Does adding high occupational workload to high impact sport relate to worse hip-related symptoms and MRI-defined early-stage hip osteoarthritis features in men?

This study explored the association of occupational workload with [1] severity of hip-related symptoms (illness) and [2] magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-defined early-stage osteoarthritis (OA) features (disease) in symptomatic young adult male sub-elite football (soccer/Australian football) players. A cross-sectional study used baseline data from the Femoroacetabular impingement and hip OsteoaRthritis Cohort study. One hundred forty‑four (228 hips) symptomatic (hip and/or groin pain >6/12 and positive flexion-adduction-internal-rotation test) players completed hip MRI. The Scoring Hip OA with MRI (SHOMRI) system was used to score early-stage hip OA features (cartilage defects and labral tears). Each participant completed the International Hip Outcome Tool-33 (iHOT-33). Participants specified their occupational physical requirements, classified as high or low . Study aims were assessed using regression models adjusted for age, BMI, cam morphology size and symptom duration. Results showed that football players with high occupational workload (n = 35, 24%) had lower (worse) iHOT‑33 total scores (adjusted mean difference (aMD): −10.3 95% CI [−16.9, -3.7]), -Symptoms (aMD: −7.5, 95% CI [−14.1, −0.8]), -Sport (aMD: −10.5, 95% CI [−19.0, −1.9]), -Job (aMD: −19.7, 95% CI [−28.2, −11.2]) and -Social (aMD: −11.7, 95% CI [−20.0, −3.5]) subscale scores compared with football players with low occupational workload (n = 109, 76 %). The prevalence and severity of cartilage defects and labral tears did not differ between football players with high and low occupational workload. High occupational workload was associated with worse hip-related symptoms. MRI-defined early-stage OA features did not differ between football players with high and low occupational workload.