Oct 5–11, 2026 · 34 new studies, 10 reviews · Sports Medicine archive · All weeks
The new Sports Medicine research The Reduction sent the week of Oct 5–11, 2026, with the week’s most recent reviews, each with a one-line summary.
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After anterior latissimus dorsi plus teres major transfer for irreparable anterosuperior cuff tears, matched patients with preoperative pseudoparesis reached the same final scores, motion, strength, and retear rates as controls, with larger gains.
In 70 pediatric ACL reconstructions, adding lateral extra-articular tenodesis did not change 3D gait kinematics at about 4 months, supporting its short-term safety in young patients.
In cadaver elbows, sequential distal UCL release increased both valgus and internal rotation instability, with internal rotation increasing more, which may explain the poorer prognosis of distal tears.
In 100 quadriceps tendon autograft ACL reconstructions, early quadriceps strength symmetry (3 to 9 months) was independently associated with 2-year IKDC and Lysholm scores, supporting emphasis on early quadriceps recovery in rehabilitation.
At Grand Slam matches, Roland Garros produced greater hitting volume than the Australian Open, and top-10 players hit less overall with more prolonged rallies, informing workload monitoring and recovery planning.
Across 6 seasons of community rugby, most concussions occurred in matches, usually during tackles and in the second half, and women were more likely than men to have severe time-loss (>28 days, 46% vs 30%).
After arthroscopic labral repair with remplissage, most of 45 patients met clinically meaningful outcome thresholds; larger external rotation deficits tied to medial/superior Hill-Sachs lesions and non-dominant arm did not worsen outcomes.
Ankle cartilage damage, often posttraumatic, can progress to end-stage osteoarthritis with a major disease burden in young patients; evidence on nonoperative and early treatment is weak, and earlier recognition and intervention may improve long-term outcomes.
This meta-analysis of EMG studies found return-to-sport ACLR patients show some task-specific muscle activation differences versus controls during landing, but most comparisons showed no difference or only limited evidence.
Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction and Mental Health: A Bidirectional Relationship.
After ACL reconstruction, pre-existing mental health diagnoses affected outcomes only at 2 weeks, while non-sport-related injuries carried a higher rate of new mental health diagnoses (7% vs 1.6%).
When legal reasoning contradicts sports orthopaedic evidence.
ICCRA statement criticizes an English High Court ruling linking ankle arthroscopy during fracture fixation to a footballer's arthritis, arguing it contradicts evidence that posttraumatic arthritis follows the fracture itself and arthroscopy is standard care.
Meniscal Root Tears: Epidemiology, Diagnosis, Management, and Outcomes.
This review covers meniscal root tears, which impair knee load distribution and speed osteoarthritis; MRI and arthroscopy diagnose them, and repair outperforms meniscectomy or nonoperative care in well-selected patients, though rehabilitation protocols remain unstandardized.
Biologic and Synthetic Augmentation in Rotator Cuff Repair: Emerging Technologies.
Review of rotator cuff repair augmentation: xenografts are no longer favored, allografts and synthetics are of uncertain benefit, and bioinductive collagen implants have the strongest evidence, with biceps autograft a cost-effective option.
In this randomized trial, leukocyte-rich and leukocyte-poor PRP for lateral epicondylitis both improved wrist extensor strength at 12 months, but neither beat saline by a clinically meaningful margin.
This commentary argues the 2025 consensus review on navicular fractures in elite athletes contains errors, including a unit-conversion mistake: mean return to sport after surgery is about 19.7 weeks, not 8.2, along with eligibility-criteria discrepancies.
Predictors of PROMIS Pain Interference Two Years After Arthroscopic Rotator Cuff Repair.
In 152 patients two years after arthroscopic rotator cuff repair, better preoperative ASES predicted less pain interference, while higher comorbidity burden and worse depression scores predicted more; useful for preoperative counseling.
In a claims database of 5269 patients, reverse shoulder arthroplasty showed 95% 10-year survivorship; revision risk was higher with younger age, male sex, prior cuff repair, and glenohumeral osteoarthritis.
In anterosuperior irreparable cuff tears with narrow acromiohumeral distance, adding middle trapezius transfer to latissimus/teres transfer outperformed superior capsular reconstruction, with better elevation, strength, AHD, and far fewer structural failures (10% vs 64%).
In 130 women with rotator cuff tears, proximal humeral cortical thickness on shoulder MRI predicted osteoporosis well (AUC about 0.96); a thickness under 4.5 mm should prompt DXA referral, pending external validation.
After ACL reconstruction with vancomycin-soaked grafts, serum vancomycin peaked 6 to 24 hours postop and stayed far below toxic levels (max 0.704 μg/mL), supporting systemic safety of the practice.
In 105 female athletes, negative body image strongly correlated with REDs risk, partly mediated by disordered eating, suggesting psychological screening and education could help prevent REDs.
