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Has anyone here had knee surgery?


V8 Beast

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two keys to success

 

1) the surgery being done correctly---this is 100% on the surgeon. don't pick someone who does these every once in a while. ask the surgeon how many he/she does per month, and the answer should be at least a couple per month for acl's. the problem with the guys who do 20 per month is that they will likely use shortcuts--like an allograft (cadaver tendon).

 

2) correct rehab/expectations---that is your responsibility. follow directions, don't assume that because you feel good, that you can do more than is recommended earlier. there are 100 ways to do the surgery and 100 ways to rehab an acl---just follow directions

 

 

honestly, i'm 35 and if i tore my acl tomorrow, i'd at least consider non-operative treatment. i'm done with soccer, tennis, football, and all other 'cutting' sports. you can rehab your quad muscle to effectively substitute for an acl, and be ok with running/etc. but that's a whole different discussion. if i had the surgery, i would use my hamstring tendons for the reconstruction. if i couldn't do that, i'd use the patellar tendon. i would NOT use an allograft. this is attractive to surgeons because it cuts the surgical time in half and you get paid the same amount.

 

plenty of good surgeons in town who do this surgery. wroble, van styn, steensen, westerheide, martin, grant jones, kaeding, etc.

 

Woo hoo!!! Bob's(Martin) on the list...haha. He does a lot of work and has never once recommended the cadaver to me. If, and I hope this doesn't happen, I tear the left one again, I probably won't bother with it again.

Rather sad that I have seen and heard about his kids growing up though....since my first knee surgery was in '97 :(

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Kirk gave me some advise before my surgery, told you he knows his shit! He should since that is what he does for a living. (ortho)

 

In my case it's easy to blow an ACL ejecting from a motorcycle at 80MPH on 71s. Thanks again CR for helping that night and the recovery...

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two keys to success

 

1) the surgery being done correctly---this is 100% on the surgeon. don't pick someone who does these every once in a while. ask the surgeon how many he/she does per month, and the answer should be at least a couple per month for acl's. the problem with the guys who do 20 per month is that they will likely use shortcuts--like an allograft (cadaver tendon).

 

2) correct rehab/expectations---that is your responsibility. follow directions, don't assume that because you feel good, that you can do more than is recommended earlier. there are 100 ways to do the surgery and 100 ways to rehab an acl---just follow directions

 

 

honestly, i'm 35 and if i tore my acl tomorrow, i'd at least consider non-operative treatment. i'm done with soccer, tennis, football, and all other 'cutting' sports. you can rehab your quad muscle to effectively substitute for an acl, and be ok with running/etc. but that's a whole different discussion. if i had the surgery, i would use my hamstring tendons for the reconstruction. if i couldn't do that, i'd use the patellar tendon. i would NOT use an allograft. this is attractive to surgeons because it cuts the surgical time in half and you get paid the same amount.

 

plenty of good surgeons in town who do this surgery. wroble, van styn, steensen, westerheide, martin, grant jones, kaeding, etc.

 

I agree completely.

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Mine was done by Dr. Scott Van Steyn at the Ohio Orthopedic Center of Excellence.

 

He did mine too, great doctor. I was up and walking around after a week. I had a cyst and an mcl tear on both sides. My knee has been great ever since, minus the arthritis that bothers me from time to time.

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i didn't have knee issues, but any time i have another issue or need an ortho, i'm gonna hit up kirk for a reccomendation again...he sent me to an ortho at cardinal when i smashed up my wrist last year, and i don't know if i could have gotten better treatment/care.
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I considered not doing it but I play around so much that I would mess something up eventually. Im considering Dr Turner at the Cardinal Institute currently... But still doing my homework.

 

Here's a good example of why you should do it. I had my left ACL done in March of '04. I tore it again in September of '04. I got an ACL brace, the one you see on all of the O-lineman these days, and kept running around with that on. I tore cartilage 4 times since then, even though I had built up my leg muscles, due to not having the ACL. I finally gave in and had it redone a month ago. I am now giving up all of the fun things that involve running around because of all of the cartilage damage from me not getting the ACL redone years ago.....just saying.

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Here's a good example of why you should do it. I had my left ACL done in March of '04. I tore it again in September of '04. I got an ACL brace, the one you see on all of the O-lineman these days, and kept running around with that on. I tore cartilage 4 times since then, even though I had built up my leg muscles, due to not having the ACL. I finally gave in and had it redone a month ago. I am now giving up all of the fun things that involve running around because of all of the cartilage damage from me not getting the ACL redone years ago.....just saying.

 

Meh sounds like you just need a knee replacement now.....

