Oct 8, 2015New AAOS Guidelines For ACL Injuries
The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) has released guidelines for ACL injury prevention programs and treatment, as well as providing and rehab and function checklists for return to play.
The AAOS’s “Appropriate Use Guideline for the Treatment of Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injuries” provides updated and specific guidance for orthopedic surgeons while recommending rehab steps and return-to-play protocols and procedures to ensure optimal recovery. The new Return to Play and Postoperative Rehabilitation checklists are designed to provide evidence-based guides that are “constructed in a way that realistically sets expectations for what needs to be accomplished,” Highlights of the guidelines include:
- Advice for administering ACL injury prevention programs for athletes who have no prior history of ACL reconstruction and no current history of ACL deficiency.
- A new evidence-based rehabilitation checklist that includes detailed items such as making sure the patient is confident in returning to sport, ensuring the graft and surgical site have fully healed, and that range of motion, balance, knee stability, strength, and function have been restored.
