A new non-surgical bracing treatment may help to facilitate healing after an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) rupture, a new study has found.
Published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, the study looked at 80 people treated with the Cross Bracing Protocol, and found 90 per cent had evidence of ACL healing on MRI three months after ACL rupture.
People with more ACL healing on three month MRI reported better 12-month outcomes including very high return to sport rates, better knee function and quality of life.
Dr Stephanie Filbay, Senior Research Associate in the Department of Physiotherapy at the University of Melbourne, said it builds upon her recent research showing that 30 per cent of ACL’s can heal with exercise-based rehabilitation, and people with ACL healing reported better outcomes than those treated with ACL surgery.
“If the benefits of this treatment are supported by a clinical trial, this could result in a paradigm shift, whereby people aim to heal a ruptured ACL rather than reconstruct it with surgery,” Dr Filbay said.
Read full article here: https://www.unimelb.edu.au/newsroom/news/2023/june/new-treatment-could-help-avoid-surgery-by-healing-acl-rupture,-study-shows