Using a cadaver graft or Allograft for ACL Reconstruction
As previously noted I’ve opted to take the Allograft route for my upcoming ACL surgery. Today i’m compiling a list of resources regarding the use of Allograft or cadaver tissue in ACL repairs.
Allograft vs. Autograft in ACL Reconstruction Medscape.com - This article is brief but rather technical. It contains a couple of good images and some great information about the chances of disease transmission, which is obviously a concern for anyone undertaking such an operation.
Allograft ACL Repair Questioned in Young Active Patients MedpageToday - This article is downright scary. It summarizes a study that shows Allograft to have high failure rates in patients under 40 who are highly active, a category I definitely fall in to.
eorthopod.com has an article stating that there is no difference in strength and reiterating faster recovery period.
All of this is food for thought. Were this my first repair I’d definitely go with a hamstring repair, but because i’ve already done that it’s not an option. My approach will be to get back on my feet as soon as possible and try to get a strong as possible to protect that ligament.
In 1989 I had an ACL repair surgery on my right knee. My patellar tendon was used to repair the torn ACL. The surgery was very successful and I don’t have any problems with that knee at all, which is solid.
This year I tore the ACL on my left knee (can’t stay off of the basketball court!) and this time I decided to go with the cadaver graft. The surgery was October 7 and so far, so good. Not using an autograft resulted in a lot less trauma to the leg. The recovery time is a lot quicker, as I spent a good bit less time on crutches than my first surgery. Of course, disease transmission is a concern, but I was told by my surgeon that the chances are extremely small. At this stage, I am glad I decided to use the allograft this time.
Hey David-
Thanks for sharing your experience. How long were you on crutches after your surgery?
I had the surgery Tuesday, October 7 and if I am not mistaken, I started walking without crutches on Saturday, October 18. However, I did not completely stop using the crutches on that date. I would still use them occasionally, especially if the knee were not “warmed up” after being inactive or if I had to walk for a relatively long period of time. I’d say I completely stopped using the crutches after about another week, which comes to about 2.5 weeks after surgery.
David,
Its good to know that you play basket ball too. I completely tore my ACL on left knee on Dec 8 and I was also given 3 choices to choose from:
1) Cadaver Graft
2) Patella tendon graft
3) Hamstring graft
i am also trying to find some good info to help me decide. My doctor voted for the first two choices and asked me to decide. So can you please tell me how you made this decision and when are you going to be back on the basket ball court.
I want to be back on basket ball court asap. I am 28 yrs old now.
I just tore my ACL on my left knee skiing Dec. 20th. I was also giving the choice of cadaver or my own hamstring for surgery. From what I read the cadaver surgery has a high failed rate but I’m not too crazy about having to recover from two surgeries. I will have surgery in 2 weeks. I’m a very active 39yr. old mom and wakeboarding weather is just around the corner! I was very hard on my knees playing sports and I think I’m paying for that now but not willing to slow down yet. I’m also just looking for some input from people that have gone through what I’m about to. Thanks!
Hello Tracy,
I am now recovering from an ACL reconstruction surgery that was done 4 days ago. I opted to use my hamstring and I am beginning to regret it because it is more painful. I am very active as well, I do Krav Maga, etc. So far I am still on crutches and that brace, and I try to keep my leg elevated as much as possible. The one thing that is making recovery so much better is this machine that pumps cold water into a wrap that goes around my leg. It also compresses and is very soothing. Make sure you get one, I dont know what I would have done without it.
Hi Kimber,
I have enjoyed the cold water compress during therapy. I hope I will be taking one home. I just hate that I’m just now getting some movement back in my knee and in two weeks I will be back at square one. Good luck with your recovery, I’ll keep checking for updates. Tracy
Hello,
If you need help deciding on allograft vs. autograft this is might help.
I just had my second ACL reconstruction on my left knee on december 10th. For both surgeries I opted for the allograft. I am finding recovery time to be quite quick as I am off crutches and out of any brace as I wright this. I am currently learning how to walk properly again. My first allograft failed, but that was when I aggressive inline skated in 2001, skating twists knees too much, much like skiing, so no more of that. I currently only ride road bikes and Downhill mountain bike, and snowboard, all have much less impact on the ACL. I don’t play basketball, soccer, run, or any other sport that has harsh turning, this is why I opted for the allograft over autograft. Word has it that the allograft is weaker than autograft (my first one failed) so that seems to be true, but my sports and lifestyle have changed and I know feel that the allograft was the better choice for me.
