Anterior and posterior cruciate ligament injuries

Knee injury and knee pain are common complaints in the primary care setting, accounting for approximately one third of musculoskeletal complaints [1]. Ten to fifteen percent of adults in the community report knee symptoms at any given time, symptoms that lead to over 3.3 million physician visits annually for knee pain [2,3]. With an incidence of 100,000 to 200,000 anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) ruptures per year in the United States, ACL rupture is a common knee injury diagnosis [4,5]. In fact, an estimated I in 3000 individuals sustains an ACL rupture each year in the United States [5]. For the population aged 15 to 45, the annual incidence increases to one injury for every 1750 persons [6]. Posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) tears account for 3% of all knee ligament injuries and 38% of all ligament injuries in the emergency department trauma setting [7]. Given that patients commonly present with knee injuries, it is imperative for primary care physicians to be comfortable with the diagnosis and management of ACL and PCL tears.