Post operative immobilization is often utilized after ACL surgery in an attempt to support the knee joint. The reasoning behind the bracing includes reducing abnormal forces across the knee, patient comfort, and reducing the risk of injury to the recently repaired tissues. Research has currently not found a strong benefit of early post operative bracing for...
ACL injuries are becoming more common among both recreational and professional athletes. The majority of these athletes who sustain complete tears of their ACL ligament will undergo ACL reconstruction and intensive post operative Physical Therapy. Often, the ACL surgery is delayed after the injury to allow the athlete to regain their lost range of motion...
In our prior posts on ACL injuries we have discussed the support in the medical literature for the conservative management of these tears using Physical Therapy alone. The evidence supports the conservative management of segment of the injured population who are able to “cope” with their ACL tear and still function at a high level...
ACL injuries are on the rise with over 250,000 tears occurring each year. Thankfully many of these non contact injuries to the knee can be prevented through proper pre and in season Physical Therapy programs. Despite our best preventative efforts many athletes will sustain an ACL tear of their knee requiring surgery and post operative Physical...
In the last few years, research has been published challenging the commonly held belief that every ACL tear should have surgery. In our prior blog posts we have detailed the research studies showing Physical Therapy can prevent the need for ACL surgery among young, healthy adults. Many of these patients are called “copers” due to...
In prior posts we have discussed the rising rates of ACL injuries among adolescent injuries. In particular, among females who are up to 8 times more likely to tear their ACL compared to their male peers in the same sport. Efforts to reduce our Boulder County athletes’ ACL injury risk are underway and promising results have...
In our previous posts we have detailed the risk factors for ACL injury and the effectiveness of Physical Therapy to reduce this risk especially among adolescents. A percentage of athletes who return to sport will re injure their ACL leading to further surgeries and Physical Therapy. A delayed return to sport allows the athlete more...
Athletes often return to sports around 6-9 months after ACL reconstruction and Physical Therapy. In a previous ACL post we described how important these Physical Therapy sessions are to an athlete’s recovery. Each session after surgery is designed to move the athlete closer to the all important return to play. New research is showing how...
ACL injuries are on the rise across the United States as more individuals participate in athletic activities. As described in prior posts, the majority of these ligament injuries do not involve contact but rather occur with deceleration and directional changes in sports. Athletes with decreased strength, balance, and coordination are unable to dissipate forces placing...
In our experience, a sub group of patients who have successfully returned to sports after an ACL injury continue to be at risk for future injury. Physical Therapy interventions can significantly reduce the risk of future injury to either an athlete’s involved or uninvolved leg. Athletes who complete their prescribed Physical Therapy visits have both...