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A systematic review on conservative and non-operative treatment options for Osgood-Schlatter disease

##article.authors##

  • Cornelia Neuhaus
  • Christian Appenzeller-Herzog
  • Oliver Faude

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.31236/osf.io/u4vn7

Keywords:

adolescents, knee pain, overuse injuries, tibal tuberosity, treatment

Abstract

Background: Osgood-Schlatter disease (OSD) is a sport- and growth-associated knee pathology with painful osteochondrosis around the tibial tuberosity. Up to 10% of adolescents are affected by OSD. Treatment is primarily conservative or non-operative and includes injections, ice, braces, casts, tape and/or physiotherapy. However, treatment outcomes are often insufficiently described and there is lack of evidence for current best practice. Objective: The aims of this systematic review are to comprehensively identify conservative or non-operative treatment options for OSD, to compare their effectiveness in selected outcomes, and to describe potential research gaps. and to describe potential research gaps. Methods: This systematic review was conducted according to the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) statement. CENTRAL, CINAHL, EMBASE and MEDLINE via Ovid, and PEDro were searched through to January 6, 2020. In addition, ongoing and unpublished clinical studies, dissertations, and other grey literature on OSD were retrieved. We included prospective, retrospective, case control, randomised, and non-randomised studies reporting on the effectiveness of any conservative or non-operative treatment of 6- to 28-year-old OSD patients. Studies written in English, German, or French were included. The quality of the included studies was assessed using the PEDro scale and extracted outcome data were narratively synthesized. In addition, we also systematically retrieved review articles for extraction of treatment recommendations. Results: Of 767 identified studies, thirteen were included: two randomised controlled trials (RCTs), two prospective and eight retrospective observational studies, and one case series. Eight studies had no control group. The included studies were published from 1948 to 2019 and included 747 patients (563 male, 119 female, 65 sex not reported) with 937 affected knees. The study quality was poor to moderate. The two included RCTs examined the effectiveness of surplus dextrose-injection in OSD patients treated with local anaesthetics injection and came to opposite conclusions. Other than that, inter-study heterogeneity prohibited any descriptive cumulative analyses. Among the 15 review articles, the most prevalent treatment recommendations were activity modification (15/15), quadriceps and hamstring stretching (13/15), medication (11/15), ice (11/15), strengthening of the quadriceps (9/15), and knee straps or brace (8/15). Conclusion: Conflicting evidence exists to support the use of dextrose injections. Certain therapeutic approaches, such as stretching, seem to work, but no RCT comparing specific exercises with sham or usual care treatment exists. Carefully controlled studies on well- described treatment approaches are needed to establish which conservative or non-operative treatment options are most effective for patients with OSD.

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Posted

2020-08-15