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Link possible between oral contraceptive use, ACL injury in females
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Researchers from Denmark have uncovered a potential link between oral contraceptive use and instances of ACL injuries that required surgical intervention in women.
The researchers evaluated 4,497 women who were treated operatively for an ACL injury between July 2005 and December 2011 and 8,858 age-matched, uninjured controls.
Data in the operative cohort were culled from the Danish Knee Ligament Reconstruction Registry, and patients were divided into subgroups based on whether they used oral contraceptives at the time of injury, within 5 years of injury or not at all. Longevity of oral contraceptive usage was also noted, and a dose-response analysis was performed for all patients who had used oral contraceptives. Relative risk of sustaining an ACL injury requiring surgical treatment according to OC use was determined via conditional logistic regression analysis.
Overall, a 0.82 relative risk rate for sustaining an ACL injury requiring surgery was observed between those who used and never used oral contraceptives. A decrease in this rate was observed in long-term oral contraceptive users (0.80) and recent users (0.81).
No significant dose-response link was found between sustaining an ACL injury requiring surgery and using oral contraceptives for 1, 2 and 3 years during a 5-year span, and any term of oral contraceptive use during a 4-year period had no effect on the relative risk rate, according to the researchers. – by Christian Ingram
Disclosure: Rahr-Wagner received support from University of Aarhus, Denmark; Danish Rheumatism Association; Aase Einar Danielsens Foundation; Jacob and Wife Olga Madsens Foundation; and Elisabeth and Karl Ejnar Nis-Hanssens Scholarship. The other authors have no relevant financial disclosures.
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