title: Effect of early active range of motion rehabilitation on outcome measures after partial meniscectomy.
abstract: Range of motion (ROM) exercises are accepted as being an essential part of post-operative knee rehabilitation but there is little research to support this treatment. Our purpose was to determine whether a specific early, active ROM intervention using a bicycle ergometer equipped with an adjustable pedal arm offered measurable benefit to post-operative partial meniscectomy patients. Thirty-one subjects were randomly assigned to experimental or control groups. The experimental group rode a stationary bicycle equipped with the pedal arm device six times over 2 weeks post-operatively under the supervision of a physical therapist while the control group did not. Subjective measures of gait were significantly different with a positive experimental group response to the supervised exercise with improved gait performance at weeks 1, 2 and 4 after surgery (P < or = 0.05). Early, protected active ROM exercise on a bicycle ergometer equipped with an adjustable pedal arm demonstrated promising results in patients after partial meniscectomy.
authors.affiliation: Clinical Support Services, Naval Health Clinic Hawaii, Pearl Harbor, HI, USA. brent.kelln@med.navy.mil
authors.forename: Brent M
authors.initials: BM
authors.lastname: Kelln
authors.forename: Christopher D
authors.initials: CD
authors.lastname: Ingersoll
authors.forename: Susan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Saliba
authors.forename: Mark D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Miller
authors.forename: Jay
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hertel
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001642:Bicycling; D005081:Exercise Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D005684:Gait; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008592:Menisci, Tibial / Q000601:surgery*; D008875:Middle Aged; D019637:Orthopedic Procedures / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D052097:Quadriceps Muscle; D016059:Range of Motion, Articular; D020127:Recovery of Function