Return to Sport and Work Following Distal Femoral Varus Osteotomy: A Systematic Review

Background: Distal femoral varus osteotomy (DFVO) is an effective surgical intervention for the management of symptomatic valgus malalignment of the knee. Because it preserves the native knee joint and its ligamentous stability, DFVO is preferred to total knee arthroplasty (TKA) in the young, active population. Purpose: We sought to assess return to work (RTW) and return to sport (RTS) rates following DFVO for valgus malalignment of the knee. Methods: For this systematic review, we searched EMBASE, MEDLINE, and Web of Science from inception through December 31, 2020. English language studies of all levels of evidence explicitly reporting on RTS and RTW rates following DFVO for valgus malalignment of the knee were eligible for inclusion. Results: Seven studies and 127 patients were included in our analysis. Mean age was 32.4 ± 8.8 years with men comprising 46.7% ± 22.3% of study populations. The mean RTS rate was 87.2% ± 10.7%, with a return to preoperative activity levels rate of 65.4% ± 26.8%. The mean RTW rate was 81.8% ± 23.3%, with a return to preoperative activity levels of 72.8% ± 18.1%. The mean reoperation rate was 35.6% ± 18.8% within a mean follow-up period of 5.5 ± 1.9 years. Conclusions: This systematic review of low-level studies found DFVO to be a safe and effective procedure for the management of genu valgum in young, active populations, with most patients returning to sport and/or work, although not all at their preoperative activity levels. A paucity of data surrounds RTS and RTW rates following DFVO. Future studies should explicitly report both return to activity rates and whether patients returned to their preoperative activity levels.