Research summary · Recovery and rehabilitation
Landing muscle activation after ACL reconstruction
A review of 32 studies compared landing-related muscle activity in 556 people reported to have returned to sport after ACL reconstruction and 501 healthy controls.
- Publication year
- 2026
- First published online
- Publication type
- Systematic review and meta-analysis
- Journal
- Knee Surgery, Sports Traumatology, Arthroscopy
- Population / context
- Return to sport after ACL reconstruction
What the publication reports
Selected single-leg tasks revealed greater medial-hamstring or gluteus-maximus activation and earlier rectus-femoris onset. Most other comparisons found no clear difference or had limited evidence; each pooled comparison contained only two to five studies.
Limits and interpretation
Level-IV evidence and task-specific measurements cannot establish whether these activation differences cause reinjury or represent beneficial compensation. Prospective studies are needed before using the patterns as return-to-sport thresholds.
Read the source
Consult the original record for the full author list, methods, references, funding and competing-interest disclosures.
Persistent alterations in muscle activation patterns during landing tasks after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction in return-to-sport cohorts: A systematic review and meta-analysis of electromyography studies
Original publication / indexed recordPMID: 42837112DOI: 10.1002/ksa.70637Reader discussion
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