Calculator Inputs
Example Data Table
| Case | Current | Preinjury | Target | Training Days | Confidence % | Pain | Outcome Snapshot |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Desk worker in rehab | 3 | 6 | 5 | 2 | 58 | Mild | Lower activity, building capacity |
| Recreational runner | 5 | 7 | 6 | 4 | 72 | Mild | Moderate readiness with small score gap |
| Competitive pivot athlete | 7 | 9 | 8 | 5 | 81 | None | Strong progression profile |
| Heavy labor worker | 4 | 6 | 6 | 3 | 66 | Moderate | Symptoms still reduce adjusted score |
| Elite return candidate | 8 | 10 | 9 | 6 | 88 | Rare instability | High demand level, close to target |
Formula Used
Official Tegner score: the selected current level from 0 to 10. This remains the main scale score.
Recovery percentage: (Current Score ÷ Preinjury Score) × 100
Goal attainment: (Current Score ÷ Target Score) × 100
Adjusted score: Current Score + conditioning bonus + confidence bonus + time bonus + work factor + return factor − symptom burden
Conditioning bonus: training days and weekly training minutes increase the adjusted score within fixed limits.
Symptom burden: pain penalty + instability penalty
Readiness index: a 0 to 100 summary based on adjusted score and confidence percentage. It supports interpretation and does not replace clinical judgment.
How to Use This Calculator
- Select the current Tegner level that best matches present function.
- Choose the preinjury level to show the previous activity benchmark.
- Set a realistic target score for rehab or return planning.
- Enter weekly training days, total minutes, confidence, and months since injury or surgery.
- Select work demand, pain level, instability frequency, and current return status.
- Press the calculate button to show results above the form.
- Review the graph, interpretation, guidance, and summary metrics.
- Export the final result as CSV or PDF for records or discussion.
About the Tegner Activity Level Scale
Why this scale matters
The Tegner Activity Level Scale is widely used in knee assessment and sports rehabilitation. It helps describe how demanding a person’s current activity level is, ranging from disability or sick leave to elite competitive sport. Clinicians often pair it with symptom measures and functional tests to understand return to work, return to sport, and overall recovery progress.
How this calculator helps
This calculator keeps the official Tegner score simple while adding practical support metrics. The current, preinjury, and target levels show where the person is now, where they were before injury, and where they want to return. Recovery percentage and goal attainment percentage quickly show how far the person has progressed. An adjusted score adds training exposure, confidence, symptoms, and return status to create a broader performance picture.
Useful for rehab planning
Tegner scoring is especially useful after ACL reconstruction, meniscus procedures, cartilage treatment, and other knee injuries that change sport participation or work demands. A single score can simplify communication between patient, clinician, coach, and employer. It also helps show whether heavy labor, recreational sport, or competitive pivoting activity is realistic at the current stage of recovery.
Important interpretation note
The scale reflects activity demand, not pain alone. A person can have high motivation but still need time, strength, movement quality, and symptom control before returning safely. That is why this page includes confidence, training load, pain, instability, and readiness indicators. Use the results as a structured discussion tool, then combine them with examination findings, strength testing, hop tests, and professional clinical judgment.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. What does the Tegner scale measure?
It measures the demand level of work, daily activity, and sport participation. It does not directly measure pain, swelling, or strength.
2. Is a higher Tegner score always better?
No. A higher score means higher activity demand. The best score is the level that safely matches the person’s goals, symptoms, and functional capacity.
3. Why include preinjury and target scores?
They create a benchmark and a goal. This makes progress easier to explain during rehabilitation, work planning, and return-to-sport discussions.
4. What is the adjusted score on this page?
It is a support metric created from the selected Tegner score plus training, confidence, time since injury, symptoms, and return status. It is not the official scale score.
5. Can this replace a clinical assessment?
No. It organizes useful information, but it should be combined with examination findings, strength tests, movement analysis, and professional judgment.
6. How often should I recalculate my score?
Weekly or every few weeks works well during rehabilitation. Repeating the calculation helps reveal whether activity tolerance is improving or stalling.
7. Can nonathletes use the Tegner scale?
Yes. The scale includes work and daily activity levels, so it can support planning for office workers, laborers, and recreationally active people.
8. What if my confidence is high but symptoms remain?
That can happen often. Confidence supports progress, but ongoing pain or instability should still be respected when making loading or return decisions.