The Influence of the Menstrual Cycle and Oral Contraceptives on Knee Laxity or Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injury Risk: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Women are two to four times more prone to anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries than men. This raises questions about the role of the hormonal cycle in knee laxity, which may lead to increased tibial displacement and thus ACL tears. The objective was to update scientific knowledge on the influence of the menstrual cycle on knee laxity and the risk of ACL injury, with a focus on anterior tibial displacement, and on hormonal levels influenced or not by oral contraceptive use. Observational studies obtained from Pubmed, Web of Sciences and Scopus and published between 2015 and 2022 were included in this review. Studies were required to include data on menstrual cycle with/without oral contraceptives (OC) and knee laxity and/or ACL injury. A total of ten studies were selected for this systematic review. Three studies about hormone concentration and knee laxity showed an increase in estradiol during the ovulatory phase compared to the follicular phase. Of the five studies on OC, four showed a decrease in ACL laxity. Finally, four studies assessed ACL injury. The menstrual cycle appears to influence knee laxity in women. An increase in certain hormone levels was observed in the ovulatory and luteal phases when the anterior tibial translation was greater in the knee. However, based on the literature, we cannot conclude that there is a correlation between the menstrual cycle and the risk of ACL injury.

Keywords

• anterior cruciate ligament
• menstrual cycle
• women
• knee