Injury and local injection and the risk of foot/ankle osteoarthritis: a case–control study in retired UK male professional footballers
Authors' conclusion
Injury was a major risk factor for foot/ankle OA in retired UK male professional footballers.
Study context
- Population
- Retired UK male professional footballers
- Participants
- 424 participants
- Comparison
- Foot/ankle OA cases vs controls without foot/ankle OA: career foot/ankle injury and injection
- Casesn = 63
- Controlsn = 361reference
- Outcome
- Foot/ankle OA (GP-diagnosed or forefoot/ankle surgery after retirement) in relation to career foot/ankle injury and injection
Methodological detailslogistic regression, AUC analysis
- Logistic regression
- AUC analysis
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
Cases vs ControlsEstimate (95% CI)P value
P for injury proportions
aOR (injury) 4.23(1.88–9.48)
P < 0.001P for injection proportions
aOR (injection) 2.62(1.19–5.78)
P < 0.001Observational data: associations, not effects.
Further findings
| Outcome | Cases | Controls | P value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mean age and BMI | 63.2 | 63.0 | P = 0.457 |
| Mean age and BMI | 27.7 | 27.0 | P = 0.240 |
Discrimination of foot/ankle OA (AUC)
- AUC, injury
- 0.69 (95% CI 0.62-0.77)
- AUC, injury and injection
- 0.74 (95% CI 0.66-0.81)
- AUC, all risk factors
- 0.78 (95% CI 0.70-0.85)
Ankle OA only (subgroup)
- Similar results observed in footballers with ankle OA only
Original publication
Injury and local injection and the risk of foot/ankle osteoarthritis: a case–control study in retired UK male professional footballers. Rheumatology (Oxford). Published 22 October 2025. doi:10.
Composed by AI from the published abstract and checked against it. How Briefs are made →