A tear or rupture of the anterior cruciate knee ligament (ACL) is an increasingly common injury in today's youth sports, especially among female athletes [1]playing sports that involve jumping and pivoting such as basketball, soccer, volleyball, and lacrosse.
In the best case scenario, reconstructive surgery of the ACL [2] would allow an athlete to return to his previous level of function with respect to performance/quality, frequency and intensity of sports participation, without an increased risk of further injury or permanent degenerative changes to the knee such as osteoarthritis.
While treatment advances in surgery and physical rehabilitation over the past 30 years have allowed many athletes to return to the playing field or court, the hard truth (which some parents and athletes don't want to, but need, to hear) is sobering:
A new surgical technique (anatomic double-bundle ACL reconstruction) holds out the promise of better clinical outcomes in terms of return to play, re-injury rate, retirement date, and, most importantly, in delaying or preventing osteoarthritis in the repaired knee.
In the meantime, it is critically important that the return to play decision be individualized to the athlete and the sport; that both parents and young athletes understand that a slow, phased-in approach be taken during the rehabilitation process; and that they hear not just the stories about players who come all the way back from ACL surgery after only four months, but about those that don't.
Links:
[1] https://www.momsteam.com/node/802
[2] https://www.momsteam.com/node/1400
[3] https://www.momsteam.com/health-safety/PEP-exercise-program-reduces-acl-injuries-in-female-soccer-players
[4] https://www.momsteam.com/health-safety/muscles-joints-bones/knee/acl-injury-epidemic-early-specialization-year-round-play-may-be-linked
[5] https://www.momsteam.com/health-safety/sports-injuries-youth-sports-parents-need-to-hear-the-truth