Table 2

Operationalised definitions

TermDefinition
Psychological factorCognitive, behavioural or affective responses associated with an individual’s experience of injury, rehabilitation, surgery and RTS11
Social factorSocial networks and social exchanges that shape an individual’s experience of injury, rehabilitation, surgery and RTS18 32
Contextual factorStructural and institutional systems in which an individual is embedded that influence their experience of injury, rehabilitation, surgery and RTS22 31
Acute recovery stageThe time period immediately post-injury and/or pre-surgery or post-surgery
Rehabilitation recovery stageThe time period between the acute and RTS stage that is focused on restoring physical and psychological function
RTS recovery stageThe time period when an injured athlete is engaged in a graduated RTS programme or have returned to sport and/or physical activity
Traumatic time-loss knee injuryAny trauma to the knee (joint, ligament, muscles) caused by a transfer of energy that exceeded the body’s ability to maintain its structural and/or functional integrity and resulted in a player missing at least one training session (practice) or match play129
Sport participation Participation in any level (recreation, competitive or professional) of organised sport at time of injury130

  • Recreational=sport participation primarily for fun and entertainment

  • Competitive=amateur sport participation at a high competitive level (eg, varsity or collegiate level)

  • Professional=elite sport participation at the highest level of a sport (eg, national, international, professional level athletes) with monetary support (eg, salary/carding, stipends, sponsorships)

  • RTS, return to sport.