Knee OA and ROM (written by Elizabeth Hofheinz @ OTW)
Say it with me…Range of Motion! A new study—recently presented at the annual meeting of the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine—is showing that the onset of osteoarthritis (OA) may be related to a loss of knee motion after reconstructive ACL surgery. The team found that patients who showed motion limitations after surgery were more likely to develop arthritic changes in the knee.
“Our research shows that patients given rehabilitation that emphasizes full motion be obtained and maintained throughout time after surgery have more favorable results on X-rays than patients who lose motion,” said lead researcher K. Donald Shelbourne, MD, founder, Shelbourne Knee Center in the July 9, 2011 news release.
The study examined data from 780 patients who were at least five years after ACL reconstruction with a patellar tendon graft. In individual follow-ups, patients were evaluated and rated based on knee range of motion tests and radiographs. The percentage of patients with normal radiographs (no arthritic changes in the knee) was 71% in patients with normal range of motion compared to 55% of patients who showed deficits...
