title: The effectiveness of pre-operative exercise physiotherapy rehabilitation on the outcomes of treatment following anterior cruciate ligament injury: a systematic review.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the effectiveness of pre-operative exercise physiotherapy rehabilitation on the outcomes of treatment following anterior cruciate ligament injury.
  
  
  METHODS
  The following databases were searched: PubMed, Ovid, The Cochrane Library and Web of Science. Studies published between the inception of the databases and December 2015 were sought using appropriate keywords in various combinations. This search was supplemented with a manual search of the references of selected studies. Studies were assessed for methodological quality using the Physiotherapy Evidence Database scale.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 500 studies were identified, of which eight studies met the inclusion criteria and were included in the present review. The average Physiotherapy Evidence Database score for the studies included was 5.8, which reflects an overall moderate methodological quality. The eight studies investigated a total of 451 subjects of which 71% ( n=319) were males. The age of the participants in the eight studies ranged from 15 to 57 years. The duration of the intervention in the studies ranged from 3 to 24 weeks. This review found that pre-operative physiotherapy rehabilitation is effective for improving the outcomes of treatment following anterior cruciate ligament injury, including increasing knee-related function and improving muscle strength. However, whilst there was a significant improvement in quality of life from baseline following intervention, no significant difference in quality of life was found between the control and intervention groups.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  There is evidence to suggest that pre-operative physiotherapy rehabilitation is beneficial to patients with anterior cruciate ligament injury.
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Health Professions, Manchester Metropolitan University, UK.|2 Department of Physical Therapy, Majmaah University, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Shady
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Alshewaier
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Health Professions, Manchester Metropolitan University, UK.
authors.forename: Gillian
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Yeowell
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Health Professions, Manchester Metropolitan University, UK.
authors.forename: Francis
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Fatoye
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000070598:Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injuries / Q000534:rehabilitation* / Q000601:surgery*; D005081:Exercise Therapy; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011300:Preoperative Care; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Physical therapy; anterior cruciate ligament injury; outcome assessment (health care); pre-operative exercise; quality of life