Knee osteoarthritis in the former elite football players and the ordinary population : a comparative cross-sectional study

Merčun, Aljaž (author), Drobnič, Matej (author), Žlak, Nik (author), Krajnc, Zmago (author)

A cross-sectional case–control study compared subjective knee function, quality of life and radiographic knee osteoarthritis (OA) between 45 former elite football players and an age-matched general male population. Participants completed the Knee OA Outcome Score (KOOS), a quality-of-life assessment (EQ-5D-3 L) and standing knee radiographs. Among the players, 24 (53%) sustained at least one moderate or severe knee injury, while 21 (47%) did not recall any injury. Players with previous knee injuries reported significantly lower knee-specific and general quality-of-life scores (KOOS 69; EQ-5D-3 L 0.69 (0.2)) compared to the non-injured players (KOOS 92; EQ-5D-3 L 0.81 (0.2)) or the control population (KOOS 90; EQ-5D-3 L 0.83 (0.2)). The injured knees had higher radiographic OA Kellgren-Lawrence (KL) scale grades 1.7 (1.3) than the knees of the non-injured players 0.8 (1.0) or the control knees 0.8 (1.0). Former elite football players who had previously sustained a moderate or severe knee injury reported inferior knee function and lower quality of life. Injured knees had higher levels of radiographic OA. Non-injured players reported similar knee and general function and their knees had similar grades of OA to those in the control group. The defining moment for long-term knee preservation in football should be injury prevention protocols.

• Language: English
• Keywords: knee, football, osteoarthritis, injury, prevention
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Organization: MF - Faculty of Medicine
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Year: 2024
• Number of pages: Str. 196–200
• Numbering: Vol. 8, no. 3
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-158968
• UDC: 616.7
• ISSN on article: 2473-4446
• DOI: 10.1080/24733938.2023.2228279
• COBISS.SI-ID: 157848323
• Publication date in RUL: 24.06.2024

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: Science & medicine in football
• Shortened title: Sci. med. footb.
• Publisher: Taylor & Francis
• ISSN: 2473-4446
• COBISS.SI-ID: 529993753

Licences

• License: CC BY 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
• Description: This is the standard Creative Commons license that gives others maximum freedom to do what they want with the work as long as they credit the author.