Primary Repair of Ulnar Collateral Ligament Injuries of the Elbow in Young Athletes: A Case Series of Injuries to the Proximal and Distal Ends of the Ligament

BackgroundLittle data exist regarding the treatment of young high school and college athletes with medial ulnar collateral ligament insufficiency of the elbow. It would be logical to assume that younger patients would have less damage to the ligament, allowing the possibility of repair.HypothesisMany young athletes with injuries to the medial ulnar collateral ligament have proximal or distal injuries that may be amenable to repair, indicating that graft reconstruction may not always be necessary to obtain satisfactory results.Study DesignCase series; Level of evidence, 4.MethodsSixty patients who had direct repair of the medial ulnar collateral ligament were retrospectively evaluated using the Andrews and Carson elbow score. All patients had symptomatic instability that precluded them from participation in their desired sports, all failed a nonoperative treatment program, and all had comparative stress radiographs, magnetic resonance images, or computerized tomograms with contrast studies that had positiv...