19 Dec Did your child twist their knee during soccer ⚽️and felt a sharp 😣pain causing them to collapse with pain Or perhaps your child got tackled at rugby 🏈and continued to play but hobbled off the field with some soreness only to find they couldn’t move their knee 😳the next morning

If you answered yes to any of the above scenarios, then your child may have injured their Anterior Cruciate Ligament ( ACL) in their knee! The ACL is one of the major ligaments in the knee.😳

Injuries to the ACL are relatively common knee injuries among athletes.🏃‍♂️They occur most frequently in those who play sports involving pivoting and sudden change in directions (e.g. rugby, basketball, netball, soccer, downhill skiing)🏈🏀⚽️⛷. They can range from mild (such as small tears/sprain) to severe (when the ligament is completely torn). ACL injuries can occur in with both contact and non-contact, with females tending to have a higher incidence rate of ACL injury than males.

In the past, Complete ACL tears were often managed with surgery to repair it, but recently there has been evidence indicating that ACL ruptures can be successfully managed without surgery and that having surgery did not give better outcomes in the long term.🤔 After an ACL injury, regardless of whether surgery will take place or not, physiotherapy management focuses on regaining range of movement, strength, proprioception and stability. 🦵

One recent research has shown that a person’s beliefs is the key 🔑factor in determining success in ACL rehabilitation, because it requires a highly motivated individual to achieve optimal recovery after an ACL injury. A highly motivated individual is more likely to comply and follow through on rehabilitation for a successful outcome.

If your child is still struggling with persistent knee pain, reach out to My Favourite Physio 📱on (02) 9790 4233 or DM us @myfavouritephysio to book and appointment with one of our Expert Paediatric Physiotherapists today!