Since their introduction, arthroscopic procedures have been increasingly utilized for the treatment of knee pathologies, especially anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction. Reduction of post-operative morbidity, shortened hospital stay and recovery period have all been identified as the benefits of arthroscopy. However, despite tremendous increase in the number of these procedures done, the postoperative complications associated have been infrequently analyzed. Hence, we performed this study to analyze the perioperative complications of arthroscopic ACL reconstruction. We performed a retrospective case control study from our hospital database from the cases performed in July 2015 to December 2016. We included 20 cases who developed postoperative complications within 30 days of the procedure and 60 controls operated during the same period who did not have any complications. The complications noted in the cases were surgical site infection (SSI), deep vein thrombosis (DVT), effusion and superficial infection. The risk factors associated with each complication were compared with the cases and analyzed. Conclusions: It was found that the lack of specialist physiotherapy, surgical prophylaxis and prolonged post-operative antibiotics were the major risk factors in the development of complications among our patients who underwent arthroscopic ACL.

Ranjith Nair has completed his post-graduation in trauma and orthopaedics from one of the prestigious institutions in India in 2007. He finished his fellowship in the UK and has been working with foot and ankle specialists for the past three years. Additionally, Ranjith Nair obtained a fellowship in arthroplasty and joint preservation from Germany in 2017. He has worked as a specialist surgeon in various hospitals across India and the Middle East, gaining vast experience in treating a wide variety of patients from different cultural backgrounds. Currently, he is serving as a substantive doctor in trauma and orthopaedics at University Hospital of Bay Trust in the UK. He has a keen interest in foot and ankle surgery, as well as soft tissue knee orthopaedics.