Current trends in reconstruction surgery and rehabilitation of anterior cruciate ligament in Turkey

Objectives: This study aims to determine the current approaches to surgical techniques and reha¬bilitation protocols used in anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction performed by Turkish orthopedic surgeons and to compare their results with the data of "ACL Study Group". Methods: A questionnaire consisting of 16 questions on surgical techniques, preoperative pre-requisites, routine postoperative applications, rehabilitation approaches, and return to sport fol¬lowing ACL reconstruction was sent via e-mail to the 55 orthopedic surgeons performing annu¬ally 25 or more ACL reconstructions. Results: Response rate to questionnaire was 70.9% (n=39). Nineteen surgeons (48.7%) regular¬ly performed only hamstring tendon (HT) graft, and four surgeons (10.3%) performed only patel¬lar tendon (PT) graft, while 16 surgeons (41%) performed both HT and PT grafts. Three (18.8%) of the 16 surgeons who performed both HT and PT grafts had individual rehabilitation protocols for the two graft types. No statistically significant difference was found between the responses for two graft types in terms of the starting times for specific activities (p>0.05). Rehabilitation protocols were similar to the current data of "ACL Study Group". The use of a postoperative brace and continuous passive motion (CPM) was different between Turkish surgeons and "ACL Study Group". The CPM and postoperative brace use was more common in Turkey. Conclusion: There are only a few differences in the postoperative approach of ACL reconstruc¬tion with HT and PT grafts performed by Turkish orthopedic surgeons. The data obtained from the Turkish orthopedic surgeons showed similarities with the "ACL Study Group" current approaches.