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Bob's ACL WWWBoard

Re: 45 year old w/ torn ACL

Posted By: drmark
Date: Saturday, 30 August 2008, at 4:13 p.m.

In Response To: 45 year old w/ torn ACL (Tom Armstrong)

> I injured my knee playing softball 2 weeks ago. I received
> the MRI results this week. They reveal a complete tear of
> the ACL, LCL and a "crab-meat" tear of the
> meniscus (whatever that is).
> I'm currently wearing a full length knee brace and on
> crutches. My OS says he wants to wait one month before
> starting any type of therapy on the knee.
> Being an active person, I'm worried about gaining weight
> throughout this ordeal. How long until I will be able to do
> any type of exercises? I feel my OS is steering me away
> from ACL reconstruction. Is this common? It seems to me
> like there is significant damage to my knee. It's hard to
> believe that I could remain active without surgery.
> As a Noob to this board, I'm sure these questions have been
> asked 1000 times but I'm having some difficulty navigating
> the board. Your patience and help are appreciated.

Everyone who reads my posts must first click on my user name and read my profile.

I commiserate with you on navigating this board. I have been contributing for at least four or five years, and I still have trouble, expecially if a "naughty" word is used. And the Board's definition of "naughty language" is far more conservative than a fire and brimstone pastor's.

Its hard to know about the lateral collateral without the benefit of an exam. If the knee is unstable when this ligament is stessed, then early surgery is absolutely indicated. And it matters not whether or not you want an active lifestyle or not.
If the ligament is stable, and the MRI is just yielding white noise (the usual situation) then a locked brace for a month is quite reasonable.

The ACL would need to be reconstructed if (1) the lateral ligaments need operative repair, or (2) you want an active lifestyle (running, cutting, or pivoting sports) This issue is entirely independant of the lateral ligament issue noted earlier.

The big issue here is whether or not you are getting the best care from the current doc. The fact that you seem to be in the dark leaves some signifigant questions.

One should always be advised that the average ortho doc in the US operates on ten ACLs per year. As an example, I operate on ten per month, and I am far from either being unique or special. The results with an experienced guy, are usually far superior. You shoud do some checking on who will be holding the knife. The best way to do that is to learn from other patients, not from slick marketing or sports team affiliations. (which usually come from purchase of a sponsership)

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