An international expert Delphi panel reached consensus that unloader bracing is a biomechanically rational, useful adjunct for selected patients with tibiofemoral cartilage lesions, including perioperative protection and as a screen before osteotomy.
In 159 hip arthroscopies for FAI, neuraxial and general anesthesia gave similar 2-year complications, revision rates, and patient-reported outcomes; neuraxial reduced narcotic use and early pain but lengthened recovery stay.
In a retrospective comparison of 62 borderline and dysplastic women undergoing hip arthroscopy for FAIS, periportal capsulotomy gave greater short-term improvement in patient-reported outcomes than interportal capsulotomy, with a nonsignificantly lower revision rate.
In a propensity-matched comparison, intratunnel anchor fixation and transtibial pull-through meniscus root repair gave comparable short-term outcomes and reoperation rates, with high satisfaction in both groups.
In 76 patients with staged bilateral hip arthroscopy for FAI, patient-reported outcomes, revision rates, and conversion to THA did not differ whether the second hip was done less than or at least one year after the first.
MRI study of 123 skeletally immature knees found femoral condyle OCD lesions lie closer to the physis in younger, female, and lateral cases; a 16 mm drill or screw length leaves roughly a 3 mm safe zone.
Higher lateral passive anterior tibial subluxation on pre-ACLR MRI was associated with graft failure, and subluxation progressed more over time in patients whose grafts failed than in matched controls.
In 102 repairs, postoperative supraspinatus volume increase on MRI was linked to tendon healing, lower retear odds, and better strength and Constant scores.
An AI planning system for open wedge high tibial osteotomy measured alignment and correction angles as accurately as attending surgeons while cutting planning time from about 4 minutes to 9 seconds per image.
In 42 patients with refractory hallux sesamoid pathology, sesamoidectomy improved pain and function scores at about two years, including in athletes, though larger long-term studies are needed.
An international expert consensus (97 surgeons) on reverse shoulder arthroplasty, revision surgery, and rehabilitation for rotator cuff tears: most of 47 statements reached agreement, but no consensus emerged on follow-up and imaging surveillance.
This ESSKA-ESA formal consensus offers twelve graded recommendations on defining, classifying, and diagnosing partial-thickness posterosuperior rotator cuff tears, noting multifactorial etiology, unpredictable progression, and imaging limitations.
Low early post-operative pain is a strong predictor of favorable outcomes after rotator cuff repair.
In 178 rotator cuff repairs, low pain at one month (predicted by no subscapularis tear, no preoperative analgesics, lower baseline pain) marked a better functional course through one year, without differences in complications or revisions.
Testosterone-Optimizing Strategies in Athletes.
This narrative review covers legal ways athletes can support testosterone: adequate nutrition and sleep, heavy resistance training, and avoiding endocrine disruptors and analgesic overuse, while noting booster supplements lack strong evidence.
A scoping review found only nine heterogeneous studies on revising ACL reconstruction after failed combined ACLR with lateral extra-articular procedures; evidence is sparse, so revision strategy should be individualized.
Step-by-step insight into gait analysis: A narrative review unlocking knee biomechanics.
Narrative review guiding clinicians through interpreting gait analysis markers (joint angles, moments, alignment) in knee osteoarthritis and ACL injury, calling for standardized protocols to bring it into routine care.
Global Burden of Disease analysis found shoulder dislocation incidence, prevalence, and disability declined modestly worldwide from 1990 to 2021, with peak burden in young males and adolescent females; prevention should target athletes, military personnel, and elderly women.
This review supports early ACL reconstruction in skeletally immature patients over nonoperative care, outlining physeal-sparing, physeal-respecting, and transphyseal techniques chosen by growth potential, with age-tailored rehabilitation and multidisciplinary care.
A Narrative Review of Softball Pitching Workload and Pitch Counts in Relationship to Injury.
Narrative review finds little research on workload and pitch counts in softball pitchers, who face increased overuse injury risk; one study linked over 85 pitches per game to more injuries, and no pitch count limits exist in the US or Canada.
Management of first-time patellar dislocation: The ESSKA 2024 formal consensus-Part 2.
ESSKA consensus on first-time patellar dislocation favors individualized care, MPFL reconstruction over repair when surgery is needed, physical therapy for all patients, and no clear long-term benefit from bracing.
An international Delphi consensus found 98% agreement on medial meniscal root tears: diagnose with MRI, repair symptomatic tears without advanced arthritis via transtibial pull-out, but no agreement on managing asymptomatic tears.
Juvenile Knee Osteochondritis Dissecans.
Review of juvenile knee osteochondritis dissecans: stability on exam and MRI guides care, with nonoperative treatment for stable lesions in younger patients, surgery for failures or unstable lesions, and return-to-sport rates above 85%.
Sport-specific differences in ACL injury, treatment and return to sports: Basketball.
Reviews ACL injury management in basketball players, covering diagnosis, graft and surgical choice, rehabilitation, and return to sport, concluding that a multidisciplinary, individualized approach offers a good chance of returning to pre-injury level.
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