Proprioceptive acuity in patients with a torn anterior cruciate ligament following a rehabilitation programme

Hatcher, JO

Abstract

Introduction: Rupture of the Anterior Cruciate ligament (ACL) results in instability of the
knee and repeated episodes of "giving away", where the knee fails under conditions of
rotary stress. This instability has been attributed to poor proprioception, which in turn has
been credited to disruption of the mechanoreceptors. Although several studies show that
proprioception is improved by neuromuscular training, most studies use the contra-lateral
limb as a control, which raises the question of whether there may be a pre-disposing
proprioceptive deficit leading to injury.
Aims: To investigate the effect of rehabilitation of ACL deficient (ACLD) patients on a
variety of tests that measure proprioceptive acuity.
Methods: Subjects (N=18, mean age 34.5yrs) diagnosed with ACLD, were tested for
proprioceptive acuity prior to, and after 6- and 12-weeks of rehabilitation. Joint position
sense (JPS) using a reproduction of limb position, single leg static balance (postural sway)
using a stable force platform, and dynamic balance using the Star Excursion Balance
(SEBT) test were used as measures of proprioceptive acuity.
Results: Results show that there are significant differences in proprioception between
injured and non-injured limbs in terms of JPS and the SEBT although this was not in
measurement of postural sway. Furthermore these observed differences remained even after
12-weeks rehabilitation. There was a significant difference in the frontal plane
measurements of SEBT between the uninjured contra-lateral limbs when compared to a
group of normal knees of uninjured subjects.
Conclusions: It appears that JPS and dynamic balance is significantly affected by injury to
the ACL; however, the results suggest that some aspects of proprioception (postural
control) may well be a predisposing factor to ACL injury, whilst other aspects such as joint
position sense, occur as a result of injury. A 12-week rehabilitation period does not appear
to significantly improve proprioceptive acuity.

Citation

Hatcher, J. Proprioceptive acuity in patients with a torn anterior cruciate ligament following a rehabilitation programme. (Thesis). University of Salford

• Thesis Type: Thesis
• Deposit Date: Aug 18, 2021
• Award Date: Oct 1, 2007