Overview

• The La Trobe University team tracked 112 young adults for five years after ACL reconstruction using MRI assessments and patient-reported outcomes.
• At one year, participants reporting crepitus had more than 2.5 times the rate of full-thickness patellar cartilage defects in the kneecap along with greater pain and poorer function.
• Across the next four years, those with crepitus did not experience worse pain or function than peers without crepitus.
• The authors say the findings challenge using crepitus as an early osteoarthritis marker in this group and urge clinicians to avoid overinterpreting knee noises.
• The research, published in Arthritis Care & Research, offers reassurance to younger patients, though prior studies show roughly half of people with ACL rupture develop osteoarthritis within a decade.