Quantifying Coordination and Variability in the Lower Extremities after Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction

Area of Science:

• Biomechanics
• Orthopedics
• Sports Medicine

Background:

• Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury and reconstruction lead to biomechanical alterations.
• Previous research often analyzed lower extremity joints in isolation, not as coordinated movements.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate changes in lower limb coordination patterns post-ACL reconstruction across different movement types.
• To understand how ACL reconstruction affects hip-knee coordination during functional activities.

Main Methods:

• Compared 21 ACL reconstruction patients (AG) with 21 healthy controls (CG).
• Assessed coordination patterns during walking, running, and cutting maneuvers using continuous relative phase and variability analysis.

Main Results:

• ACL reconstruction group (AG) exhibited lower in-phase hip-knee coordination in the sagittal plane during running and 30°/60° cutting.
• AG showed reduced hip-knee variability during 60° cutting in the sagittal plane.

Conclusions:

• Altered hip-knee coordination post-ACL reconstruction may lead to knee joint overload due to unnatural movement patterns.
• Measuring coordination variables with sensors could provide evidence for optimal return-to-sport timing in ACL rehabilitation.