Freddie Fu Panther Symposium Expert Group 2024: Rehabilitation and return to sport after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction Part 2: Concepts and emerging technology in return to sport

Anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction is frequently performed to allow athletes to return to their pre-injury levels of sports participation. A relatively low proportion of athletes successfully achieving this goal, and high rates of secondary injuries after clearance for return to sport highlight the need for optimised rehabilitation and return to sports protocols. A lack of evidence and general consensus on optimal return to sport milestones has caused substantial variability across currently applied concepts, emphasising the need for interdisciplinary approaches to bridge the gap between research findings and clinical application. This summary of key concepts aims to provide a comprehensive framework for optimising return to sport outcomes following anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction in athletes from a multidisciplinary expert perspective. An international, multidisciplinary group of experts was convened at the 2024 Freddie Fu Panther Sports Medicine Symposium to discuss and debate recent advances, future directions and emerging technological innovations of rehabilitation and return to sport following anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction. While Part 1 addressed recent evidence and strategies for early and intermediate phases of rehabilitation after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction, Part 2 of this series explores the complexity of return to sport conceptualised as a continuum by evaluating key aspects such as functional testing, psychological readiness, and prevention of re-injury while also discussing emerging technologies that promise to enhance the future of rehabilitation and return to sports after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level IV, expert opinion.