The Effect of Longer versus Shorter Duration of Supervised Physiotherapy after ACL Reconstruction on the Vertical Jump Landing Limb Symmetry

The study investigated the vertical jump landing limb symmetry after ACLR between a group of patients receiving a longer supervised physiotherapeutic procedure and following a shorter supervised physiotherapy. Group I (n = 20) and Group II (n = 15) were males averagely 30 weeks after ACLR. The time since ACLR in both groups (Group I, 27.95 ± 8.26 weeks; Group II, 32.47 ± 7.74 weeks) was insignificant, although the duration of supervised physiotherapy between the two groups (Group I, 27.9 ± 8.26 weeks; Group II, 11.28 ± 8.20 weeks) significantly differenced. Group III (n = 20) were controls. Two-legged and one-legged vertical jumps landing vertical ground reaction force (VGRF) were bilaterally measured in all groups using force plates. The intragroup comparison of two-legged jump landing VGRF revealed p = 0.01 between the involved and uninvolved limbs in Group II. The intergroup comparison revealed p ≤ 0.001 in the two-legged vertical jump between Groups II and III, and I and II. The one-legged limb symmetry was comparable in studied groups. In the group following shorter supervised physiotherapy, the two-legged landing limb symmetry was on a worse level than in the group of patients receiving fully supervised procedure and healthy individuals. A fully supervised postoperative physiotherapy is more effective for improving two-legged vertical jump landing limb symmetry.