BACKGROUND Athletes exhibit deficits in knee proprioception following anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction. Neuromuscular training programs improve knee proprioception in uninjured athletes; however, the effects on knee proprioception in athletes who… Click to show full abstract
BACKGROUND Athletes exhibit deficits in knee proprioception following anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction. Neuromuscular training programs improve knee proprioception in uninjured athletes; however, the effects on knee proprioception in athletes who have undergone anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction is not well understood. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of a neuromuscular training program on knee proprioception in athletes who have returned to sport following anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction. METHODS Twenty-four male athletes, who had undergone anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction within the previous 6-12 months and returned to sport, participated in this randomized controlled trial. Athletes were randomly allocated to an experimental group (n = 12) that took part in an 8-week neuromuscular training program or a control group (n = 12) that simply continued their typical training routine. Knee position sense was assessed at baseline and after the 8-week period (post-testing). One-way analysis of covariance, with baseline performance included as a covariate, was used to compare knee position sense errors for the reconstructed limbs of the experimental and control groups at the post-testing time point. FINDINGS Knee position sense errors decreased by 51.7% for the experimental group and only 4.4% for the control group over the 8-week period. As a result, the experimental group demonstrated lower knee position sense errors, compared to the control group, at the post-testing time point (P < .001). INTERPRETATION Athletes with a history of anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction may benefit from participation in a neuromuscular training program, even after completing post-operative rehabilitation.
               
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