Now more than ever it's critical to get a thorough evaluation and participate in a comprehensive rehabilitation program before deciding on ACL reconstruction surgery.

The New England Journal of Medicine recently published a study that showed no significant differences in pain, symptoms, function in sports and recreation and knee related quality of life between those that had immediate surgery and those that underwent extensive rehabilitation alone with optional surgery later on.

The study examined acute ACL injuries of the knee in 121 young athletes. Those subjects that delayed surgery (59 athletes), only 23 eventually had ACL reconstruction. The delayed strategy reduced the frequency of surgery and allowed the athletes to benefit from extensive rehabilitation.