ACL Reconstruction — Hamstring Graft, No Hardware (Older Adolescent)

UW Health Sports Medicine · UW Health Sports Rehabilitation & Sports Medicine Physician Group

Weight-Bearing

PWB + locked brace wks 0-2; WBAT + 1-2 crutches + locked brace wks 3-4; WBAT +/- crutches + unlocked brace wks 5-6

Key Restrictions

Longer brace/crutch use than adult; ROM 0-90 x 4 weeks; avoid aggressive hamstring sets early (donor site); ROOT repair: TDWB locked brace x6 wks; meniscal precautions surgeon-specific (Baer/Walczak/Spiker vs. Scerpella)

Timeline & Phases

Phase I (0-6 wks: PWB to WBAT, locked brace, ROM 0-90) -> Phase II (6-8 wks: normalize gait, CKC) -> Phase III (12-16 wks: running + impact prep; Biodex <25%) -> Phase IV (18-22 wks: multi-planar high velocity; Biodex <15%) -> Phase V (28-36 wks: RTS)

Notes

Updated 1/2018; over-the-top or soft-tissue tunnel without hardware across growth plates (Tanner Stage 2-3; males ~13-16, females ~12-14); fixation less strong than adult; RTS criteria: <15% Biodex, force plate, hop tests; 5-phase protocol; UW Health Sports Medicine, Madison WI

Surgeon / Author

UW Health Sports Rehabilitation & Sports Medicine Physician Group

Published

2018-01-01