The Effects of Timing of Pediatric Knee Ligament Surgery on Short-term Academic Performance in School-Aged Athletes

Autor: Natasha E. Trentacosta, Christopher S. Ahmad, Mark A. Vitale
Rok vydání: 2009
Předmět:
Zdroj: The American Journal of Sports Medicine. 37:1684-1691
ISSN: 1552-3365
0363-5465
DOI: 10.1177/0363546509332507
Popis: Background Orthopaedic injuries negatively affect the academic lives of children. Hypothesis The timing of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and medial patellofemoral ligament (MPFL) reconstructions affects academic performance in school-aged athletes. Study Design Cohort study; Level of evidence, 2. Methods Records of patients ≤18 years old who underwent ACL or MPFL reconstructions from 2001-2007 were reviewed retrospectively. Subjects had been administered a unique questionnaire to evaluate school life in the immediate postoperative period as well as International Knee Documentation Committee (IDKC), Lysholm, and Kujala knee-specific questionnaires. Patients were in 1 of 3 study cohorts: group A (surgery during school year), group B (surgery during school holiday), and group C (surgery during summer break). Results There were 62 subjects (53 ACL and 12 MPFL reconstructions). A higher proportion of patients in group A required being driven to school (88.5%) than groups B (63.6%) or C (64.7%) (P < .05). A lower proportion of patients in group A returned to school immediately after surgery (3.8%) than groups B (36.4%) or C (88.2%) (P < .005). Among children who had never failed a test before surgery, a higher proportion of patients in group A failed a test (36.4%) after return to school than groups B (0%) or C (0%) (P < .05). Patients in group C had higher mean Likert scores (4.5) than groups A (3.8) or B (3.7) (P = .05) in response to the question “my grades suffered in my classes.” Delay in surgery was negatively correlated with IKDC, Lysholm, and Kujala questionnaire scores (P < .05). Conclusion In school-aged athletes with ligamentous knee injuries receiving operative treatment, surgery on a school day causes more academic difficulties than surgery during a holiday or summer break. Academic benefits of delaying surgery during the school year must be weighed against potentially worse outcomes encountered with prolonged surgical delay.
Databáze: OpenAIRE