HIP ISOMETRIC STRENGTH FOLLOWING KNEE SURGERY

Hip exercises are frequently prescribed following knee injury and subs equent surgery based on the assumption that hip weakness exists. No da ta, however, are available that support hip weakness following knee tr auma or surgery. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to compare h ip strength in patients after knee surgery. Twenty-seven patients who had undergone unilateral knee surgery were tested for hip flexor, exte nsor, abductor, and adductor isometric strength prior to initiation of rehabilitation. Multivariate analysis of variance revealed significan t hip weakness in all four hip muscle groups of the surgical extremiti es (11.9-25.3%, p less-than-or-equal-to 0.05) when compared with nonsu rgical extremities. Both peak and endurance force were affected. The g reatest percent difference between the surgical and nonsurgical extrem ity occurred for hip extension peak (25.3%) and endurance (22.6%) forc e development. We recommend assessment of hip strength following knee surgery and appropriate resistive exercises if weakness exists.