In this video we are going to show you a couple of ideas for the late stage rehab after Achilles tendon rupture repair. Get our very own Assessment E-Book and mobile app! Links are in the video description.
Hi and welcome back to Physiotutors, the Achilles tendon being the biggest and strongest tendon in the human body is formed by the tendons of the soleus and gastrocnemius muscles which both insert at the calcaneus We mostly see ruptures of the Achilles tendon in high impact sports predominantly in the male athlete. While a scientific review from the year 2017 showed no significant differences in the outcomes of surgical and conservative management the re-rupture rate of conservatively managed tendons was higher and conservative management might not be suitable for every injury depending on its severity. However, there is a clear benefit of an accelerated rehab program including early mobilization versus immobilization as has been researched by Brumann and colleagues in 2014 We already discussed the 1st and 2nd stage of accelerated post surgical rehab in two other videos.
The 3rd stage which can last up to 9 weeks will aim to restore full function of the angle in terms of range of motion. Proprioception, balance and coordination as well as further increased strength to prepare the individual for possible sports specific rehab. So let's take a look at what kind of exercises one could do here: Here's a simple exercise on how to load the calf and the Achilles tendon early on in a weight-bearing position.
So, alternate stepping onto the toes of each foot It's also important that we work on proprioception and balance in Achilles tendon rehab So, simply standing on one foot and being able to maintain that position for at least 10 seconds is a valuable exercise. You can progress thi. s by changing the base of support For example, standing on a foam mat or an Airex mat and maybe later on even on a Bosu ball.
In this late phase, the patient should be able to perform weight-bearing squats to at least 30°of knee flexion and you can progress this exercise by going deeper and by loading for example with a barbell or with a kettlebell. The single leg squat from something like a stepper is also a great way to load the calf and Achilles tendon and work on single leg strength. Strengthening the calf, of course, is essential in Achilles tendon rehab.
So perform calf raises on both legs from neutral position and progress to single leg calf raises. You can also incorporate small jumps to load the calf and the Achilles tendon plyometrically. Alright, if you want you can check out more videos like this in the exercise playlist on the left.
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As always this was Andreas thank you for watching and I'll see you next time. Bye!
