Elleuch M H, Guermazi M, Mezghanni M, Ghroubi S, Fki H, Mefteh S, Baklouti S, Sellami S
Service de médecine physique et de réadaptation fonctionnelle, hôpital Habib-Bourguiba, université du Sud, 3000 Sfax, Tunisia.
Ann Readapt Med Phys. 2008 Apr;51(3):174-8. doi: 10.1016/j.annrmp.2008.01.003. Epub 2008 Mar 7.
To study the prevalence of knee osteoarthritis in a group of former top-level football players and to assess the condition's impact on joint function and structure, compared with a control group.
A cross-sectional, descriptive study was performed on a group of male former top-level football players (group G1), aged over 45 and with no history of knee trauma, arthritis, arthropathy or surgery. A second group of otherwise matched nonsporting subjects (group G2) was compared with the first group. For each subject, we specified age, weight, height, body mass index (BMI), dominant foot, the presence of knee axis deviation, the presence of pain and functional impairment. The pain level was assessed using a visual analogue scale (VAS). The functional assessment was performed using the Arabic version of the Lequesne index. Moreover, for each former player, we specified a number of sporting parameters, including those related to their playing career. The diagnosis of knee osteoarthritis was made using standard radiological and clinical criteria. The radiological severity of knee osteoarthritis was assessed using the Kellgren and Lawrence classification. We compared the two groups in terms of the frequency of knee osteoarthritis, the severity of pain and disability and the severity of structural impairment.
Our study included two groups of patients: a group of 50 former football players (G1) with a mean age of 49.2. Overweight was noted in 40 subjects. The mean number of training hours a week was 14+/-3.5 during their professional career and 2.5 during their retirement. Half of the sportsmen had taken part in more than 200 matches. Knee axis deviation was observed in 29 former players (i.e. 58% of the cases) and 27 displayed genuvarum. A group of 50 nonsporting volunteers (G2) was matched to the G1 group in terms of age, BMI and frequency of axis deviation. Knee osteoarthritis was more common in the football players than in the nonsporting subjects (80% versus 68%), although the difference was not statistically significant. Whereas pain was noted in only six footballers (with an average VAS score of 25.4+/-6.3mm) and was observed in 50% of controls (with a mean VAS score of 39.2mm+/-7.3) (P=0.001). Disability was recorded in six sportsmen, with a mean Lequesne score of 0.38+/-1.27. Disability was more frequent (23 subjects) and more intense (with a mean Lequesne score of 1.71+/-3.2) in the nonsportsmen (P=0.001). The Kellgreen and Lawrence radiological classification revealed that 57.5% of the sportsmen had scores of III or IV, compared with just 29.4% in the control group.
Knee osteoarthritis is common in male football players. However, our study shows that the condition is less painful and less likely to cause functional disability (but paradoxically more destructive) than in nonsportsmen.
研究一组前顶级足球运动员膝骨关节炎的患病率，并与对照组相比，评估该疾病对关节功能和结构的影响。
对一组年龄超过45岁且无膝关节创伤、关节炎、关节病或手术史的男性前顶级足球运动员（G1组）进行了一项横断面描述性研究。将另一组年龄、体重、身高、体重指数（BMI）等匹配的非运动员受试者（G2组）与第一组进行比较。对于每个受试者，我们记录了年龄、体重、身高、BMI、优势脚、膝关节轴线偏差情况、疼痛和功能障碍情况。使用视觉模拟量表（VAS）评估疼痛程度。使用Lequesne指数阿拉伯语版进行功能评估。此外，对于每位前足球运动员，我们记录了一些运动参数，包括与他们职业生涯相关的参数。采用标准的放射学和临床标准诊断膝骨关节炎。使用Kellgren和Lawrence分类法评估膝骨关节炎的放射学严重程度。我们比较了两组在膝骨关节炎发生率、疼痛和残疾严重程度以及结构损伤严重程度方面的差异。
我们的研究纳入了两组患者：一组50名前足球运动员（G1组），平均年龄49.2岁。40名受试者超重。他们职业生涯中每周平均训练时长为14±3.5小时，退休后为2.5小时。一半的运动员参加过200多场比赛。29名前运动员（即58%的病例）存在膝关节轴线偏差，27名表现为膝内翻。一组50名非运动志愿者（G2组）在年龄、BMI和轴线偏差频率方面与G1组匹配。膝骨关节炎在足球运动员中比在非运动员中更常见（80%对68%），尽管差异无统计学意义。然而，仅6名足球运动员有疼痛（平均VAS评分为25.4±6.3mm），而50%的对照组有疼痛（平均VAS评分为39.2mm±7.3）（P = 0.001）。6名运动员有残疾记录，平均Lequesne评分为0.38±1.27。非运动员中残疾情况更频繁（23名受试者）且更严重（平均Lequesne评分为1.71±3.2）（P = 0.001）。Kellgreen和Lawrence放射学分类显示，57.5%的运动员评分为III或IV级，而对照组仅为29.4%。
膝骨关节炎在男性足球运动员中很常见。然而，我们的研究表明，与非运动员相比，这种疾病引起的疼痛较轻，导致功能残疾的可能性较小（但矛盾的是，破坏性更大）。
