Patellar tendon repair: Postoperative treatment

Objective: To compare results of patellar tendon repair after early and del ayed postoperative mobilization. Design: Two separate treatment groups, comparing 2 treatment alternatives a t different time periods (before-after trial). Participants: Postoperative rehabilitation of 10 men who underwent patellar tendon repair. Intervention: Delayed mobilization group: weight-bearing in a cast and isom etric lower-extremity exercises for 6 weeks; active flexion and extension e xercises thereafter. Early mobilization group: weight-bearing in an extensi on brace, isometric lower-extremity exercises, prone active knee flexion, a nd passive knee extension for 6 weeks; active flexion and extension exercis es thereafter. Sixteen-month minimum follow-up. Results: Clinical (physical) findings were: 2 excellent, 1 good, 2 fair in the delayed-mobilization group; 1 excellent, 3 good, 1 fair in early-mobili zation group. Functional (pain and activity level) findings were: 2 good, 2 fair, 1 poor in the delayed-mobilization group; 3 good, 1 fair, 1 poor in the early-mobilization group. Conclusions: Clinical and functional results were similar for both treatmen t groups. Further study is required to determine any significant long-term differences between rehabilitation methods.