Background: Rupture of the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is a common and feared injury among athletes because of its potential effect on further sports participation. Reported rates of return to pivoting sports after ACL reconstruction (ACLR) vary in the literature, and the long-term consequences of returning have rarely been studied.
Purpose: To examine the rate and level of return to pivoting sports after ACLR, the duration of sports participation, and long-term consequences of returning to pivoting sports.
Study design: Cohort study; Level of evidence, 2.
Methods: All primary ACLRs with a bone-patellar tendon-bone autograft between 1987 and 1994 (N = 234) in athletes participating in team handball, basketball, or soccer before injury were selected from a single-center quality database. A long-term evaluation (median, 25 years; range, 22-30 years) was performed using a questionnaire focusing on return to pivoting sports, the duration of sports activity after surgery, later contralateral ACL injuries, revision surgery, and knee replacement surgery. Participants were stratified into 2 groups depending on the time between injury and surgery (early, <24 months; late, ≥24 months).
Results: A total of 93% of patients (n = 217) responded to the questionnaire. Although 83% of patients returned to pivoting sports after early ACLR, only 53% returned to preinjury level. Similar return-to-sport rates were observed in males and females (P > .05), but males had longer sports careers (median, 10 years; range, 1-23 years) than females (median, 4 years; range, 1-25 years; P < .001). The incidence of contralateral ACL injuries was 28% among athletes who returned to sports versus 4% among athletes who did not return (P = .017) after early ACLR. The pooled reinjury rate after return to preinjury level of sports was 41% (30%, contralateral injuries; 11%, revision surgery). The incidence of contralateral ACL injuries was 32% among females versus 23% among males (P > .05) and, for revision surgery, was 12% among females versus 7% among males (P > .05) after returning to sports. Having a late ACLR was associated with an increased risk of knee replacement surgery (9% vs 3%; P = .049) when compared with having an early ACLR.
Conclusion: ACLR does not necessarily enable a return to preinjury sports participation. By returning to pivoting sports after ACLR, athletes are also facing a high risk of contralateral ACL injuries. Long-term evaluations in risk assessments after ACLR are important, as a significant number of subsequent ACL injuries occur later than the routine follow-up.
Keywords: ACL; ACL reinjury; long-term follow-up; return to sports.