24 days after surgery I…
Walked down 3 flights of stairs to do laundry (elevator back up)
Ride 30 minutes a day on stationary bike
Can stand and wash dishes and cook
Use almost all of my range of motion
No crutch or brace when I walk
but…
My knee swells up every time I do my PT
I walk like a pirate with a peg leg
My patella dose not track correctly so there is a lot of locking and popping
And I can’t sleep more than an hour or two due to extreme restless leg syndrome ( it really does exist )
Thanks Mike,
I think I’m leaning more towards the Allograft. I’m just not sure I want to put my good leg(if you can call it good) through anything. I have dislocated my right knee before and have some arthritis in it. Rain and cold weather sometimes flares it up. I don’t run as much as I use to but water sports and snow skiing is something that my family does together. I guess recovery time is slow and I need to be patient? And yes I’m already tired of walking like a peg leg pirate too.
Hi Andy,
My doc is the doctor for a college football team and while he recommends the hamstring for most patients, he uses the patella tendon for all athletes. I think because it is stronger or quicker recovery but there are some potential complications/issues. He is of the mentality that the allograft is weaker. After heavy duty hiking and some skiing for the last 5 years, I haven’t found the allograft weaker, but that may just be me. Personally, I do worry about disease transmission and did regret getting the allograft for the year after that surgery. Then again, the trauma from the hamstring this time really bothered me up til this week (for 5 weeks). If I was you, I would go patella (if you haven’t had surgery already).
Hi Tracy T.,
Sounds like you are under the impression that the hamstring is from the other knee. Its from the same one. Both ways (auto- or allograft), you can expect a good 3 months before you feel right (longer before you are supposed to do things like wakeboarding).
Hi Kimber,
I’m finally (mostly) painfree. Its been 5 weeks. Hang in there!
Eric- Glad to hear the pain is going away! My pain is mostly on the the inside of my knee, probably where the incision is. I put weight on my leg today but when I tried to walk with my brace, it felt too wierd. I still have my bandages on, will have them removed during my doctor visit in 2 days. I have my first PT appt tomorrow, wish me luck!
Tracy- My Dr had the machine dropped off at my house, its a rental and it truly is a godsend. I even sleep with it wrapped around my knee. Good luck with your surgery, keep us updated.
Mike- Wow, after 24 days you are making progress! I really needed to read that.
Did anyone have an issue with your foot swelling up? If I keep my leg not elevated after a long time, my foot swells. I go back to work tomorrow though, thank goodness I have a desk job. I will have to find a way to elevate my leg.
Hey all,
I had ACL surgery on Nov 7 using an allograft. Obviously the first week was incredibly painful, but I was totally off crutches after 10 days. I started PT right away riding the stationary bike, and isometric excercises. Moderate pain, swelling, and stiffness continued for about 6 weeks. About two weeks ago it just start feeling great, no pain. I actually, without thinking, ran up the stairs, where before it was hard to walk normally up the stairs. Just remember while it may feel weird or hard to use your leg, it is so important to be using it and doing your PT no matter how much it hurts. I can’t vouch for the strength of an allograft yet, but recovery time seemed much quicker than I was expecting. I am sure it feels like your knee will never feel the same again early on, but it will. I am sure many of you have seen this site, but it helped me a lot. http://aclsurgeryrecovery.blogspot.com/2008_05_01_archive.html
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Hey Eric,
My Dr. called me this morning and his call made me feel better about the allograft. He did say that the ones that fail are the people jump right back into their sports full force after 3-4 mo. I told him I will lay off the water sports this summer. This site is really helping me a lot and I’m glad I found it. To hear about everyone’s recovery and how well you guys are doing is encouragement to me. Thanks!
Thanks for all these posts. I hurt my knee Sunday, had MRI yesterday, and find out today at 4 if indeed my ACL is torn. I want to play basketball again but know I’ll be scared to and wonder if I should. I have played my entire life and its my true passion (family being first of course). I’m 36 and have never had a knee injury before this. Any feedback on whether to play again or not? I have a lot of snap, crackle, pop in my knees which is due to cartlidge being worn down from years of playing. Thanks.
this forum is pretty great. like our own little support group. i tore up my left knee back in october(acl, meniscus, and also damaged the pcl and mcl).. anyway, it was suggested to me by my surgeon to go to physical therapy before surgery 2-3 times a week, not only to down the swelling but to get some strength back and to make it an easier transition postsurgery for recovery. injury was october 3rd, surgery was dated for nov. 25, i continued PT twice a week throughout and i was off crutches in early november before surgery. i opted for the patella graft and that was my surgeon’s favored option. Surgery was the 25th, and i was off crutches by december 4th. no problems since, and with continued rehab, therapists and surgeon think i will be able to play basketball competitively by june/july. i am 22. best wishes everyone.
jay dale. dont play, you will find out quickly that you can not and will damage it further. when i snapped mine, i tried to get up and walk it off, because like you, i had never been hurt like that before. but you will cause more damage whether to your meniscus, or your lateral ligaments. good luck.
