Staying active on Callaghan campus

Staying active on Callaghan Campus Physio Newcastle

Its winter but your body still needs a regular dose of activity. Staying active is harder when the days get shorter but it’s still just as important and beneficial to our health. The good news is that inactivity is reversible.

The research still tells us that better cardiovascular fitness is associated with healthier living and 2 strength sessions per week can make a difference to your health in many ways. We’ve summarised the evidence of staying active via strength exercise previously. Click here to read more. There are plenty of good activity options on Callaghan campus.

  • Walking on campus – it’s the quickest and easiest option and much better than having lunch at your desk each day
  • Outdoor equipment surrounding the oval 2 and 3 outside The Forum is free and easy to use. Another great lunchtime session combined with walking between them.
  • Group fitness classes at The Forum – either before work or after or even at lunchtime, the group fitness classes
  • NU Strength classes – If you like small group, mat based pilates style exercise then NU Moves Physio provides a range of early morning, lunchtime and evening workouts to help the body and back.
  • The newly refurbished gym at The Forum is an excellent way to combine cardio exercise with some stretching and strength exercise for an overall feel better workout that you are in control of.
  • Have a swim at The Forum – its particularly quiet and calm around lunchtime for a peaceful exercise session that will make you feel great.

Feel better & get active. Its worth doing.

Pre-operative & non-operative ACL physiotherapy

ACL physiotherapy

 

The benefits of a high-quality individualised rehabilitation program after having ACL surgery are clear, but what should individuals be doing immediately after their ACL injury? Well, current best practice guidelines1 advise gentle pain-free range of motion exercises within the first few days, followed by commencement of early ACL physiotherapy. The physiotherapist will take some measurements of swelling and range of movement as well as strength on the un-injured side. Early goals of physio are to reduce pain and swelling and restore normal range of movement. Following a significant knee injury it is common to experience poor activation and wasting of the muscles in the thigh, particularly the quadriceps. A large component of physio following knee injury is to get these muscles firing again and rebuild strength back up towards normal.

Together with an orthopaedic surgeon or sports physician, the physiotherapist can help guide the decision when to have the ACL reconstructed. It is generally accepted that patients should have their ACL reconstructed as soon as possible following injury. However, if the knee is still significantly swollen, painful and has poor function, it is likely to be in a worse state following surgery and take longer to return to normal. Ideally, before having surgery, the knee should have minimal swelling, good range of movement, muscle strength and balance. Studies have identified that pre-operative quads strength predicts outcome 2 years after surgery. This means that if someone doesn’t regain good quads strength before surgery, they have to work very hard for a longer time after surgery to get their strength back.

Depending on the type of injury, how an athlete is progressing with their rehab, and their sporting or functional goals, surgical intervention might not be necessary at this point. Regardless of whether an individual has surgery – undergoing a physiotherapist guided rehabilitation program immediately following ACL injury has been found to improve outcomes both pre- and post- surgery3.

One study found 50% of patients who delayed their operation and underwent rehabilitation avoided the need for surgery at all. Interestingly, over the following 6 years there was no negative consequences of delaying surgery. In fact, early surgery, and delayed (optional) surgical groups had no significant difference in the following outcomes:

  • Participation in sport
  • Quality of life scores
  • Evidence of arthritis on scans
  • Future surgery

If you’re interested in finding out more about ACL rehabilitation or seeking guidance regarding the best time to have your ACL reconstructed, contact us on 49216879.

  1. https://bestpractice.bmj.com/topics/en-gb/589/management-approach BMJ Best practice guidelines
  2. https://www.bmj.com/content/bmj/346/bmj.f232.full.pdf 2013 Study
  3. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26879746 2017 Systematic review