Investigation performed at Midwest Orthopaedics at Rush, Rush University Medical Center,?Chicago, Illinois, USA;?Brandon J. Erickson, MD, Bernard R. Bach Jr, MD, Mark S. Cohen, MD,?Charles A. Bush-Joseph, MD, Brian J. Cole, MD, Nikhil N. Verma, MD,?Gregory P. Nicholson, MD, and Anthony A. Romeo, MD
Ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction (UCLR), commonly?known as Tommy John surgery, was first described?by Dr Frank Jobe in the 1980’s. The goal of the surgery is?to restore the function of a damaged ulnar collateral ligament?(UCL) in a patient with a symptomatic, deficient?UCL. Since Dr Jobe?s initial description of the procedure,?several modifications have been made to the surgical technique,?including different ways to expose the UCL, different?graft types, and different fixation methods of the graft?to the medial epicondyle and sublime tubercle of the?ulna. Clinical outcome data are not available?for every technique modification, although the results of?several techniques have been encouraging.
Background: Ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction (UCLR) is a common surgery performed in professional, collegiate, and high?school athletes.
Purpose: To report patient demographics, surgical techniques, and outcomes of all UCLRs performed at a single institution from?2004 to 2014.
Conclusion: UCLR was performedmost commonly on collegiate athletes using an ipsilateral palmaris longus graft. Overall, 94.1%of?patients who underwent UCLR were able to return to sport with a mean KJOC score of 90.4 and Andrews-Timmerman Score of 92.5.
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