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I scheduled an appointment with your doc Ben/Erica. Have a consult on Thursday.

 

 

I know about the threat to tear meeeee miniscusssses. As much as I horseplay and run around I have to. I litterally played sports 6 days a week before stepping in a hole and hyper extending my knee.

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Just be honest and make sure you tell him everything you want to be able to do after. He was awesome for me, and listened, mention me and my road rash, that is how he remembers me, my father in law was in there last week and he said yep I remember Ben, man he had some bad road rash. Maybe he'll cut me a discount if I need any work done. :)
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And work your butt off in rehab, that shit works. I had rehab almost every day for 4 months between my DESTROYED wrist, blown ACL, and my broken Ankle. I am normal now with a bit of pain in my wrist every now and then. I have a plate in there and arthritis is getting worse, I may have to see Dr. Cook for a clean out and cortisone shot. Fucker drove a M3 before my accident now has a brand new R8. He at least owes me a ride in that thing.....
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I love dr turner to death, but don't let him fix your acl--ill leave it at that. Ty fowler is a good buddy of mine and as stated he's a trauma surgeon---good for taking care of seriously fucked up fractures, but not sports injuries.

 

$1k deductible is nothing. Most people around me have $5k+ deductibles. It sucks for everyone

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I love dr turner to death, but don't let him fix your acl--ill leave it at that. Ty fowler is a good buddy of mine and as stated he's a trauma surgeon---good for taking care of seriously fucked up fractures, but not sports injuries.

 

$1k deductible is nothing. Most people around me have $5k+ deductibles. It sucks for everyone

 

He seemed too uncertain. Its hard to explain but it was like he didnt want to do it. We talked for an hour and Im definitely smarter because of it and know exactly what to look for. He came across as the teacher that produces great doctors but doesnt operate that much anymore.

 

Maybe Im spoiled. Before my company went into save money mode I didnt have a deductable.

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yeah, you were spoiled. my deductible right now is something like 2k, and then i gotta cover another $2300 or so in 70/30 coinsurance.

 

Bite me, $5000 deductible, then I have another $1000 in a coinsurance deductible that is 10/90. So after I am billed for another $10,000 and I pay $1000 of it, they cover my bills at 100%. So $6000 out of pocket.

 

We are there already there this year, so it's vasectomy time since it's gonna be free. First visit to Dr. Ward is the 30th.

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I have to get my wisdom teeth surgically removed so I may do that right before I go back to work. Ours is set up at $1000 per person up to $3000 on the family plan.

 

Keep in mind you will be in post PT rehab for a few months. Mine were billed at $300 per visit, insurance rate was about $100/visit.

 

Go see Cory Southers at Banyan Tree Rehab just north of Tuttle for your PT. See him, or some other very good PT, before your surgery (ASAP) and see if he recommends pre-PT rehab. He's supposed to be one of the best in Columbus for ACL's and I had a very, very good experience with him.

 

If you get the surgery done shortly after the injury you normally have to get mobility/strength back in your leg before the doc will do the surgery. Mobility and strength before translate to what it will be like after. I waited 2 months due to life (big vacation planned) before the surgery and went into pre-surgery PT half a dozen times, starting pretty soon after my injury. On the other side of it a coworker had a doc tell him he had a partial tear and to stay off of it, then ended up needing surgery. Before my surgery I went hiking in Hawaii, and was off of crutches within a few weeks. My coworker had his quad atrophy 100% and was on crutches for a month or two. It will obviously be a different situation with you, since it's an old injury. But going in and getting established with a PT won't hurt. And they can suggest if pre-PT surgery will help. Another thing that will effect this is how many PT visits your insurance covers in a year. Mine was 60, which I guess is a very high amount, so it was a no-brainier to do a few pre-surgery sessions.

 

If you go to a big place for surgery they will recommend you go to a specific place for PT, maybe connected to their facility. I was warned away from those places because sometimes they are very big and busy and you will see a PT sometimes, but often you will see a PT assistant. A bad PT is not good, and there are plenty of bad (and good) PTs out there. An assistant is just asking to at the very best delay your recovery imho.

 

It sounds like your company has good benefits. Check to see if you have some company paid short term disability. Mine did, I was off for 2 weeks. I took FMLA and claimed the short term disability. I took 3 days of vacation and got paid my normal amount over that 11 days.

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I have full range of motion back and was playing basketball last week when I thought its was just a 6 weak old grade 2 mcl tear. My quads are strong enough that Ive never had my leg give out or anything. If it wasnt for feeling funny I wouldnt have got a second opinion. I have the benefit of learning a lot in sports, training, and sports medicine over the years.
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