Jay Dale,
I’d say after a year, you could certainly play again without fear. Docs recommend 4-6 months before running, longer for contact sports. But from my experience the graft (and mine was an allo-) was and is strong enough for skiing and playing ultimate frisbee (with lots of running, jumping, diving etc.) after a year or so - I was pretty conservative at first. And look, now I tore my other ACL before the graft one.
The only thing you should fear is going back too soon or that you have a predisposition for tearing ACLs (but hey, even if you are like me you only get 2 weak ones so once those are replaced you should be fine). My caveat is that it may depend on your cartilage damage if you have some that can’t be fixed because that there is no replacement and it’ll only get worse the more you play. If they go in, they’ll get a good look at it (and fix what they can) so you’ll know.
Wow, what a great discussion! I’d have to say that thus far I’m thrilled with my easy (allograft) recovery. At almost six weeks i’m walking almost normally and riding my bike fairly easily on a trainer.
Also, if anyone participating in this forum would like to write about their experiences in the blog let me know. I’m always looking for more people.
Thanks everyone for your posts back. I meet with surgeon today 1/12 to discuss options and a date. I’m still torn on whether to play ball again but its premature before I go through rehab, etc. On one hand I think its a sign of age and should probably just give it up. On the other I truly love it and will have one new knee and what are the odds of blowing out the other. Then again I love to exercise so I hote not to be able to run again if I re-injure. I’ll stay in touch.
It’s the day after my ACL surgery and the pain level was pretty high this morning. Therapy will start on Tuesday. I’m sure that will be a fun day and the pain meds will come in handy. So far I’ve only had 2 pain pills. The Dr. had to make 4 incisions instead of 3. I had done a little more damage than we thought. I had a tear in my meniscus, MCL and a small fracture on the top of the tibia. My shin feels numb,that is just a strange filling. I’m so bandaged up right now it’s hard to tell just how much swelling I have. Nothing feels too tight, it’s just bulky. I’ve got movies downloaded to the TV and my husband waiting on me(that is the good part). I’ll feel better when I can take a shower! Tomorrow is sure to be better than today, I hope.
Hey Tracy-
Thanks for the update, I look forward to hearing about your recovery as you go forward.
Henry
Tracy, glad to hear you are doing good. Did they give you a block? When the block wears off, be prepared to take some pain medicine. Please keep us updated!
I am 3 weeks into my recovery. I walk now without crutches and I am working on my flexion and extension. While I wish I had the allograft, I am catching up with my PT so I am not as stressed about it.
Hey Kimber.
Glad to hear that you are off the crutches,3 weeks… that is wonderful!! You are right, I had the meds ready. Yesterday was a bad day. Today I have only taken 1/2 doses of pain meds. When I get up it feels like my leg weighs a ton. I’m just trying to take it easy, stay in bed and prepare myself for therapy on Tuesday when they take the bandages off.
Tracy: Use the hell out of that cold compression machine. I had that thing on all day long. And it does get better!
At this point, the most frustrating thing is not being able to sleep on my side. My back hurts more than my knee and my PT says its because I carry myself different to favor the knee that had surgery. Anyone else have this problem?
So glad to have found this site! Thanks to everyone for sharing your resources and experiences. I tore my ACL skiing on 12/26 and have scheduled surgery for 2/26. My doc strongly recommended the allograft and there are many reasons why that route appeals to me. In doing my due dilligence research I came across the article about risks for younger active folks and that worried me - I’m 35 and very active (skiing, hiking, rock climbing, triathlons) - but the discussions and other resources shared here have helped put some of those concerns to rest. I’m definitely willing to take the recovery time I need and return to my sports only when I’m truly ready - there’s plenty of other things I can enjoy that I can otherwise never find the time to do!
Look forward to reading all about everyone’s recoveries over the next few weeks/months and thanks again for sharing!
Today was not a bad day(day 3). I only had to take 3 ibuprofen this morning. I’ve done a few more leg lifts today. It may sound strange but when I try to straighten my leg out it feels better,anyone else have that feeling? It does not move much because of all the wrapping on it, that will come off Tuesday. Yeah! I’m still hanging out in bed and just trying to stay off if it. Dr. did not want any pressure on it until therapy. Each day seems better.
