Prehabilitation (“Prehab”) prior to knee surgery has extremely positive effects on the outcome of an individual’s surgery. Personally, I have had 6 knee surgeries (3 major, 3 minor) and never did prehab – but knowing what I know now I wish I would have. After all of my surgeries, I want to write this blog to stress the importance of prehab and try to help others. During Prehab, a physical therapist will guide you through tolerated exercises to achieve 3 common goals. So, let’s discuss these below.¹
Strengthening: A physical therapist will guide a patient to build up quadriceps, hamstring, glute, and calf strength prior to surgery. The general rule is that the stronger you go into surgery, the stronger you come out of surgery – allowing you to return to walking and strengthening faster than those who do not do prehab.
Range of Motion (ROM): Prehab will maximize your ROM prior to surgery and the more mobility we have in a joint – the easier it is to get back. Regaining ROM can be one of the most challenging and painful parts of the post-surgical process. A PT will be able to aid you in a selection of safe ROM exercises to enhance your recovery. Research supports the benefit of prehab in the speed of regaining full ROM. ¹
Improving Function: Another huge benefit of prehab is that it allows some individuals to improve functionally, so that they opt to not have surgery altogether. In a study by Aytekin et al, 20% of patients in their study changed their decision to not have surgery because they improved significantly in their overall function during physical therapy.²
Investing time and energy in a prehab sets you up for a smoother and speedier recovery and improves outcomes following surgery. In addition, patients may feel more supported and at ease during the painful process of regaining ROM and strength if they already have an established PT. If you are about to have knee surgery, come see us at Unbroken Rehab and Athletics for some prehab in order to improve your recovery from surgery. We would be excited to help you with your journey back to life and sports pain-free!
References:
- Jahic D, Omerovic D, Tanovic AT, Dzankovic F, Campara MT. The Effect of Prehabilitation on Postoperative Outcome in Patients Following Primary Total Knee Arthroplasty. Med Arch. 2018 Dec;72(6):439-443. doi: 10.5455/medarh.2018.72.439-443. PMID: 30814777; PMCID: PMC6340623.
- Aytekin E, Sukur E, Oz N, Telatar A, Eroglu Demir S, Sayiner Caglar N, Ozturkmen Y, Ozgonenel L. The effect of a 12 week prehabilitation program on pain and function for patients undergoing total knee arthroplasty: A prospective controlled study. J Clin Orthop Trauma. 2019 Mar-Apr;10(2):345-349. doi: 10.1016/j.jcot.2018.04.006. Epub 2018 Apr 17. PMID: 30828206; PMCID: PMC6383075.
