Report of the Primary Outcomes for Gait Mechanics in Men of the ACL-SPORTS Trial: Secondary Prevention With and Without Perturbation Training Does Not Restore Gait Symmetry in Men 1 or 2 Years After ACL Reconstruction

Zarzycki

Ito

et al. 2019

Self Cite

Women after anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury and ACL reconstruction (ACLR) are more likely than men to exhibit asymmetric movement patterns, which are associated with post-traumatic osteoarthritis. We developed the ACL specialized postoperative return-to-sports (ACL-SPORTS) randomized control trial to test the effect of strength, agility, plyometric, and secondary prevention (SAPP) training with and without perturbation training (SAPP + PERT) on gait mechanics in women after ACLR. We hypothesized that movement symmetry would improve over time across both groups but more so among the SAPP + PERT group. Thirtynine female athletes 3-9 months after primary ACLR were randomized to SAPP or SAPP + PERT training. Biomechanical testing during overground walking occurred before (Pre-training) and after (Post-training) training and one and 2 years post-operatively. Hip and knee kinematic and kinetic variables were compared using repeated measures analysis of variance with Bonferroni corrections for post hoc comparisons (α = 0.05). There was a time by limb interaction effect (p = 0.028) for peak knee flexion angle (PKFA), the primary outcome which powered the study, characterized by smaller PKFA in the involved compared to uninvolved limbs across treatment groups at Pretraining, Post-training, and 1 year, but not 2 years. Similar findings occurred across sagittal plane knee excursions and kinetics and hip extension excursion at midstance. There were no meaningful interactions involving group. Neither SAPP nor SAPP + PERT training improved walking mechanics, which persisted 1 but not 2 years after ACLR. Statement of clinical significance: Asymmetrical movement patterns persisted long after participants achieved symmetrical strength and functional performance, suggesting more time is needed to recover fully after ACLR.

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 67%

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confidence: 64%

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confidence: 74%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Gait Mechanics in Women of the ACL‐SPORTS Randomized Control Trial: Interlimb Symmetry Improves Over Time Regardless of Treatment Group

Zarzycki

Ito

et al. 2019

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“…Biomechanical variables of interest included walking speed, peak knee flexion angle (PKFA) and moment, knee flexion excursion during weight acceptance (i.e., the loading response phase of gait from initial contact to PKFA, approximately 0–25% of stance), knee extension excursion during the midstance phase of gait (occurring from PKFA to peak knee extension angle), and peak quadriceps muscle forces during gait (constrained to the first 50% of stance phase).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Slower Walking Speed Is Related to Early Femoral Trochlear Cartilage Degradation After ACL Reconstruction

Williams

Neal

et al. 2019

Post‐traumatic patellofemoral osteoarthritis (OA) is prevalent after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR) and early cartilage degradation may be especially common in the femoral trochlear cartilage. Determining the presence of and factors associated with early femoral trochlear cartilage degradation, a precursor to OA, is a critical preliminary step in identifying those at risk for patellofemoral OA development and designing interventions to combat the disease. Early cartilage degradation can be detected using quantitative magnetic resonance imaging measures, such as tissue T2 relaxation time. The purposes of this study were to (i) compare involved (ACLR) versus uninvolved (contralateral) femoral trochlear cartilage T2 relaxation times 6 months after ACLR, and (ii) determine the relationship between walking speed and walking mechanics 3 months after ACLR and femoral trochlear cartilage T2 relaxation times 6 months after ACLR. Twenty‐six individuals (age 23 ± 7 years) after primary, unilateral ACLR participated in detailed motion analyses 3.3 ± 0.6 months after ACLR and quantitative magnetic resonance imaging 6.3 ± 0.5 months after ACLR. There were no limb differences in femoral trochlear cartilage T2 relaxation times. Slower walking speed was related to higher (worse) femoral trochlear cartilage T2 relaxation times in the involved limb (Pearson's r: −0.583, p = 0.002) and greater interlimb differences in trochlear T2 relaxation times (Pearson's r: −0.349, p = 0.080). Walking mechanics were weakly related to trochlear T2 relaxation times. Statement of clinical significance: Slower walking speed was by far the strongest predictor of worse femoral trochlear cartilage health, suggesting slow walking speed may be an early clinical indicator of future patellofemoral OA after ACLR. © 2019 Orthopaedic Research Society. Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Orthop Res 38:645–652, 2020

Gait mechanics and tibiofemoral loading in men of the ACL‐SPORTS randomized control trial

Khandha

Zarzycki

et al. 2018

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The risk for post-traumatic osteoarthritis is elevated after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR), and may be especially high among individuals with aberrant walking mechanics, such as medial tibiofemoral joint underloading 6 months postoperatively. Rehabilitation training programs have been proposed as one strategy to address aberrant gait mechanics. We developed the anterior cruciate ligament specialized post-operative return-to-sports (ACL-SPORTS) randomized control trial to test the effect of 10 post-operative training sessions consisting of strength, agility, plyometric, and secondary prevention exercises (SAPP) or SAPP plus perturbation (SAPP + PERT) training on gait mechanics after ACLR. A total of 40 male athletes (age 23 ± 7 years) after primary ACLR were randomized to SAPP or SAPP + PERT training and tested at three distinct, post-operative time points: 1) after impairment resolution (Pre-training); 2) following 10 training sessions (Post-training); and 3) 2 years after ACLR. Knee kinematic and kinetic variables as well as muscle and joint contact forces were calculated via inverse dynamics and a validated electromyography-informed musculoskeletal model. There were no significant improvements from Pre-training to Post-training in either intervention group. Smaller peak knee flexion angles, extension moments, extensor muscle forces, medial compartment contact forces, and tibiofemoral contact forces were present across group and time, however the magnitude of interlimb differences were generally smaller and likely not meaningful 2 years postoperatively. Neither SAPP nor SAPP + PERT training appears effective at altering gait mechanics in men in the short-term; however, meaningful gait asymmetries mostly resolved between post-training and 2 years after ACLR regardless of intervention group. © 2018 Orthopaedic Research Society. Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Orthop Res 36:2364-2372, 2018.