Tracy: It did feel better to straighten it and wierd to bend it, and it is still that way. Although full extension feels like my knee is going to snap, like there isnt much holding up my knee. The swelling has gone down and my knee almost matches my other one. Tracy, when they take the bandage off, its shocking. My knee was so huge!
My PT told me that ACL surgery is crazy to watch, so I youtubed it (I know, I am a nerd) and you have got to see this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lfTBNBc7Obg&feature=PlayList&p=FD8588ACF464C434&playnext=1&index=29
Hey Kimber and Everyone else!
I watched the youtube video, that was cool. Not sure if I got one or not. I hope I did.
Today was my first therapy appt. I got all the bandages off(what a relief). The swelling was not too bad and just slight bruising. We just worked on flexing and extending. The therapist let me walk without my brace but using my crutches, working on that heel-toe movement that I miss so much. He said I HAVE to wear the brace at night to help straighten my leg more. As if we get a good nights sleep anyway, right? I’ll be glad when I can get rid of the brace for good!!! The strap right under my knee keeps rubbing one of the incisions and there is no way to move it and it hurts like SH#&!! Just another bump in the road to recovery. I hope everyone is doing well. I’m glad no one has had any set-backs thus far.
Did anybody else get a video of their surgery on dvd?
I might post this question on the blog too.
I tore mine landing bad durring a butterfly twist. 5 minutes later I was up and jumping again but with a strange sinsation. 2 months later i dropped to the ground screaming in pain durring a friendly jodo match. My surgery is in 2 weeks and I am alot more scared than I thought I’d be. I know 31 is a bit old to be doing martial arts tricking but I love flipping and twisting trough the air. I already gave up national competition after a knee injury 4 years ago. How much do I have to give up now? I teach martial arts for a living so limiting my activity is not easy.
Tracy: If you can, keep wearing the ace bandage. That will help keep that strap from rubbing on the incision. Just wrap it around that area. Plus, it helps keep the brace from sliding down your leg. I am at that point now where the brace falls no matter what and rests on my foot (which hurts like hell.) I am going to call my doctor tomorrow to see if I can get a new brace. Good to hear you are recovering okay though!
Henry: I didnt get a video but I have really good pictures. I would scan them and see if I can post them but I doubt they will look as good.
Shane: I hurt mine doing Krav Maga (Israeli martial arts). I was told by my PT that it would be a year before I can fight again.
It is very discouraging. I am hoping this year goes by fast. Good luck though, it is better than not taking care of it and doing more injury to your knee.
Hey all,
Great to hear everyone’s recovery stories, and it sounds like things are going good for the most part. I am now at 2 1/2 months post surgery, and it feels like I didn’t even have surgery (thats a good thing). I can already tell my knee has much more support and I walk with no limp at all. I still have a long ways to go building up muscle, but the Doc feels I am progressing well. I have been given the go ahead to stop physical therapy and do my excercises at home. At the follow up appointment he stressed to not rush back into serious sports, I’ll see where I am in 4 months at the next appointment. Also, I hear alot of people get the brace, which I did not have, and my mobility was back to perfect after a couple of weeks. I guess every doctor is different.
Look forward to hearing about everyone’s full recovery!
Hey Kimber,
I have tried everything from the ace bandage to to not even buckling that strap last night. I had much rather go through 8 hours of child labor again as to put that brace back on. So first thing this morning I called the therapist and told him and he said there was another one they could probably fit me in tomorrow but he would check with the doc first. I see the Dr. on Friday. I know how you feel about it sliding down. Right before my surgery I could not keep mine up. Maybe we should come up with some stylish double sided tape to help keep the darn thing on our leg.
Tracy: I think we could make and sell brace straps that actually work! I tried to give mine away to a friend who was complaining of knee pain but she wouldnt take it. Someone at work has started calling me Max Max; I dont know how I feel about that yet. But good news, I have gained 14 degrees of flexion in my knee in less than a week. Yay!
Hanson: My Dr told me that some doctors dont give their patients a brace but then told me I have to wear mine. He was trying to comfort me when I first took my brace off to have the bandages removed. I was so nervous about not having that protection. Didnt you feel wierd? Was your knee all wobbly and what not?
