Quadriceps Tendon Turndown for the Treatment of Chronic Quadriceps Tendon Insufficiency: Surgical Technique

Quadriceps tendon tears are a common injury that are often treated in the chronic setting. Significant tendon retraction and scar tissue formation in the chronic setting leads to inferior outcomes after surgical treatment for these injuries compared to those treated in the acute setting. Although numerous treatment strategies for chronic quadriceps tendon insufficiency have been described, there remains no clear consensus on the standard of treatment. This technical note describes our preferred surgical approach for select cases of chronic quadriceps insufficiency with the use of a pedicled quadriceps tendon autograft in a quadriceps turndown technique.