The Long-Term Impact of Osteoarthritis Following Knee Surgery in Former College Athletes.

CONTEXT: Individuals who sustain a knee surgery have been shown to have an increased likelihood to develop osteoarthritis (OA).

OBJECTIVE: Identify the consequences of knee surgery in a cohort of former college athletes.

DESIGN: Cross-sectional.

SETTING: Research laboratory.

PARTICIPANTS: A group of 100 former Division I college athletes aged 40-65 years (60 males and 40 females) participated in the study.

INTERVENTIONS: All individuals self-reported whether they sustained a knee injury during college requiring surgery and if they have been diagnosed with knee OA by a medical physician post knee injury. Individuals were categorized into 3 groups: no history of knee injury requiring surgery (33 males and 24 females; 54.53 [5.95] y), history of knee surgery in college with no diagnosis of OA later in life (4 males and 6 females; 51.26 [7.29] y), and history of knee surgery in college with physician diagnosed OA later in life (23 males and 10 females; 54.21 [7.64] y). All individuals completed the knee injury and osteoarthritis outcome score (KOOS) and short form-36 version 2.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Scores on the KOOS and short form-36 version 2.

RESULTS: A majority (76.7%) of individuals who had a knee surgery in college did develop OA. The largest mean differences were between the healthy knee and surgical knee/OA groups on the KOOS-quality of life scale (mean difference: 49.76; χ2 (3) = 44.65; P < .001) and KOOS-sports scale (mean difference: 43.69; χ2 (3) = 28.69; P < .001), with the surgical knee/OA group scoring worse.

CONCLUSIONS: Later in life functional limitations were observed in individuals who sustained a knee injury requiring surgery and developed OA. These findings support increased efforts toward prevention of knee injuries and consideration of the long-term implication when making treatment and return to activity decisions.