I was playing around on YouTube today and found this great animation of the surgery I had done. CLICK HERE to view the video. It's quite informative, and also shows why I have a small scab ~5 inches above my knee.
The only difference is that I did not use the 'continuous passive motion machine'. I'm on my own for regaining range of motion!
Cheers!
My 1st Post in 3.5 Years; Almost 5 Years Post-Op
9 years ago
Hey Summer! I am 26 and i have fully torn my acl on march 1st, I am an avid snowboarder... not anymore for now tho! Hey I wanted to ask you about your decision to get surgery... I am so lost on what to do, my doctor recommended a brace and heaps of physio.. but I am still thinking surgery... I never had any probs straightening my knee RIGHT AFTER i injured it so its not exactly what you went through, but still... Its all I can think about! Thanks for posting about it.. Cailey
ReplyDeleteCailey, my decision to get surgery was a combination of my own research and having found a doctor who does a ton of these surgeries. I've seen Dr S's results on friends of mine and just refuse to give up my active lifestyle. Not to mention, I am currently employed and insured, and in this economy, I wanted to take care of it while I could!!
ReplyDeleteThat said, it IS possible to rehab your injured knee/wear a brace, but this is not a 'fix'. Not having an ACL makes your knee unstable and it just takes one more 'give out' (even while wearing a brace) to possibly do more injury within your knee. Also, I've read there is a higher chance of developing arthritis within your knee in years down the road.
Going into surgery I felt great, believe I had most of my range of motion, and w/o the MRI, you would have thought I was just fine. My legs were already quite strong (thank you running and snowboarding!) so even strengthening the muscles around your knee will not 100% prevent this ACL-tearing motion from occuring.
I hope this helps. If you have other questions, you're MORE than welcome to post again (or, leave your email) and I'll do my best to answer them!!
(I also recommend about.com 's article on ACL tears, found in the RH links of my blog) Good Luck!!