Hamstring Injuries in Professional Soccer Players: Extent of MRI-Detected Edema and the Time to Return to Play.

BACKGROUND

Discrepancies exist in the literature regarding the association of the extent of injuries assessed on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with recovery times.

HYPOTHESIS: MRI-detected edema in grade 1 hamstring injuries does not affect the return to play (RTP).

STUDY

DESIGN

Retrospective cohort study.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level 4.

METHODS

Grade 1 hamstring injuries from 22 professional soccer players were retrospectively reviewed. The extent of edema-like changes on fluid-sensitive sequences from 1.5-T MRI were evaluated using craniocaudal length, percentage of cross-sectional area, and volume. The time needed to RTP was the outcome. Negative binomial regression analysis tested the measurements of MRI-detected edema-like changes as prognostic factors.

RESULTS

The mean craniocaudal length was 7.6 cm (SD, 4.9 cm; range, 0.9-19.1 cm), the mean percentage of cross-sectional area was 23.6% (SD, 20%; range, 4.4%-89.6%), and the mean volume was 33.1 cm3 (SD, 42.6 cm3; range, 1.1-161.3 cm3). The mean time needed to RTP was 13.6 days (SD, 8.9 days; range, 3-32 days). None of the parameters of extent was associated with RTP.

CONCLUSION

The extent of MRI edema in hamstring injuries does not have prognostic value.

CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Measuring the extent of edema in hamstring injuries using MRI does not add prognostic value in clinical practice.