Young Athletes and ACL Surgeries: Higher Return Rate and Healthier Knees

Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) reconstruction is now one of the most commonly performed knee surgery procedures. Its history dates back to 1845, when French doctor Amédée Bonnet wrote about three essential signs of acute ACL rupture.

From 1845 to 2014, the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine's Specialty Day explored the latest techniques and successes of ACL surgery today in New Orleans. Doctors presented a study that revealed the high return rate of high-level college football players following ACL reconstruction.

"Our data shows that about 82% of Division 1 NCAA football players return after ACL surgery, with that percentage reaching up to 94% when we focus on players who were starters before being injured," said lead author Dr. Jimmy Hoshang Daruwalla from the Emory University Department of Orthopaedics in Atlanta in a news release.

Just as recent as the 1980s and 1990s, ACL surgery witnessed some setbacks. There was certainly a higher success rate, but there were post-surgery problems regarding stiffness and mobility of the patellar and patellar tendon. Then the 21^st century rolled around, and with a higher occurrence of these injuries due to a greater participation in sports, they have nearly solved every setback with the surgery.

Nowadays, Dr. James Andrews is known as the "Most Valuable Doctor in Sports," performing Tommy John surgeries and ACL reconstructions for the best athletes in the country. Andrews Sports Medicine and Orthopaedic Center is a leader in ACL research and surgery, and Dr. Andrews has performed various surgeries on athletes who have suffered multiple ACL tears.

Even athletes who rarely saw playing time witnessed a 73% return rate, and those who saw minimal playing time had an 88% return rate. The AOSSM believes that their research can help sports medicine experts and specialists improve treatments and rehabilitation routines for collegiate athletes in order to have them return to the field with the lowest possible risk of suffering a setback.

To read more about the AOSSM study, visit this EurekAlert! news release.