Knee-related Quality-of-Life, Symptoms, Pain, and Function in Sport in adults with a history of adolescent Sinding-Larsen-Johansson-disease: A registry-based cohort study

Introduction: Sinding-Larsen Johansson Disease (SLJD) is a common growth-related condition in adolescence that causes knee pain and decreased sports participation. However, little is known about its long-term consequences. We therefore aimed to investigate the long-term consequences on knee-related health of SLJD in adults diagnosed with SLJD during adolescence.

Materials and Methods: All adults aged 18-55 years, diagnosed in Danish secondary care with SLJD during 1977-2020, were invited to complete a survey on SLJD-history and current knee-related health. Knee-related health was assessed with the Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS) on subscales Quality of Life (QoL), Symptoms, Pain, Sport/Rec, and compare these to responses from a healthy cohort (Williamson et al. 2015, n=1000).

Results: 76 completed the survey (age 36.9±13 years, 55% female). Compared to the healthy cohort, the SLJD-group showed clinically relevant differences across KOOS subscales (QoL: -28 points, p<0.0001; Symptoms: -14 points, p<0.0001; Pain: -15 points, p<0.0001; Sport/Rec subscale -32 points, p<0.0001). Adults reporting “a lot of pain” vs. “little pain” during SLJD in adolescence had decreased KOOS-Symptom score (77 vs. 92 points, p<0.05). Adults reporting being “some”/“very” limited in their sports-participation during SLJD in adolescence, had increased risk of having “some”/“severe” symptoms from their SLJD as adults (Odds Ratio 95%CI >1.2, p<0.05).

Conclusion: As it seems SLJD can lead to reduced knee-health in adulthood, and certain severity-characteristics can result in a worse prognosis, the information given during clinical consultations with adolescents with SLJD should reflect this.