Lower Self-Reported Knee Function Is Associated With Slower Reaction Time After ACL Reconstruction

Area of Science:

• Orthopedics
• Rehabilitation Science
• Sports Medicine

Background:

• Anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR) is a common surgery for knee injuries.
• Assessing functional recovery post-ACLR is crucial for optimizing patient outcomes.
• Simple reaction time (SRT) may reflect underlying sensorimotor and cognitive processing deficits.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the relationship between simple reaction time (SRT) and self-reported knee function in individuals post-ACLR.
• To determine if slower SRT is associated with lower knee function scores, irrespective of time since surgery.

Main Methods:

• Cross-sectional analysis of 43 participants (mean age 24.6 years) following ACLR.
• Participants completed the Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS) and a computerized SRT assessment.
• Linear regression analyses examined the association between KOOS subscale scores and SRT.

Main Results:

• Improvements in KOOS-ADL and KOOS-Pain scores were associated with faster reaction times.
• The analyzed variables explained 11% to 21% of the variance in SRT.
• Poorer self-reported knee function correlated with slower SRT.

Conclusions:

• Self-reported knee function is linked to SRT in the ACLR population.
• Cognitive-motor interference might influence ACLR recovery.
• SRT assessment could be a valuable, cost-effective tool in ACLR rehabilitation to identify deficits and personalize interventions.