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Association of Sports Participation With Osteoarthritis: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Bestwick-Stevenson, Thomas; Ifesemen, Onosi S.; Pearson, Richard G.; Edwards, Kimberley L.

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Authors

Onosi S. Ifesemen

KIMBERLEY EDWARDS KIMBERLEY.EDWARDS@NOTTINGHAM.AC.UK
Professor of Sport, exercise and Nutrition Education



Abstract

Background:
The association between participating in sport and osteoarthritis is not fully understood.

Purpose:
To investigate the association between osteoarthritis and participating in sports not listed in previous reviews: American football, archery, baseball, bobsleigh, curling, handball, ice hockey, shooting, skeleton, speed skating, and wrestling.

Study Design:
Systematic review; Level of evidence, 3.

Methods:
We searched 4 electronic databases and hand searched recent/in-press editions of relevant journals. The criteria for study selection were case-control studies, cohort studies, nested case-control studies, and randomized trials with a control group that included adults to examine the effect of exposure to any of the included sports on the development of osteoarthritis.

Results:
The search returned 6197 articles after deduplication. Nine studies were included in the final review, covering hip, knee, and ankle osteoarthritis. There were no studies covering archery, baseball, skeleton, speed skating, or curling. The 6 sports included in the review were analyzed as a collective; the results of the meta-analysis indicated that participation in the sports analyzed was associated with an increased risk of developing osteoarthritis of the hip (relative risk [RR] = 1.67 [95% confidence interval (CI), 1.15-2.41]; P = .04), knee (RR = 1.60 [95% CI, 1.23-2.08]; P ≤ .001), and ankle (RR = 7.08 [95% CI, 1.24-40.51]; P = .03) as compared with controls. Meta-analysis suggested a significantly increased likelihood of developing hip osteoarthritis through participating in wrestling (RR = 1.78 [95% CI, 1.20-2.64]; P = .004) and ice hockey (RR = 1.70 [95% CI, 1.27-2.29]; P ≤ .001), while there was no significant difference through participating in handball (RR = 2.50 [95% CI, 0.85-7.36]; P = .10). Likelihood of developing knee osteoarthritis was significantly increased in wrestling (RR = 2.22 [95% CI, 1.59-3.11]) and ice hockey (RR = 1.52 [95% CI, 1.18-1.96]; both P ≤ .002). According to the meta-analysis, shooting did not have a significant effect on the RR of knee osteoarthritis as compared with other sports (RR = 0.43 [95% CI, 0.06-2.99]; P = .39).

Conclusion:
The likelihood of developing hip and knee osteoarthritis was increased for ice hockey and wrestling athletes, and the risk of developing hip osteoarthritis was increased for handball athletes. The study also found that participation in the sports examined, as a collective, resulted in an increased risk of developing hip, knee, and ankle osteoarthritis.

Citation

Bestwick-Stevenson, T., Ifesemen, O. S., Pearson, R. G., & Edwards, K. L. (2021). Association of Sports Participation With Osteoarthritis: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Orthopaedic Journal of Sports Medicine, 9(6), 1-15. https://doi.org/10.1177/23259671211004554

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date May 5, 2021
Online Publication Date Jun 14, 2021
Publication Date Jun 1, 2021
Deposit Date Jun 22, 2021
Publicly Available Date Jun 22, 2021
Journal Orthopaedic Journal of Sports Medicine
Electronic ISSN 2325-9671
Publisher SAGE Publications
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 9
Issue 6
Pages 1-15
DOI https://doi.org/10.1177/23259671211004554
Public URL https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/5718330
Publisher URL https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/23259671211004554

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