I have had two ACLs and four scopes. I am pretty active with sports and I am a fire fighter so my knees take a beating. The first surgery was the autograft. It lasted two years. The second was the allograft. I went to a local guy for the first surgery and a well know doc in Chicago for the second. They say one may be better than the other… Who knows. I do know discretion is the key. We’re all damaged after a knee injury and we’ll never be “the same”. If you tore the ligament God gave you, you can most certainly tear the new one. If you’re scared, get the anti-rotational brace (Don Joy’s are pretty good and comfortable). If you are fearless, great. Just know you may be back on the table at some point. Either way don’t let it stop you. We’re only young once! Good luck to all of you.
By the way, the allograft recovery was significantly shorter and less painful. The first 72 hours are the key. You have to fight the urge to walk unless it’s necessary. Keeping it up, iced, and compressed reduces so much of the swelling in the knee and foot.
Kimber: It definitely felt weird, but I took faith in what my doctor told me. He is a very strong proponent of using that leg as soon as you are off the surgery table. I was putting 25% weight bearing on the bad leg right after surgery and pretty much off the crutches after a week (with an obvious limp of course). I guess every doctor has their own ideas and practices. How long do you have to keep the brace on?
Hi All,
After few visits back to this site after my post and having not seen any replies I haven’t check on this site until now. Feels really great that so many people have been checking this site since then. Here is my story
I tore my ACL on Dec 8 and by Dec 12 I found out that I have an ACl tear and scheduled my surgery for Jan 13. During the period I did some research and found that Patellar tendon is the way to go (although I wanted Allograft) and told my Doctor’s assistant to go auto graft way. My leg felt good or normal by Dec 24 few of my cousins who were doctors (cardiologists and internal medicine) thought that I should take a second opinion since they saw me playing Table tennis and dancing during the christmas break parties. I even played Basket ball again but did not do any jumping but on jan 8 I played basketball again and jumped very little and I collapsed completely, so Jay Dale don’t play till you get rehab after surgery.
On Jan 13 I was under the impression that I was getting patellar tendon graft, but after I was anesthetized my surgen came to meet me and since on back of my mind I was inclined for allograft I asked him what are the disadvantages of allograft he said that if he had to do a ACL reconstruction on his leg he would go for allograft and he spoke to my wife while I was slowly going into sleep. So dont know for good or bad now I have a allograft.
My recovery so far has been really great. I came back home on jan 13 and every 4 hours I took Oxycodone (few time in the night I had muscle spasms and felt like I tore my ACL again but Doctor’s nurse asked me not to worry)and on Jan 16 went for my first PT most of the exercises were easy except heel slides (torture). PT asked me to bear weight on the leg and did not feel any pain and have been walking with two crutches. Returned to work on Jan 19 could not sit comfortably on the chairs but due to constant motion leg eased out and could walk with no crutches but Pt cautioned me against that and now I use one crutch. Tommorow I will be meeting my doctor and wil post more info. Oh by the way I took my first shower on Jan 14 night with my wife’s help she wrapped my leg in a trash bag to prevent water soaking and have been taking a shower every day (of course with her help)
Hello Everyone.
Today was my second PT appt.(1 week since my surgery). I did really good and have gained 8 more degrees. I’m not saying that it was fun, I’m back on the ice right now. The therapist told me since I could not wear the brace right now and I was walking good I could drop down to one crutch. I will see the Dr tomorrow and the PT said he had talked to him about that darn incision that is preventing me from wearing that brace. I hope I get more good new tomorrow.
Oh, I do have a bit of cool news. The place that I’m going to for therapy was opened up and owned by Peyton Manning (QB for the Colts)It’s a rehab/personal training facility. He works out here during the off season and when he is in town. I live in Chattanooga, Tn. and he has a home here plus his wife is from here. Just thought that was interesting and wanted to share.
One week 3 days my first doctor appointment and good news is he wants me to remove start walking without the brace/splint and no crutches too feels really great without the brace, can sit more comfortably with the leg folded.
Initally when I was at the doctor’s the tech removed my brace and wanted me to get to the X-ray room so I kinds felt a buckle in the leg but 30 min later upon meeting my PT he taught me the right way to walk that is heel hits the ground first and then step in,phew! it feels so good to give some air to the knee.
good luck everyone with your recoveries.
Hanson: Well I received a call from my doctor’s office and they want to fit me for a new brace on Tuesday. So I am guessing they want me wearing this thing for a while longer. The brace I have on doesnt really work, so I am pretty much walking with out it.
But this brings up a good point. There are so many doctors with different points of view when it comes to autograft/allograft, brace/no brace, types of PT, etc. It’s driving me crazy. I have already had the autograft and there is no turning back, and I feel as though I am progressing, but there are so many conflicting sides to this surgery. Its frustrating!
