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Rotatory Knee Instability pp 413–426Cite as

Return to Sport following ACL Reconstruction: The Australian Experience

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Abstract

Return to sport has become an important outcome measure following anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction surgery, but rates of return to pre-injury sport vary considerably. This chapter summarises the work of one research group in Melbourne, Australia, and compares those findings to other researches from Australia in this field.

Large cohort studies showed that most patients eventually attempt a return to sport. However, only approximately one-third resume and continue to play their pre-injury sport in the longer term. The rates of return to pre-injury sport appear to be higher in professional sports people, at least for Australian rules football.

For the most part, ACL reconstruction surgery is successful in terms of restoring knee stability and function. However, there are many factors involved in the decision-making process regarding return to play, and many athletes decide not to return for reasons other than their knee. Others may wish to return, but find that psychological barriers are too great to overcome.

Overall, returning to sport reflects an important participation outcome in this surgical group and should continue to be monitored in the longer term, as making a return to sport remains an important consideration for patients considering whether to undergo an ACL reconstruction in the first place.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Allied Health, La Trobe University, Melbourne, VIC, Australia

    Kate E. Webster PhD & Julian A. Feller MBBS, FRACS

  2. Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, OrthoSport Victoria, Epworth HealthCare, Melbourne, VIC, Australia

    Julian A. Feller MBBS, FRACS & Timothy S. Whitehead MBBS, FRACS

Authors
  1. Kate E. Webster PhD
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  2. Julian A. Feller MBBS, FRACS
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  3. Timothy S. Whitehead MBBS, FRACS
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Timothy S. Whitehead MBBS, FRACS .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. UPMC Center for Sports Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA

    Volker Musahl

  2. Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Mölndal, Sweden

    Jón Karlsson

  3. Orthopaedic Surgery, Kobe University School of Medicine, Kobe, Japan

    Ryosuke Kuroda

  4. Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy

    Stefano Zaffagnini

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Webster, K.E., Feller, J.A., Whitehead, T.S. (2017). Return to Sport following ACL Reconstruction: The Australian Experience. In: Musahl, V., Karlsson, J., Kuroda, R., Zaffagnini, S. (eds) Rotatory Knee Instability. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-32070-0_34

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-32070-0_34

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-32069-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-32070-0

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

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