Rehabilitation program for patients after the anterior cruciate ligament of the knee plasty

Abstract

Introduction. Arthroscopic anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) plasty is currently a standard operation that makes it possible for patients to return to an active lifestyle. Despite its high prevalence, specific programs for postoperative patient rehabilitation have not yet been developed. Traditional approaches to rehabilitation are inferior and are unable to provide a complete recovery pro-cess. The developed program is structured, easy to use and includes the use of proprietary techniques and devices that acceler-ate the patient recovery process. Aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the developed author’s program for the rehabilitation of patients after ACL plasty. Material and methods. A total of 74 patients were examined after arthroscopic plasty of ACL. The primary group included 34 patients whose rehabilitation was carried out using the developed author’s program. The comparison group included 40 patients who underwent traditional unstructured rehabilitation after such an operation. Reconstructive treatment was carried out in the 1st week after surgery within the hospital, then on an outpatient basis. The control was carried out through electronic communication and patients visiting the rehabilitologist 1, 2, and 8 months after the operation. Evaluation criteria were the patient complaints, pain assessment on a visual analogue scale (VAS) and goniometry. Results. The final result was evaluated in 70 observations. Among the patients of the comparison group, 12 (33.3%) had pain from 2 to 6 VAS points by the end of the 1st month after surgery, and contractures were recorded in 8 (22.2%). In the primary group, only 4 (11.8%) patients during this period had pain of 3 and 4 points according to VAS, there were no restrictions on mobility. 1 month after surgery, 26 (76.5%) patients in the primary group were able to fully return to an active lifestyle and household tasks, in the comparison group 20 (55.5%) patients experienced difficulties in doing housework and returned to full activity only 3—5 months later. Conclusion. The developed rehabilitation program has shown its effectiveness compared to the standard one. It is convenient to use and may be recommended for patients after ACL plastic surgery both at the inpatient and outpatient stages of rehabilitation.