Just found this great ACL blog. I tore my ACL skiing @ ALTA, Utah Dec. 30th. on East Greeley Bowl if anyone familar with it. Been in therapy for prehab since then. Surgery Jan 26th with an allograft. My doc sports medicine ortho (William Beaumont Royal Oak, MI.) says is the best for older athletes (55) but hey I don’t feel it. I will get a CPM machine after. Great post op ideas from all of you. Please send comments I will need them even if I am a RN.
Thanks
To Kimber:
My back ached more than the tear. Highly recommend massage therapy. I also go to a chiropractor. I had a violent crash, so it helped alot. Once I have surgery I will go back to alternative therapy plus rehab with a good knee therapist. I am a RN in Research so I ask alot of questions.
Hey Guys.
I just thought I would check in. The Dr’s visit(8 days post-op) went very good on Friday. He said I could leave the brace off and use one crutch but just be very careful not to fall or twist my knee. I’m walking slow but the movement is getting better. My incisions only looks like tiny cat scratches. Over all I’m very pleased with how fast I’m recovering. A week ago I did not think I would be able to get around as good as I am. Of course after doing my exercises is not a good time and I’m sure you all can relate to that. I’ll go back to work on Monday with restrictions.
Tracy: Good freakin news! When you get to work, see if they have something to prop your leg up. And no brace? What the hell? I am getting fitted for a new one on Tuesday.
Amy: My PT helped me stretch my back out and I have been sleeping on my side (I had to! I cannot sleep on my back) so my lower back doesnt hurt as much. I think my knee has thrown my alignment all off and therefore it affects my hips and therefore affects my lower back.
To all:
Wish me luck. I have my allograft surgery tomorrow. Thanks for all the good advice.
To Tracey. I found each doc does different postop therapy. Best brace out there is a DonJoy. $600 big ones. No wonder our health care is so expensive. Its made in Mexico for probably $10.00 oh well.
Amy: Good luck! I know everything will turn out great. Ask your doc of they will give you a block, it will help cut down the pain after surgery. And I am surprised you have to pay for your brace! Especially since some doctors dont require it.
Well, I’m joining the group. I tore my acl, minicus and mcl on my left knee jan. 11th. while playing tennis. 15 years ago I tore my acl on my right knee and no options were really presented. The Dr. told me he was going to use the patellar and that is just what he did. I play a hi level of tennis and coach softball so I am very active. I have NEVER had a problem with my right knee with the exception of a little stiffness in cold weather.(That’s why I live where its warm) I do recall that post op, the pain was worse than giving birth to my two children or even my back surgery. So now the dilemma. I have gone to a Dr. that came highly recommended, but tells me he does 95% of his surgeries with cadaver. I’m not sure if it is wise to have this surgeon take from my patellar or look for a new surgeon who does this primarily. With my first surgery years ago, I was only 24 and I was back on the tennis court with a brace in 5 months. I’m a little older now so I know the recovery will be harder but I do believe if your active that the petellar is the way to go. Even knowing the pain I went through and will have to go through again, I’m willing to do that if it means it’ll be a better knee. The research that I have uncovered also said that the cadaver has a 24% failure rate with those 40 and younger, not to mention the risk of infection/disease - which I do worry about. Thanks to all of you who have posted your experiences - very helpful.
I tore my ACL skiing last month, and am going in for surgery next week and I’m going with the cadaver. My Dr. seems to be like Jenny’s, and pretty much only does cadaver, but he works with the local pro soccer team so I’m comfortable with his advice. My boyfriend had a lot of doubts about my judgement (I really want this fixed ASAP so I can return to playing football and skiing next fall). He’s been talking to anyone who’ll listen, and everyone he’s found who’s had the surgery done with the cadaver instead of their own tissue has spoken highly of it. At my pre-op last week, I asked about rejection, and the response was that usually it happens because people overestimate their abilities when they’re young or partake in activities that are more physical than you initially think (ping pong was given as an example).
I have no worries about the cadaver. But I think that’s my attitude in general, I’m more worried about little things after surgery than the surgery itself.
Today was day 11 after my allograft surgery. Today was the first day I drove. I went back to work today and propped my leg on the garbage-can(it worked). I put my ice wrap on it as well today. I was stiff when I got home but did my stretches anyway. I’m sure tomorrow at PT they will work me over and get that stiffness out. I’m sure it’s just the swelling from today being up more.
