Please see below Rehab Protocol PDFs for downloading. Please click on any of the titles to download.
Recovery from ACL reconstruction takes nine to twelve months or longer, and progression is decided by criteria rather than by dates. The pathway
runs from prehabilitation before surgery through seven phases: protecting the graft, restoring movement, building strength, returning to impact and
running at five to six months, developing agility and power, and returning to sport once objective testing is passed.
BRITISH KNEE SOCIETY / BASK MENISCAL SURGERY GUIDELINES
The British Knee Society / BASK meniscal surgery guidelines are the UK national guidance on when keyhole surgery is appropriate for a meniscus
tear. They sort patients into five common presentations, using symptoms, examination findings, scan results, how long symptoms have lasted and what
treatment has already been tried. Only one of those presentations calls for urgent surgery. Several point towards physiotherapy first.
A note on the name. These guidelines are widely referred to as the British Knee Society guidelines. The organisation that produced them uses the formal name British Association for Surgery of the Knee, or BASK. Both
names are used on this page so the guidance is easy to find under either. A separate body, the UK Biological Knee Society, also exists and is not
connected to this guidance.
BUCKET HANDLE MENISCUS REPAIR REHAB PROTOCOL
A bucket handle repair is protected more than a simple tear and less than a root repair. You take half your weight through the leg for three weeks
and wear a brace that opens in stages, reaching full weight bearing without crutches or brace by two months. Deep loaded bending and twisting
wait until three months, and running follows on testing.
Rehabilitation after ACL reconstruction in a child or adolescent runs in six phases, with full return to play usually at 10 to 12 months. The first
eight weeks protect the graft fixation, with 50% weight bearing for six weeks and a staged range of movement. Later phases progress through
strength, agility, landing mechanics and a structured return to team practice.
TOTAL KNEE REPLACEMENT REHAB PROTOCOL
Recovery from a total knee replacement is measured in range of movement, and the targets are 0 to 90 degrees at four weeks and 0 to 110 degrees by
six weeks. You walk on the leg from the day of surgery and there is no brace. Most people are off walking aids within six weeks and doing
everything they want by three months, with improvement continuing for a year.
MENISCUS REPAIR REHAB PROTOCOL: ACCELERATED
A simple longitudinal meniscal repair follows the accelerated protocol, and most people are walking without crutches or a brace well before two
months. The ring of the meniscus is intact, so it can still carry load safely. The restrictions that remain are on deep loaded bending and on
twisting, both of which continue for three months.
MENISCUS ROOT AND RADIAL REPAIR REHAB PROTOCOL
Radial and root repairs are the most protected of all meniscal repairs, with six weeks of strict non weight bearing. These tears break the ring of
the meniscus, so it cannot carry load safely until it has healed. Half weight bearing follows for three weeks, then full. Deep loaded bending and
twisting wait until three months.
Rehabilitation after MPFL reconstruction runs in four phases, with straight line jogging from four months and return to sport usually between
seven and nine months. You weight bear fully from the start. The brace opens in stages over the first six weeks, and the early work that matters
most is switching the gluteal muscles and the inner range quadriceps back on.
Most isolated PCL injuries are treated without surgery, and the ligament heals in a brace rather than being replaced. A dynamic PCL brace is worn
23 hours a day for three months and at night until six months. You take half your weight through the leg for four weeks, and isolated hamstring
work is avoided for three months while the ligament heals.
PCL AND POSTEROLATERAL CORNER REHAB PROTOCOL
Combined PCL and posterolateral corner reconstruction carries two sets of restrictions at once. You take half your weight through the leg for three
weeks and wear an immobiliser holding the knee straight for the first two, then a dynamic PCL brace. Rotation and hamstring restrictions run to four
months, and return to sport is usually beyond twelve months.
PCL RECONSTRUCTION REHAB PROTOCOL
Recovery after PCL reconstruction takes nine to twelve months, and it is slower and more protected than ACL rehabilitation. You take half your
weight through the leg for four weeks, wear a splint holding the tibia forwards for the first two, then a dynamic PCL brace. Isolated hamstring
work is avoided for three months, and the brace is worn at night until six months.
QUADRICEPS TENDON REPAIR REHAB PROTOCOL
Recovery from quadriceps tendon repair takes six to twelve months, and the first eight weeks are spent protecting the repair. You walk on the leg
from the start, in a brace locked straight. Bending is opened up in stages, reaching 90 degrees by week eight. Most people are out of the
brace at eight weeks, driving between eight and twelve, and running only after four months.
PARTIAL KNEE REPLACEMENT REHAB PROTOCOL
Recovery from a partial knee replacement is quicker than from a total replacement, and the targets are 0 to 90 degrees at three weeks and 0 to
120 degrees by six weeks. Only the worn compartment is resurfaced, your own ligaments are kept, and the knee usually feels more like your own. You
walk on the leg from the day of surgery and there is no brace.
