The Efficacy of Perturbation Training in Nonoperative Anterior Cruciate Ligament Rehabilitation Programs for Physically Active Individuals

support surfaces may induce compensatory muscle activity that could improve knee stability and increase the likelihood of returning patients to high-level physical activity. The purpose of this study was to determine the efficacy of augmenting standard nonoperative anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) rehabil-itation programs with a perturbation training program. Subjects. Twenty-six patients with an acute ACL injury or ruptures of ACL grafts participated in the study. Subjects had to have a unilateral ACL injury, be free of concomitant multiple ligament or meniscal damage requiring surgical repair, and pass a screening examination designed to identify patients who had the potential to return to high-level physical activity with nonoperative treatments. Subjects also had to be regular participants in level I activities (eg, soccer, football, basketball) or level II activities (eg, racquet sports, skiing, construction work). Methods. Subjects were randomly assigned to either a group that received a standard rehabilitation program (standard group) or a group that received the standard program augmented with a perturbation training progra