“Counseling a patient on how to safely and consistently return to a positive fitness program, ensures that they will maintain flexibility and strength, as well as keeping their weight at their ideal body weight,” Dr. Hammond says.
Rehab matters regardless of what other treatments patients receive, says Adam Culvenor, a sports and exercise medicine researcher at La Trobe University in Bundoora, Australia, who wasn’t involved in the study.
“Once these injuries occur, optimally managing them with an intense and progressive period of rehabilitation under the guidance of a physical therapist [irrespective of the decision to have surgery or not] to strengthen the muscles around the knee to facilitate a return to function and physical activity is likely to reduce the risk of osteoarthritis and persistent symptoms longer-term,” he says by email.
Reference
- Snoeker B, Turkiewicz A, Magnusson K, et al. Risk of knee osteoarthritis after different types of knee injuries in young adults: A population-based cohort study. Br J Sports Med. 2019 Dec 11. pii: bjsports-2019-100959. doi: 10.1136/bjsports-2019-100959. [Epub ahead of print]
