Vibration Therapy for ACL Injury

This study examines how people who have had anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR) move their legs during walking and stair negotiation, and whether a single session of vibration changes how they ascend and descend stairs.

Participants with ACLR (1 to 3 years after surgery) complete three laboratory visits. At the first visit, they complete walking, stair negotiation, muscle strength, hopping tests, and questionnaires, and stair negotiation is measured before and after a control condition without vibration. At the second and third visits, they receive whole-body vibration (standing on a vibrating platform) or local muscle vibration (a device placed over the thigh muscle) in a counterbalanced order, and stair negotiation is measured before and after each vibration session. Healthy participants matched by sex, age, and activity level complete one visit with the same tests as the first ACLR visit, for comparison.