Citation

Huttunen TT, Kannus P, Rolf CG, Felländer-Tsai L, Mattila VM. Am. J. Sports Med. 2014; 42(10): 2419-2423.

Affiliation

Department of Orthopedics and Trauma Surgery, University Hospital of Tampere, Tampere, Finland Division of Orthopedics and Biotechnology, Department of Clinical Science, Intervention and Technology, Karolinska Institutet, Solna, Sweden Department of Orthopedics, Karolinska University Hospital, Huddinge, Sweden ville.mattila@uta.fi.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2014, American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine, Publisher SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/0363546514540599

PMID

25056989

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Population-based incidence rates and trends of acute Achilles tendon ruptures are not known. It is also not known whether recent high-quality randomized controlled trials not favoring surgery have had an effect on treatment protocols.

PURPOSE: To assess the incidence of acute Achilles tendon ruptures in Sweden and to examine the trends in surgical treatment. STUDY DESIGN: Descriptive epidemiology study.

METHODS: We conducted a nationwide registry-based study including all adult (≥18 years of age) inpatient and outpatient hospital visits because of an acute Achilles tendon rupture in Sweden between 2001 and 2012.

RESULTS: We identified a total of 27,702 patients (21,979 men, 79%) with acute Achilles tendon ruptures between 2001 and 2012. In 2001, the sex-specific incidence of acute Achilles tendon ruptures was 47.0 (per 100,000 person-years) in men and 12.0 in women. In 2012, the corresponding values were 55.2 in men and 14.7 in women, with an increase of 17% in men and 22% in women. The proportion of surgically treated patients declined from 43% in 2001 to 28% in 2012 in men and from 34% in 2001 to 22% in 2012 in women.

CONCLUSION: The incidence of acute Achilles tendon ruptures in Sweden is increasing. The most probable reason for this increase is the rise in the number of older adults participating in high-demand sports. The proportion of surgically treated patients is decreasing most likely because of recent high-quality randomized controlled trials and their meta-analyses supporting similar results between surgical and nonsurgical approaches.

Language: en