PURPOSE: To investigate effect of postoperative rehabilitation protocol on postural control (PC) changes in three time points following ACL reconstruction in male soccer players. METHODS: National level male soccer players (n = 16, age 24.7±3.9 years) volunteered in the study. Players performed postoperative rehabilitation protocol that had emphasis on enhancing postural stability (PS), muscular strength, and limb symmetry 6 times per week for 23 weeks. Static pressure measurements were obtained on a platform Footscan (RSscan International, Belgium). The following tests of PS were taken: bilateral narrow standing position (BS) with 2 levels of vision (eyes open and closed) for 30 seconds and single leg standing (SS) position test on injured and non-injured leg for 60 seconds. The tests were performed: (a) postoperatively, before rehabilitative intervention, five months (b), and 10 months (c) following ACL reconstruction. Mixed-design RM ANOVA, Bonferroni`s post hoc tests and partial eta square (? 2) were usedfor statistical assessment. RESULTS: The main factor (Time) revealed significant effect on PC both for BS (F 2,60 = 56.39; p<.01, ? 2 = .65) and SS (F2,60 = 40.37; p<.01, ? 2 =.57). Post-hoc test revealed significant improvement of PC improvement after intervention (BSa = 151.34±8.41 mm, BSb =127.00±6.56 mm, p<.01) as well as follow-up effect (BSb =127.00±6.56 mm, BSc =109.63±6.18 mm, p<.01). We found a significant interaction effect between observed factors (Time*Leg) within observed time (F 2,60 = 24.81; p<.01, ? 2 = .45). Participants significantly improved PC on injured leg (SSa = 1748.63±78.81 mm, SSb = 1281.75±62.70 mm, p<.01); however, postural control SSb was non-significant compared to SSc (p>.05). CONCLUSION: The postoperative rehabilitation protocol demonstrated favorable PC improvements following ACL reconstruction in elite male soccer players. Also, our findings indicated importance of continuous rehabilitation after 5 months following ACL reconstruction in order to eliminate asymmetry in PC.
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