the quadriceps tendon: The rectus femoris as a distinct autograft for knee ligament reconstruction-A narrative review.Journal of experimental orthopaedics · 2026Review
- Rectus femoris graft harvest for anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction does not result in selective rectus femoris muscle volume loss or strength deficit at one year: quantitative magnetic resonance imaging, isokinetic and functional analyses.International orthopaedics · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
- Erratum issued
Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThe rectus femoris (RF) tendon may be an option for combined anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and anterolateral (AL) reconstruction utilizing a double-stranded (DRF) tendon for the ACL and a single-stranded tendon (SRF) for AL reinforcement; however, biomechanical data remain limited. PURPOSE/HYPOTHESIS: This study aimed to biomechanically assess the DRF for ACL reconstruction using a patellar tendon (PT) graft and the SRF for AL reconstruction using an iliotibial band (ITB) graft. The hypothesis was that the biomechanical properties of the DRF graft would not differ from those of the PT graft, and the SRF graft would not differ from the ITB graft. STUDY
designControlled laboratory study.
methodEight fresh-frozen human knees were used: 2 male and 6 female, with a mean age of 49 years (range, 36-64 years). Each knee produced 4 grafts: DRF, SRF, PT, and ITB. Each graft was mounted in a materials test machine. The cross-sectional area was measured using alginate molding. After 10 preconditioning cycles to 250 N, each specimen was extended to failure at 100 mm/min. The Friedman test assessed differences between the 4 graft types using matched samples. The Dunn multiple-comparison test was used to examine differences among graft types.
resultsThe ultimate strengths (N) of the grafts were as follows: DRF, 1978 ± 338; SRF, 1445 ± 584; PT, 1824 ± 557; ITB, 819 ± 268 (DRF and PT >ITB;
conclusionAs hypothesized, the DRF graft exhibits mechanical properties that do not differ from those of the PT graft. Likewise, the SRF graft showed biomechanical properties that do not differ from those of the ITB graft. Therefore, this study supports the use of the RF graft for combined ACL and AL (anterolateral ligament or lateral extra-articular tenodesis) reconstruction. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: The RF tendon graft is harvested before being merged with other layers, resulting in a longer graft (mean, 273 mm) suitable for folding. This does not create a full-thickness defect through the quadriceps. This approach allows combined ACL + AL reconstruction techniques and additional graft tissue for fixation.
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