Purpose
To quantify the 1-year cumulative incidence of capitellar osteochondritis dissecans
(OCD) in preadolescent baseball players and identify the risk factors associated with
this condition.
Methods
In total, 1,275 school-aged baseball players (aged 6-11 years) without an established
diagnosis of capitellar OCD were enrolled in this longitudinal, observational study.
One year later, all players underwent ultrasonographic examination of the throwing
elbow on the playing field. Elbows with abnormal ultrasonographic findings at this
time then underwent radiographic examination. Data for the groups with and without
capitellar OCD were analyzed using multivariate logistic regression models.
Results
The 1-year cumulative incidence of capitellar OCD was 1.8% (95% confidence interval,
1.1%-2.7%). On multivariate analysis, players aged 10 to 11 years were 3.96 times
more likely to have capitellar OCD (95% confidence interval, 1.10-18.97) than those
aged 6 to 9 years; however, starting baseball at an earlier age, number of years played,
training hours per week, player position, and history of elbow pain were not significantly
associated with capitellar OCD. Only 34.8% of players with capitellar OCD reported
elbow pain.
Conclusions
The risk of OCD of the capitellum developing within a 1-year period in preadolescent
baseball players was 1.8%. Players aged 10 to 11 years had a significantly greater
risk of capitellar OCD development than those aged 6 to 9 years.
Level of Evidence
Level III, local nonrandom sample cohort.
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Article info
Publication history
Accepted:
August 9,
2018
Received:
February 19,
2018
Footnotes
See commentary on page 67
The authors report the following potential conflicts of interest or sources of funding: This study was supported in part by a Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C) from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology of Japan (grant No. 26462300). Full ICMJE author disclosure forms are available for this article online, as supplementary material.
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© 2018 by the Arthroscopy Association of North America
ScienceDirect
Access this article on ScienceDirectLinked Article
- Editorial Commentary: “There's No Crying in Baseball,” But There Is Osteochondritis Dissecans of the ElbowArthroscopyVol. 35Issue 1
- PreviewOsteochondritis dissecans of the capitellum is a rare and ultrasonically identifiable disease of the dominant elbow of preadolescent baseball players as young as 9 years of age. We must choose to protect these young players, either by initiating a screening program to identify the disease at an early stage when treatment results in an acceptable lifelong outcome or by vociferously limiting the daily, weekly, and yearly participation in this vulnerable group.
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