Nonoperative management of complete tears of the medial collateral ligament of the knee in intercollegiate football players.

During five consecutive football seasons at a major university, 28 varsity football players sustained complete isolated tears of the medial collateral ligament of the knee. All were managed nonoperatively with early protected motion and physical therapy. Twenty-one patients returned for follow-up examination. The mean follow-up time was 46 months. Eighteen patients were followed for over two years after the original injury. Twenty patients had results ranging from good to excellent. The average time from injury to return to full-contact drills was 9.2 weeks. The key to success in the nonoperative management of complete tears of the knee is to exclude cases with damage to the anterior cruciate ligament.