Kimber- I’m with you on sleeping on my side! I miss it bad. I could do it but then my knee is in that slight bend position that they hate so much. I broke down a few times and put pillows back under my leg. I just seem to wake up every few hours. The good pain meds keep me up too so I don’t take them.I’ll try some benadryl tonight. It’s funny the over the counter stuff makes me more sleepy.
Hey Amy.
I hope you are recovering and resting well. Just get passed the first 3 days. You can do it!!!!! Lots of sleep and everyone waiting on you. Best of luck!
To Tracy T.
My surgery went well. Had the allograft. The MDA had trouble with my pain control post op but being a nurse I told him to give me lots. Meds kicked in and I went home last night after 10 hours. I have a pain pump which helps alot. I work @ the hospital so I knew alot of staff to help me. My question you are back to work after 11 days? Do you have a brace? I have a job where I am running all over the hospital. What type of work do you do to get back so soon. I’m impressed. Any other advice from all of you is helpful. Sounds like all of us are very active.
Hey Amy,
Glad to here you are doing well. I’m a Dental Assistant for the Dept of Vererans Affairs but I’m only doing the desk job right now. And I was not able to put the brace back on and my therpist and Dr. said I was doing good with out it, so just one crutch. Today is my second day back to work( 12 days post-op) and when I get home I can tell my leg is more swolen. I try to keep it up as much as possible and ice on it but you know you can never elevate it like laying down in bed. Oh well, I’ll get by one way or another.
Hey everyone, I am finally brace free! Yay! But I am behind in my flexion. He said if I didnt improve by my next appt he will put me under and they will manually flex my knee for me. :O
Hey Guys.
Day 12—-I had PT after work today and he worked me hard but made progress. I can extend my knee flat on the table where he can’t get his fingers under my knee. And he got my flexion to 100 degrees! OMG!! But I did it. Still can’t peddle all the way around on the bike yet and I hate calf lifts.
Kimber-
Maybe without the brace you can work it more. I slept with a neck roll pillow under my heel for a few nights to let gravity pull it down. I know you will find something that works for you and get the job done. I’m cheering for ya!!!!
I’m so glad you are rid of the brace. I really hope you don’t have to go back under.
Thanks Tracy! I went to my PT today and told him what the doctor said. He put me through some tough exercises, and I hurt but it was worth it. I peddled all the way around on the bike and went up a flight of stairs today at work. I did put a pillow under my heel last night and that seemed to help alot so thanks for the tip!
Hi guys:
Day 3 post op. Pain management d/c’d on Wed. 12 noon. I’m ok w/o it. I now alternate po Vicodan and Motrin. I have the manual CPM set up. Later today I will attempt it. Up on crutches with partial wb. I ahve this huge brace that a football player could wear. I’m only 5′3”. Its a pain. No swelling. On ice machine. Moving around pretty well. Made dinner last night. Just easy stuff. I see the doc on the 6th of Feb. Hope I can lose this big brace and go back to my smaller one. Any comments on this post op please email me. Amy
Kimber-
I’m so jealous that you can peddle the bike all the way around. I’ll work on that some more to night at PT. If they had a margarita bar at PT I’m sure I could have done it by now. (LOL)
To Everyone:
I hope everyone is doing good and healing well. Keep us updated on the progress.
Hello To All,
I just wanted to give a quick up date.(16days post-op) Therapy has been going very good. Each time I go they add something new for me to do. They now stretch my knee while I’m on my stomach. I don’t’ like that but it is progress. I can peddle all the way around on the bike now but I do lift the hip up just a little. I’m not ready to lower the seat yet. I feel that the fluid that I have is preventing most of my movement. The therapist and other patients where I go told me that the Dr. might drain it to help speed it up. My knee is not super big but it is swollen.Has anyone else had to do it yet??
Tracy: drain your knee? That does NOT sound like fun :O Let me know how that goes.
Tracy,
I’m two months post-op and my knee is still swollen but PT and doc say its normal and could take a long time. Maybe yours is more swollen?
Kimber said “But this brings up a good point. There are so many doctors with different points of view when it comes to autograft/allograft, brace/no brace, types of PT, etc. It’s driving me crazy. I have already had the autograft and there is no turning back, and I feel as though I am progressing, but there are so many conflicting sides to this surgery. Its frustrating!”
I believe no one knows which is better auto/allo, brace/no brace, PT day after vs a week later. Having had both of the first two, I say allograft hurts less and quicker earlier part of recovery, but my doc now says my allograft is already looser (5 years later) than it should. But, they nicked nerve getting my hamstring. I also had no problems without a brace this time around and I was not religious about putting a pillow under my heel until a week or so after surgery.
