Treatment for Acute Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) Tear By: Kyle Zeka

Purpose of This Study A five year outcome of randomized trial was used to analyze ACL tears with different reconstruction times

Null and Alternative Hypothesis Null Hypothesis: Early ACL reconstruction and rehabilitation has improved results on mobility and flexibility Alternative Hypothesis: Early ACL reconstruction and rehabilitation has no improvement on mobility and flexibility

Important Definitions and Acronyms (KOOS) - Knee injury and osteoarthritis score Osteoarthritis - A type of arthritis that occurs when flexible tissue at the ends of bones wears down Rehabilitation - Restoring someone’s health or normal life through training and therapy after injury Reconstruction - repair of an organ or part by reconstructive surgery

How The Study Was Conducted 121 patients between ages 18-35 were selected with ACL tears in a previously uninjured knee 62 patients were assigned to early reconstruction on their ACL, 59 were assigned to a delayed reconstruction 5 years later they regathered the 121 patients Compared the early reconstruction to the delayed reconstruction

Delayed ACL Reconstruction

Results of the Study Immediate reconstruction did not improve the results of mobility or flexibility, delayed reconstruction proved to have the same effect on the patient's ACL injury

Was the Null Hypothesis Rejected or Accepted? The null hypothesis was rejected as there was no improvement in the ACL injuries, there was no evidence saying that one procedure was more harmful or effective than the other