The current thoughts on ACL rehabilitation are based on the so-called accelerated programme, first used in the early nineties by American surgeon Donald Shelbourne. Shelbourne and his colleagues astutely noticed that those patients who did not adhere to the ‘softly softly’ program used then, actually got better more quickly than those who did and, furthermore, … Read more
Proprioception refers to the body’s ability to sense movement within joints and joint position. This ability enables us to know where our limbs are in space without having to look. It is important in all everyday movements but especially so in complicated sporting movements, where precise coordination is essential. This coordinated movement is a result … Read more
Throughout the healing process following a collar bone fracture, it is important that the patient maintains the range of movement in the elbow, wrist and hand of the affected limb by going through the movements of these joints every day. Once this has been completed the patient should progress to active abduction (moving the arm … Read more
Eccentric Strengthening An eccentric contraction is defined as a contraction where the muscle is lengthening, as opposed to a concentric contraction where the muscle is shortening, or an isometric contraction where there is no change in the muscle length. There is nothing magical about eccentric muscle strengthening in the role of alleviating tendon problems. The … Read more
Bob Ward is the chief physiotherapist at Middlesbrough Football Club. In his time at Boro’, the club have developed a state of the art training facility, complete with a fully up to date medical department. Probably more than any other physiotherapist he has had to deal with the comings and goings of numerous foreign players, … Read more
In a survey of injuries at a professional football club, it was reported that 26.8% of all injuries involved muscles and tendons (Lewin,1989). Muscles and their tendon attachments combine to form what are known as musculo-tendinous units. These musculo-tendinous units provide the force which is necessary for movement. Football is a dynamic sport which requires … Read more
Introduction Factors that contribute to arthrofibrosis Grafting techniques Rehab following contralateral patellar tendon grafting ACL rupture incidence in females ACL rehabilitation program Factors that Contribute to Arthrofibrosis What are the factors that contribute to arthrofibrosis following ACL reconstruction and which measures can counteract this? “We define arthrofibrosis as any symptomatic loss of extension or flexion … Read more