Background Due to risk of reinjury and osteoarthritis, timing of return back to level 1 (jumping, pivoting and hard cutting) sports after surgeries is important. Dance injuries are much like sports injuries and literature is not available on the time to return to dance, rate of reinjury and osteoarthritis following arthroscopic surgery.

Objective In this study, we investigated rates of osteoarthritis and reinjury following arthroscopic knee surgery in folk dancers.

Design Retrospective clinical study.

Setting Professional folk dance group.

Interventions (or Assessment of Risk Factors) Risk of reinjury and osteoarthritis following knee surgery in professional folk dancers.

Results The dancers suffered 14 knee injuries requiring arthroscopic surgery (3 meniscus tears, 4 anterior cruciate ligament tears one of which is with posterolateral corner tear, 1 posterior cruciate ligament tear, 1 patellar dislocation, 1 infrapatellar bursitis, 2 Hoffa’s fat pad syndromes, 2 symptomatic medial plicaes) during a ten-year period.Following surgeries, the dancers could restart to perform live on the stage in 19,5 ±12 (range:5 to52) weeks on average. Injuries and postoperative times to return to dance was 56,7± 23 (26–108) months to follow-up with the same clinic and same surgeon for the patients. One dancer had reoperation due to meniscus retear after 4 years. The rate of reinjury is 7.14% after knee surgery. All of the dancers who underwent arthroscopic knee surgery were evaluated for osteoarthritis according to the Kellgren Lawrence classification. The osteoarthritis were classified as G:0 in 7 patients, G:1 in 3 patients, and G:2 in 4 patients on final knee radiographs. All of the operated patients continued with their careers in dancing.

Conclusions Knee surgeries for the cases mentioned above do not necessarily put an end to their dancing career. This may be attributed to the dancers’ balance and coordination skill focus compared to endurance focus during training.