Prospective case-control study tracking 63 young athletes after ACL reconstruction and 39 uninjured controls across 12 months of sport participation to determine whether ACLR athletes sustain second ACL injuries at higher rates than healthy peers, and whether female athletes are at greater risk than males.
When a young female athlete returns to cutting and pivoting sports after ACLR, counsel her — and target rehabilitation. Around contralateral knee risk: her odds of tearing the opposite ACL within one year are 6 times higher than her male counterparts and exceed her own risk of graft rupture.
Standard rehab focused solely on the reconstructed limb misses the highest-risk injury.
Prospective case-control study tracking 63 young athletes after ACL reconstruction and 39 uninjured controls across 12 months of sport participation to determine whether ACLR athletes sustain second ACL injuries at higher rates than healthy peers, and whether female athletes are at greater risk than males.
When a young female athlete returns to cutting and pivoting sports after ACLR, counsel her — and target rehabilitation. Around contralateral knee risk: her odds of tearing the opposite ACL within one year are 6 times higher than her male counterparts and exceed her own risk of graft rupture.
Standard rehab focused solely on the reconstructed limb misses the highest-risk injury.