Effects of knee bracing on the functional performance of patients with anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction

Wu GKH, Ng GYF, Mak AFT. Effects of knee bracing on the functional performance of patients with anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction. Arch Phys Med Rehabil 2001;82:282-5. Objective: To compare the functional performance of subjects with unilateral anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction. Design: Cross-sectional comparative clinical trial. Setting: A physical therapy outpatient department. Subjects: Thirty-one subjects with unilateral ACL reconstruction for more than 5 months. Intervention: Patients under 3 bracing conditions: (1) DonJoy Brace, (2) mechanical placebo brace, or (3) no brace. Running and turning 10 times on a 22-meter figure-8 runway, and running and jumping (and landing) on a semicircular path. Main Outcome Measures: Speed of running and turning, speed of running and jumping, and accuracy of landing after the jump. Results: Subjects performed similarly in conditions 1 and 2 in all the tests, but the speeds of running and turning were significantly slower in conditions 1 and 2 than condition 3 (p =.008-.000). Results of the run and jump tests were not different among all conditions. Conclusion: Knee bracing may not improve functional performance of subjects 5 months after ACL reconstruction. The use of such a brace could actually slow down running and turning, irrespective of the mechanical constraints of the brace. These functional outcomes need to be noted when such a brace is used on this group of subjects.