Patient information
Recovery & Return to Sport
What the research says about getting a young athlete back, and who decides when.
Recovery after knee surgery in a growing athlete is not the same as recovery in an adult, and it is a subject Dr. Green has published on directly — including the psychological side of it, which is measured with a scale his group validated in children and adolescents.
What the research covers
Three strands run through his published work here: whether a young patient is ready to go back, what rehabilitation in a growing athlete has to account for that an adult programme does not, and what happens to those who do go back — including the risk of a second injury.
None of that produces a single timetable. The plan for one child comes from the operation they had, how they are healing and what sport they are going back to, and it is set with Dr. Green and the physical therapy team rather than read off a chart.
How Dr. Green decides between surgery and non-surgical treatmentWhat Dr. Green has studied about recovery in young athletes
- Psychological readiness, measuredHis group validated the ACL Return to Sport after Injury (ACL-RSI) scale in paediatric and adolescent patients.
- Rehabilitation written for a growing athleteHe has published on the considerations unique to the paediatric athlete during rehabilitation.
- Preventing a second injuryHis work also covers reoperation and the risk of injuring the knee again after a reconstruction.
Dr. Green's published research on recovery and return to sport
Of the papers indexed on PubMed under Dr. Green’s Hospital for Special Surgery affiliation, 8 are on this subject. His published work in this area includes outcomes in patients under the age of 20 after primary ACL reconstruction, and after all-inside, all-epiphyseal reconstruction in skeletally immature athletes.
See the full publication recordIn Dr. Green’s own words
Gone are the days when patients routinely went home with a week's worth or more of prescription opioid pain medicine, for instance after a major knee surgery.
We’re talking more about the alternatives to narcotic medications – which could be ice, elevation, Advil or Tylenol – than we used to.
— Dr. Daniel W. Green, quoted in 15 Questions to Ask an Orthopedic Surgeon, HSS Newsroom, 16 January 2020
The papers themselves
His 8 papers on this subject, indexed on PubMed under his Hospital for Special Surgery affiliation. Each opens on PubMed.
- Validation of the ACL Return to Sport after Injury (ACL-RSI) Scale in Pediatric and Adolescent Patients After Medial Patellofemoral Ligament Reconstruction Orthopaedic journal of sports medicine · 2026 May · Dr. Green is author 10 of 11
- Complications Leading to Reoperation After Pediatric Tibial Spine Fracture Fixation Orthopaedic journal of sports medicine · 2026 Mar · Dr. Green is author 27 of 42
- Risk Factors for Complication and Reoperation in the Treatment of Discoid Lateral Meniscus in Children and Adolescents: A Multicenter Study Orthopaedic journal of sports medicine · 2026 Feb · Dr. Green is author 15 of 36
- Validation of the ACL-RSI Scale in Pediatric and Adolescent Patients The American journal of sports medicine · 2023 Oct · Dr. Green is author 6 of 7
- Unique Considerations for the Pediatric Athlete During Rehabilitation and Return to Sport After Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction Arthroscopy, sports medicine, and rehabilitation · 2022 Jan · Dr. Green is author 4 of 4
- Return to Sport and Reoperation Rates in Patients Under the Age of 20 After Primary Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction: Risk Profile Comparing 3 Patient Groups Predicated Upon Skeletal Age The American journal of sports medicine · 2019 Mar · Dr. Green is author 8 of 8
- Return to Sport for Skeletally Immature Athletes After ACL Reconstruction: Preventing a Second Injury Using a Quality of Movement Assessment and Quantitative Measures to Address Modifiable Risk Factors Orthopaedic journal of sports medicine · 2017 Apr · Dr. Green is author 5 of 6
- All-Inside, All-Epiphyseal Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction in Skeletally Immature Athletes: Return to Sport, Incidence of Second Surgery, and 2-Year Clinical Outcomes The American journal of sports medicine · 2017 Mar · Dr. Green is author 3 of 3
Questions parents ask
How long is the recovery?
It depends on the operation, on how the knee is healing and on the sport being returned to. Dr. Green sets that plan with the family and the physical therapy team — this site does not publish a timetable, because there is no single one that fits every child.
What about pain after the operation?
Dr. Green has spoken publicly about how postoperative pain is managed now compared with the past. His own words on it are quoted below.