Winner of the 2008 Systematic Review Competition: Knee Osteoarthritis after Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injury

Abstract

This systematic review suggests that the prevalence rates of knee osteoarthritis after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction reported by previous reviews have been too high. The highest rated studies reported low prevalence of knee osteoarthritis for individuals with isolated anterior cruciate ligament injury (0%-13%) and a higher prevalence of knee osteoarthritis for subjects with combined injuries (21%-48%). Overall, the modified Coleman methodology score was low for the included studies. No universal methodological radiologic classification method exists, making comparisons of the studies and stating firm conclusions on the prevalence of knee osteoarthritis more than 10 years after anterior cruciate ligament injury difficult.