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Torn ACL. Who's done it?


Chrome

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Who's done it and what was your recovery time? I think mine is jacked. Happened a few days after Christmas and I've been in pain ever since. Popping, swelling, locking up and sharp shooting pains. I had x-rays done and it's nothing with the bones. MRI was done on Friday and I meet with the doc again on Monday.

Just trying to see what recovery will be like if I have to have surgery.

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Mine was severed as was the MCL on the side. ACL was replaced with a cadaver Achille's tendon and the MCL was sewn back together.

3 days in the hos[ital and about 6 months before I quit limping. 17 years later and it still swells when I do a lot of walking, standing, exercise, etc.

Beware the CPM (constant passive motion) machine. Those fuggers hurt!

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My left knee had all the ligaments torn, doc said it looked like a bowl of spaghetti, and the arthritis in there looked like I had fur lining....

 

Needless to say, out-patient surgery(in Columbus, at a Sports-medicine office that I cannot remember the name of), they took some ligaments from off the shin(still numb there after 10+ years) and put it all back together(even scraped off the fur lining).  Doc had me at physical therapy the day after surgery, off crutches within a week, and almost no pain medicine.....quite possibly the worst 3 weeks of pain I can remember.  

 

Do the Physical Therapy.  Those people know their $hit, and if I hadn't done the physio, I know I would not be moving worth a damn.  Stairs were my downfall, and they had more exercises than I ever dreamed of to get me back up to 80% within a month, and now I would say my left knee is in better shape than my right one.  

 

In fact, I took 4 weeks off work and built a fence as part of my physical therapy, during the hottest part of the summer.

 

Now, it pops occasionally, arthritis isn't too bad, and if I really need to, I can run, I just prefer to walk, bike, swim, etc.

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My left knee had all the ligaments torn, doc said it looked like a bowl of spaghetti, and the arthritis in there looked like I had fur lining....

Needless to say, out-patient surgery(in Columbus, at a Sports-medicine office that I cannot remember the name of), they took some ligaments from off the shin(still numb there after 10+ years) and put it all back together(even scraped off the fur lining). Doc had me at physical therapy the day after surgery, off crutches within a week, and almost no pain medicine.....quite possibly the worst 3 weeks of pain I can remember.

Do the Physical Therapy. Those people know their $hit, and if I hadn't done the physio, I know I would not be moving worth a damn. Stairs were my downfall, and they had more exercises than I ever dreamed of to get me back up to 80% within a month, and now I would say my left knee is in better shape than my right one.

In fact, I took 4 weeks off work and built a fence as part of my physical therapy, during the hottest part of the summer.

Now, it pops occasionally, arthritis isn't too bad, and if I really need to, I can run, I just prefer to walk, bike, swim, etc.

This is good info

Thanks

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I had my right knee done last year in December. I have had ups and downs over the past year. My biggest problem is my knee continues to swell but I also push it at times. I had the surgery primarily so I could still ride my quad. I did get back on the quad this summer and was able to do everything I did in the past on it including 30 to 40 foot jumps. I also had the surgery so I could get back to playing basketball, that has not happened however. It is been over year and I still struggle with running there are times I can do it but often I cannot. Two weeks after the surgery however I was walking without crutches. I never really had a extreme pain but my pain comes from when my knee swells I lose mobility/range of motion.

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It really depends on how badly you've injured yourself, and how seriously you take the rehab.

 

I haven't had a diagnosed knee injury, but 2 of my friends tore their ACL in the same weekend - one playing volleyball in college, and the other slipping on ice in a parking lot.  They had almost identical injuries, and surgery on the same day.  One was back up and running (literally) within 6 months, and the other was lazy and it took 18 months before he was really "right."

 

Rehab is no joke.  Do the icing.  Do the flexibility exercises.  Religiously. 

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Update:

Just went to the doc this morning and it's not as bad as he initially thought. Mcl tear with ligament damage. Simple surgery and 2-3 week recovery.

Goo deal.

 

Still, as others have said, stick with what the phys therapist tells ya and do all of the exercises in order to regain full range of motion and strength.

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I've had both ACL's reconstructed.  First one in about 1998, took for ever to heal.  Limped for a year or so.  Second one in about 2005.  They had me walking out of the surgery center with crutches for a little assistance.  Patella tendons used on both.

 

I had a lot of PT for my ACL's, but last year they did a scope to clean up my meniscus, and one or two PT appointments.  You can do most of it at home if it's just a scope.

Edited by Ron505
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I really messed my left knee up back in 88, full surface ACL tear. Be glad if you only ever get a knee injury, as a serious shoulder injury will trump almost anything "trust me".

I must have got lucky because I have the opposite experience. I've dislocated my knee three times but luckily never had a full tear of any ligaments and found that far worse than the partial tear of my labrum in my throwing shoulder. Elected for PT instead of surgery which I ended up barely doing. I lost a decent amount of strength and sometimes get pain in it but not as bad as my knee
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I must have got lucky because I have the opposite experience. I've dislocated my knee three times but luckily never had a full tear of any ligaments and found that far worse than the partial tear of my labrum in my throwing shoulder. Elected for PT instead of surgery which I ended up barely doing. I lost a decent amount of strength and sometimes get pain in it but not as bad as my knee

 

Have shoulder "surgery" and report back with how that goes, the rehab and recovery time is insane. I really jacked up my shoulder, full surface tears of my rotator cuff and labrum, tore my bicep, had bone spurs......yup it was pure hell for a very long time, worst pain I have ever had and it was relentless. Shame you did not keep up with your PT on your shoulder, you likely would have not lost any strength and recovered well. Did you ever have knee surgery, wonder why your knee keeps dislocating?

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Have shoulder "surgery" and report back with how that goes, the rehab and recovery time is insane. I really jacked up my shoulder, full surface tears of my rotator cuff and labrum, tore my bicep, had bone spurs......yup it was pure hell for a very long time, worst pain I have ever had and it was relentless. Shame you did not keep up with your PT on your shoulder, you likely would have not lost any strength and recovered well. Did you ever have knee surgery, wonder why your knee keeps dislocating?

 

Looking back I wish I would have kept up with PT but the timing was poor. Discovered this in May of '08 which was my Senior year of college where I did 2 weeks worth but then hit finals and took 2 weeks off. Then did another session before I moved to Indianapolis and never picked it up again.

 

2 of the 3 times I dislocated my knee were due to collisions playing basketball back in high school and somewhat freak incidents that happened a few months apart. They wanted to do surgery after the 2nd but it would have taken me out of my last year of basketball AND baseball and I just wasn't having that back then

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30 minutes ago, Chrome said:

Well scheduled the surgery for next Friday. We'll see how it goes. 

Wish me luck, I've never been knocked out before. Kinda nervous. 

 

If your butt hurts when you wake up, don't worry about it.  It's normal.

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