#Free nerve endings function full
#Free nerve endings function free

After reconstructive surgery, proprioception approximates the original state, as multiple clinical trials have shown, but it remains to be clarified whether this improvement is due to reinnervation of the graft or to re-establishment of proprioception by peri-articular structures. showed that the proprioceptive function in the knee joint with ruptured anterior cruciate ligament is worse than in the healthy contralateral knee. Allografts from Achilles, quadriceps or patellar tendon are rarely used today due to risk of infection and uncertainty regarding long-term survival. An alternative method is the replacement with a quadriceps tendon graft or a patellar tendon graft which is removed with bone parts from patella and tibia. Currently, the most popular procedure is the use of a free, multi-stranded semitendinosus transplant.

#Free nerve endings function full

To regain full function of the joint reconstruction of the ligament is the therapy of choice.

The rupture of the anterior cruciate ligament mainly affects young, physically active people and is the most common injury of the knee. The partial increase in the number of receptors over time after reconstruction could indicate a reinnervation of the grafts. This study was the first to identify mechanoreceptors in human transplants of the anterior cruciate ligament. The number of mechanoreceptors in the semitendinosus and patellar tendon graft decreased over time after graft-failure, whereas it increased slightly in the allograft. With increasing time after reconstruction, the number of both types of receptors showed a decrease in the semitendinosus graft, whereas it increased in the patellar tendon graft and allograft.

#Free nerve endings function free

The amount of free nerve endings was higher in the semitendinosus and patellar tendon autografts than in the control the allografts showed the lowest number of receptors. Comparing the grafts, the highest number of receptors could be detected in the semitendinosus autograft. The number of Ruffini corpuscles per square centimeter was the highest in the control. Two types of mechanoreceptors were identified in each graft: Ruffini corpuscles and free nerve endings. Statistical analysis was performed using the Mann-Whitney U test. Microscopical examination was carried out, and the number of mechanoreceptors was counted. After haematoxylin staining, immunohistochemical analysis was performed using antibodies against S100, p75 and PGP9.5. The control consisted of 4 healthy anterior cruciate ligaments after fresh rupture. Three patellar tendon allografts, 14 patellar tendon autografts and 12 semitendinosus autografts were harvested during revision surgery after traumatic rerupture of the graft. Thirty-three patients were included in this study. The aim of this study is to identify sensory corpuscles in autogenous and allogenous transplants of the ligament and to compare their quantity between the used allografts and autografts.

Clinical trials show that the sense of body position does not fully recover in the knee joint after reconstructive surgery of the ruptured anterior cruciate ligament. Sensory nerve endings in ligaments play an important role for the proprioceptive function.