The Effects of Cognitive Dual-Tasking in Later Stages of Rehabilitation After ACL Reconstruction

NCT ID: NCT06206200

Last Updated: 2024-07-15

Basic Information

• Recruitment Status: RECRUITING
• Clinical Phase: NA
• Total Enrollment: 80 participants
• Study Classification: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Start Date: 2023-10-15
• Study Completion Date: 2027-04-01

Brief Summary

Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries are common in sports and often require a long and challenging rehabilitation process. Athletes who sustain these injuries typically engage in pivoting and cutting sports, where these motor tasks must be performed simultaneously with cognitive tasks such as decision-making and keeping an eye on the opponent. Directing attention to both cognitive and motor tasks leads to cognitive-motor interference, which is associated with movement patterns that increase the risk of ACL (re)injury.

Therefore, it is crucial that before returning to such demanding sports after ACL reconstruction, athletes sufficiently develop and automate safe yet efficient motor skills to free up attentional capacity for decision-making, thereby reducing the risk of suboptimal movement patterns and reinjury.

However, current rehabilitation programs often primarily focus on the motor component in a single-task manner, giving insufficient attention to the cognitive component that is inseparable from sports.

This randomized controlled trial aims to investigate the effects of implementing motor-cognitive dual tasks in the end phase rehabilitation after ACL reconstruction on muscle function, functional outcomes, and patient-reported outcomes.

Conditions

Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction; Athrogenic Muscle Responses; ACL Injury

Study Design

• Allocation Method: RANDOMIZED
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Primary Study Purpose: TREATMENT
• Blinding Strategy: DOUBLE

Study Groups

Dual task training

Patients will recieve 12 sessions (2x/week) of standard of care exercise-based physiotherapy with implementation of cognitive dual task training. This implies that the patients will perform cognitive tasks simultaneously during at least 50% of their physical rehabilitative exercises.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Cognitive dual task training (intervention group)

Intervention Type: OTHER

Simultaneously performing cognitive tasks and motor rehabilitative exercises.

Standard of care physiotherapy

Patients will recieve 12 sessions (2x/week) of standard of care exercise-based physiotherapy without implementation of cognitive dual task training.

Group Type: ACTIVE_COMPARATOR

Standard of care physiotherapy (control group)

Intervention Type: OTHER

The current best physical therapy treatment for patients with anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction based on existing scientific evidence.

Interventions

Cognitive dual task training (intervention group)

Simultaneously performing cognitive tasks and motor rehabilitative exercises.

Intervention Type: OTHER

Standard of care physiotherapy (control group)

The current best physical therapy treatment for patients with anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction based on existing scientific evidence.

Intervention Type: OTHER

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

• 18-40 years old.
• Having suffered an ACL rupture.
• Undergoing a surgical ACL reconstruction in the AZ Delta hospital in Roeselare (Campus Brugsesteenweg).

Exclusion Criteria

• Revision ACL reconstruction.
• Other severe injuries to the lower limbs within the past year.
• Muscle or neurological disorders affecting lower limb functioning.
• Fibromyalgia or chronic fatigue syndrome.

• Minimum Eligible Age: 18 Years
• Maximum Eligible Age: 40 Years
• Eligible Sex: ALL
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Sponsors

Research Foundation Flanders

OTHER

Sponsor Role: collaborator

University Ghent

OTHER

Sponsor Role: lead

Responsible Party

Responsibility Role: SPONSOR

Locations

AZ Delta Roeselare (Campus Brugsesteenweg)

Roeselare, West-Vlaanderen, Belgium

Site Status: RECRUITING

Countries

Belgium

Central Contacts

Evy Deschaumes, MSc

Role: CONTACT

evy.deschaumes@ugent.be

+32 9 332 5503

Erik Witvrouw, prof. dr.

Role: CONTACT

erik.witvrouw@ugent.be

+32 9 332 26 32

Facility Contacts

Thomas Tampere, Dr.

Role: primary

sportr@azdelta.be

051 23 63 70

Other Identifiers

ONZ-2023-0365

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id