In select young and healthy population with few co morbidities  supervised physical therapy  is no more beneficial than a  home exercise program  following relatively simple knee surgical procedures ( arthroscopic meniscetomy ) .
Physical therapy is common following a knee surgery .
With rising healthcare costs there is debate as to the appropriateness of outpatient physical therapy following such interventions .
Many of the existing controlled trials have concluded that there is no benefit to subjects that receive supervised physical therapy when compared to subjects that perform their exercises at home .
The purpose of this systematic review was to consider the existing evidence regarding benefit following  knee surgery  and evaluate the quality , internal and external validity of such evidence .
Effectiveness of supervised physical therapy in the early period after arthroscopic partial meniscectomy.
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Controversy exists about the effectiveness of physical therapy after arthroscopic partial meniscectomy . This r and omized controlled trial evaluated the effectiveness of supervised physical therapy with a home program versus a home program alone . SUBJECTS Eighty-four patients ( 86 % males ; overall mean age=39 years , SD=9 , range=21 - 58 ; female mean age=39 years , SD=9 , range=24 - 58 ; male mean age=40 , SD=9 , range=21 - 58 ) who underwent an uncomplicated arthroscopic partial meniscectomy participated . METHODS Subjects were r and omly assigned to either a group who received 6 weeks of supervised physical therapy with a home program or a group who received only a home program . Blinded test sessions were conducted 5 and 50 days after surgery . Outcome measures were : ( 1 ) Hughston Clinic question naire , ( 2 ) Medical Outcomes Study 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey ( SF-36 ) and EuroQol EQ-5D ( EQ-5D ) question naires , ( 3 ) number of days to return to work after surgery divided by the Factor Occupational Rating System score , ( 4 ) kinematic analysis of knee function during level walking and stair use , and ( 5 ) horizontal and vertical hops . RESULTS No differences between groups were found for any of the outcomes measured . DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION The results indicate that the supervised physical therapy used in this study is not beneficial for patients in the early period after uncomplicated arthroscopic partial meniscectomy
In select young and healthy population with few co morbidities  supervised physical therapy  is no more beneficial than a  home exercise program  following relatively simple knee surgical procedures ( arthroscopic meniscetomy ) .
Physical therapy is common following a knee surgery .
With rising healthcare costs there is debate as to the appropriateness of outpatient physical therapy following such interventions .
Many of the existing controlled trials have concluded that there is no benefit to subjects that receive supervised physical therapy when compared to subjects that perform their exercises at home .
The purpose of this systematic review was to consider the existing evidence regarding benefit following  knee surgery  and evaluate the quality , internal and external validity of such evidence .