[?] Subscribe To This Site

Coaching Services

Resources

Stroke Coach

Back Coach

Shoulder Coach

Knee Coach

Foot/Ankle Coach

Exercise Coach

Nutrition Coach

Sports Coach

About My Coach

Wes Welker Rehab Update: Should Wes do Less?

Is Wes Welker really ahead of schedule after his ACL reconstruction?

The Boston Globe recently commented it's "remarkable how athletic Wess Welker looks" in the drills and he's "exploding" upfield impressively. Predictions for Walker’s return to the Patriots however, vary depending upon who you listen to.

For example, Dr. James Gladstone, co-chief of sports medicine at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York, believes it's "quite possible, if not likely" that Wes Welker can return for Week 1. Considering his progress in an early June practice, Gladstone is optimistic. It's the recovery of first-step quickness, though, that could be a problem. It often takes 18 months to return to a pre-injury level of quickness. Even if Welker plays in Week 1, he's likely to be in a limited role.

But should Wes rush it to return? A great article submitted to my-physical-therapy-coach.com today from the University of Michigan demonstrates a relatively high percentage of ACL repairs often fail, especially when pushing it too fast and not allowing for complete healing of repaired tissue.

Here's the link to read the full ACL repair article

According to the article, the most common reasons for ACL repair failure include:

Inadequate time for rehabilitation

Physiological factors such as the alignment of the patient's bones or muscle function

Additional injuries at the same time as an ACL injury-such as to cartilage in the knee or another knee ligament-which may also require repair to restore stability to the knee

Reoccurring trauma due to intense physical activity, and

Improper surgical techniques

In addition, A 2006 study by the American Journal of Sports Medicine showed that players who successfully returned from ACL surgery performed at just 66 percent of the level they performed at pre-injury, on average. Some would argue Tom Brady’s early return after ACL surgery put him in this sub-par category most of last season.

Most agree that although his early mobility looks good, Wes Welker will open training camp on the PUP (physically unable to perform) list and stay there for the first six weeks of the regular season.

If we take an average of some of the Welker return predictions outlined in this article then we will see Wes in some capacity on the field this upcoming season. Even Patriot’s Coach Bill Belichick commented he would anticipate a Welker return “in some capacity”. This author and therapists' professional 2 cents however would be this time Wes, don’t be in such a rush, or perhaps Wes, “Less is More”.

Original Article by physical therapist David Dansereau - Wes Welker Rehab update for my-physical-therapy-coach.com