Traumatology >>>> Torn tendon - opportunities for recovery

Torn tendon - opportunities for recovery.

The most difficult in terms of recovery are considered injuries to the ligamentous apparatus, as a result of which tendon rupture occurs. The tendon tissue is formed by cells - tenocytes, which are not characterized by reparative processes (regeneration). When a rupture (cut) of the tendon occurs, then at the place of separation, connective tissue is gradually formed, in which there are few longitudinal fibers characteristic of the tendon, which ensure its endurance during longitudinal stretching.

Such a connective tissue replacement is possible only in cases where the edges of the injured tendon are in sufficient proximity to each other, but, as a rule, the distance between the separated edges of the tendon at the site of injury is much greater due to muscle contraction, which makes independent restoration of the tendon tissue impossible. Prolonged muscle contraction as a result of tendon rupture becomes irreversible after 1-1.5 months. In places of rupture, the ends of the tendon thicken over time and are fixed to the surrounding tissues, and after three or more months after the injury, they become difficult to access for isolation and connection with each other.

The sooner a person goes to a traumatologist with a ruptured tendon, the more likely it is to repair the torn tendon.

There are several techniques for repairing a tendon, and they all require surgery. The simplest repair of tendon tissue at the site of the rupture is a tendon suture, which is performed in the early periods after a tendon injury and the success of recovery depends on whether the contracted muscles connected to the torn tendon are able to regain their motor activity.

There are several options for the execution of the tendon suture, depending on the location of the tendon rupture, the state of the surrounding tissues and other nuances that are significant for the surgeon. A tendon suture is used when the distance between the torn ends of the tendon allows them to be pulled together. But with significant stable separation of the ends of the torn tendon, tenoplasty (tendoplasty) is used - a procedure for replacing the site of the tendon rupture with biological materials (autografts and allografts). An autograft is a tissue for transplantation taken from the affected person himself, an allograft is a tissue for transplantation taken from a donor. Tenoplasty is performed in one or two stages.

In addition to tenoplasty, to repair a torn tendon, tendon transposition to a nearby tendon is used, the muscle of which will not potentially suffer from overload and additional functions imposed on it.