A comparison of results of arthroscopic-assisted anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction between workers' compensation and noncompensation patients.

This investigation compared the results of arthroscopic-assisted anterior cruciate ligament patellar tendon autogenous reconstruction in patients who received Workers' Compensation (WC) benefits with results of similar surgery in patients who did not receive such benefits, to determine if differences existed based on this variable alone. Thirty-eight patients (19 WC benefits, 19 NoWC) were matched for age, injury chronicity, number of prior operations, and months of follow-up. All had the same operation and rehabilitation. A significant difference was found between the groups in the mean number of days of lost employment preoperatively (WC, 122 days; NoWC, 3 days) and postoperatively (WC, 222 days; NoWC, 37 days). At follow-up (mean, 27 months), 17 patients in group WC had returned to work (6 with symptoms) and 2 were disabled. All patients in group NoWC had returned to work, 2 with symptoms. There was no significant difference between the groups for anterior-posterior displacements, functional limitations with daily or sports activities, patient perception of the knee condition, the overall rating score, or complications. The number of mean days of lost employment in group WC could not be accounted for from factors that normally effect anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction results. We hypothesize that other factors such as wage systems that support WC injuries long-term, inability of employers to modify job requirements, inability of employees to receive job retraining, or lack of proper immediate diagnosis and treatment of the injury, may have lead to the large number of lost working days in group WC.