What is an acl
The goal of these sessions is to decrease the postoperative pain and swelling while increasing your strength and range of motion. Approximately one week after surgery, you will see your specialist and begin physical therapy.After surgery, you can expect to be in a brace for up to a month.What can I expect during recovery from ACL surgery? An allograft is harvested from an outside source.An autograft is when the new ligament is harvested directly from the patient’s own patellar or hamstring tendon.The ligament is replaced with a new graft harvested from one of several sources.What happens during ACL reconstruction surgery?ĪCL reconstruction is performed arthroscopically to ensure proper graft placement and minimize the risk of complications. If this is the case, surgery can be scheduled once the pain and inflammation are under control. Physical therapy can be very useful in this regard, and your specialist may wish that you see a physical therapist prior to surgery. Immediately after injury, the treatment plan is focused on reducing the patient’s pain and swelling while increasing knee strength. Without an ACL, the knee is inherently unstable, and the patient risks further injury when participating in activities. There is a consensus among orthopedic surgeons that in a physically active patient, a torn ACL requires surgical reconstruction. The decision to proceed with surgical versus nonsurgical treatment is determined by the patient’s overall health and physical activity. What are the treatment options for an ACL injury? This information helps him or her formulate a treatment plan tailored to your needs. An MRI allows your specialist to clearly see the muscles, tendons, and ligaments of the knee. X-rays are helpful in viewing the bony anatomy of the knee and can confirm or eliminate a diagnosis.Īfter your doctor has conducted the examination, he or she may recommend that you undergo more diagnostic tests, such as an MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) scan. In order to determine the cause of your symptoms and the extent of the injury, your doctor will ask you questions and perform a physical examination.
These other injuries can result in more pain and increased swelling, and complicate the diagnosis and treatment. This includes disruption of other ligaments, tendons, and/or cartilage of the knee. It is not uncommon to damage other structures in the knee with the initial ACL injury. Persistent knee instability, especially when running or pivoting on the knee.Immediate swelling and pain in the knee.Hearing or feeling a “snap” or “pop” in the knee.
This excessive amount of force results in a strain on the ligament.
There are two common ways that the ACL is injured: In a third-degree sprain, all of the ligament fibers are torn, resulting in an ACL-deficient and inherently unstable knee.In a second-degree sprain, some of the fibers are torn but others remain intact.In a first-degree sprain, the ligament fibers are stretched but not torn.