Prevalence of Chondral Defects in Athletes' Knees
Top Cited Papers
- 1 October 2010
- journal article
- review article
- Published by Ovid Technologies (Wolters Kluwer Health) in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise
- Vol. 42 (10), 1795-1801
- https://doi.org/10.1249/mss.0b013e3181d9eea0
Abstract
To determine the prevalence of full-thickness focal chondral defects in the athlete's knee. We conducted a systematic review of multiple databases, evaluating studies of the prevalence of articular cartilage defects in athletes. Because of the heterogeneity of data, a meta-analysis could not be performed. Eleven studies were identified for inclusion (931 subjects). All studies were level 4 evidence. Defects were diagnosed via magnetic resonance imaging, arthroscopy, or both. Forty percent of athletes were professionals (NBA and NFL). The overall prevalence of full-thickness focal chondral defects in athletes was 36% (range = 2.4%-75% between all studies). Fourteen percent of athletes were asymptomatic at the time of diagnosis. Patellofemoral defects (37%) were more common than femoral condyle (35%) and tibial plateau defects (25%). Medial condyle defects were more common than lateral (68% vs 32%), and patella defects were more common than trochlea (64% vs 36%). Meniscal tear (47%) was the most common concomitant knee pathological finding, followed by anterior cruciate ligament tear (30%) and then medial collateral ligament or lateral collateral ligament tear (14%). Full-thickness focal chondral defects in the knee are more common in athletes than among the general population. More than one-half of asymptomatic athletes have a full-thickness defect. Further study is needed to define more precisely the prevalence of these lesions in this population.Keywords
This publication has 48 references indexed in Scilit:
- Untreated Asymptomatic Deep Cartilage Lesions Associated with Anterior Cruciate Ligament InjuryThe American Journal of Sports Medicine, 2009
- Is ACL reconstruction only for athletes?International Orthopaedics, 2006
- Does marathon running cause acute lesions of the knee? Evaluation with magnetic resonance imagingEuropean Radiology, 2006
- Multirater Agreement of Arthroscopic Grading of Knee Articular CartilageThe American Journal of Sports Medicine, 2005
- Osteochondral Defects in the Human KneeThe American Journal of Sports Medicine, 2004
- Knees of ironman triathletes: Magnetic resonance imaging assessment of older (>35 years old) competitorsJournal of Magnetic Resonance Imaging, 2002
- ARE THERE LONG-TERM SEQUELAE FROM SOCCER?Clinics in Sports Medicine, 1998
- Knee Injury Patterns Among Men and Women in Collegiate Basketball and SoccerThe American Journal of Sports Medicine, 1995
- Knee osteoarthritis in former runners, soccer players, weight lifters, and shootersArthritis & Rheumatism, 1995
- A Perspective of Lesions Associated with ACL Insufficiency of the KneePublished by Ovid Technologies (Wolters Kluwer Health) ,1985