Individualizing the Return to Sports After Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction

Because of the epidemiological incidence of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries, the high reinjury rates that occur when returning back to sports, the actual number of patients who return to the same premorbid level of competition, the high incidence of osteoarthritis at 5-10 year follow-ups and the effects on the long-term health of the knee and the quality of life for the patient, individualizing the return to sports after ACL reconstruction (ACL-R) is critical. However, one of the challenging but unsolved dilemmas, is what criteria and clinical decision making should be used to return an athlete back to sports following an ACL-R.

Source: Operative Techniques in Orthopaedics - February 23, 2017 Category: Orthopaedics Authors: George J. Davies Source Type: research