Importance of Complete rehabilitation following knee injury. Knee Review 2013.

As we review our rehabilitation programs for major knee problems there appears to be one re occurring theme. It seems many people return to sports and recreational activities following knee injury with an incomplete rehabilitation. This is particularly so in looking at people returning to sport following ACL surgery. This becomes very evident on testing, particularly on video analysis of sometimes quite simple tasks such as jumping, hoping and running.

The body’s ability to protect the injured joint is quite remarkable but when this behaviour continues beyond the injury it leads to ongoing weakness, poor performance and increased risk of re injury.

The most common finding is a poor ability of the knee to control eccentric movements such as decelerating in landing. This has the effect of exposing the knee to undue force as the joint literally loses its ability to act like a spring. Not only this, but it effects balance and sports performance and exposes you to increased risk. In the short term you may be prone to reinjure, but in the long term it may well contributor to joint wear and arthritis.

If you have suffered a knee injury, had recent surgery for a meniscus tear, chondral damage or ACL reconstruction it pays to do a complete rehabilitation. Using tools such as video analysis we can screen you for deficiency’s and then write you a program to correct these. At reassessment we often put these video tests up back to back so you can see your improvement.

If you would like to know more you can call us at the clinic.