Return to Play: Late State Rehabilitation

Introduction

Rehabilitation is an important process to allow the athlete to return to full and unrestricted participation following injury.  Athletic and sport therapists usually focus their therapy on restoring range of motion and strength in the early to mid stages of the rehabilitation process.  The focus of late stage rehabilitation prior to return to activity is to develop functional exercises and sport specific activities that stress the injured body part.  

Discussion

A majority of functional exercise can be implemented within the overall rehabilitation plan.   These exercises should focus on developing core strength and the functional ability of an injured body part.  Exercise should develop the proprioceptive, neuromuscular and somatosensory systems.  The exercise should be easy at first and progress to a challenging level as the athlete progresses in their rehabilitation process.  The presentation will focus on functional exercises for the ankle, knee and shoulder. 

Conclusion

Late stage rehabilitation is an important aspect of the overall return to normal and unrestricted function of the athlete.  Functional exercises should be gradually implemented within the overall rehabilitation plan with increasing challenges to the proprioceptive and neuromuscular systems.  These exercise should be sport specific where possible challenging the individual’s abilities.