Speaking of dr preference, my doc told me that they drilled my acl hole (the one through the bone) on an angle, something they’ve only been doing for a year but which supposedly makes it stronger and less likely to tear later. Not that I feel like a test subject, but would have maybe been nice to know before.
This has come up a lot in this blog in the posts and comments.
What is better autograft (hamstring or patella) or allograft (from a cadaver)? As a biology graduate student I have access to scientific publications and the experience to assess the information. There are no published guidelines for doctors. Here is what I have found from articles comparing allograft to autograft:
1. There is a lack of randomized trials to compare auto- vs allograft. Randomized studies are very important in science. Think about your doctor. He or she has an opinion on which is better. So the graft you get may be biased by that opinion or, if you decide opposite that doctor’s preference, the surgery itself may be biased. Randomized trials would be if you went to the doctor and picked a surgery (allo- or auto-) out of a hat. These have been done comparing patella tendon versus hamstring but not allo- versus auto-.
2. The results of 7 observational studies show that:
a) No difference in outcomes from patient reports
b) Failure rate for allograft is significantly higher (9 of 158) than autograft (2 of 167). The review (first citation) recommends autograft, especially for young athletes.
3. Greater chance of deep infection with autograft (2 out of 170) versus allograft (4 out of 628). Significant difference, but all in all, risk was low, maybe too low in this study to tell if there is really a difference.
4. There is really no difference in results from patella or hamstring, but patella causes a little more pain. I know this wasn’t auto- vs allo- but still relevant.
Additional interesting information I found:
1. ACL reconstruction in patients over 50 can be as successful as in younger patients
2. 175,000 ACL reconstructions were performed in 2000
3. Osteoarthritis occurs in 50 % of patients that tear their ACL 10 to 20 years after injury.
4. 60-70% of ACL tears also damage meniscus cartilage.
5. Non-operated ACL tears are more likely to cause further cartilage damage than ACL reconstruction.
6. 15% of patients need additional cartilage or scar tissue surgery after ACL reconstruction (I did for my first knee).
7. Means of graft fixation (how they attach the graft) does not affect outcome
8. Risk of tearing a graft is about 3% after 2 years, the same as your ACL in your other knee (which is what happened to me after 5 years).
I will post later about differences in rehabilitation.
Citations:
Spindler, KP and Wright, RW. 2008. Anterior Cruciate Ligament Tear. New England J of Medicine Katz LM,
Battaglia TC, Patino P, et al. 2008. A Retrospective Comparison of the Incidence of Bacterial Infection Following Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction With Autograft Versus Allograft. Arthroscopy.
Dahm DL, Wulf CA, Dajani KA, et al. 2008. Reconstruction of the anterior cruciate ligament in patients over 50 years. JOURNAL OF BONE AND JOINT SURGERY-BRITISH VOLUME
A little about rehabilitation including the answer to the brace and passive motion machine questions.
This is mostly from a review on ACL reconstruction: Spindler, KP and Wright, RW. 2008. Anterior Cruciate Ligament Tear. New England J of Medicine.
1. Weight bearing right after surgery does not cause harm.
2. Using passive motion machines is not any better than not using them.
3. Use of a brace is no better than not using a brace.
4. Exercises bending the knee (like squats) are better than exercises that extend the knee.
5. Motivated people can do just as well at home as at Physical therapy (But are any of us that motivated?)
Hi Everyone,
Wow, I can’t tell you how relieved I was to read this forum. I had an ACL/MCL grade III tear while snowboarding in Colorado this past Friday, 30 Jan 2009. I was in so much pain I thought that my leg was being ripped off as I heard the pop…pop…in my knee. I am not scheduled for surgery just yet, I still have to find a good orthopedic surgeon but this site has helped so much so I know what to expect. Being an RN myself you never really think of getting hurt like this until it happens to you - I, at this moment feel so debilitated and helpless. I can hardly move my knee and though the pain has subsided since the accident I am still in a great deal of pain when I am walking (with a brace and crutches) or even sleeping.
I’m still having a hard time deciding on which way to go, whether it be the allograft or the patellar or hamstring graft. The research I’ve read makes me lean towards the patellar graft - to me, I’d rather deal with the pain and extra recovery time than the potential for complications that come with the allograft. I am very active and have two boys that keep me on my toes, everything from running to snowboarding, skiing and playing tennis on a regular basis. Since I do work in the med field I realize that when you take tissue that has been “frozen” some of it’s’ integrity has been comprised and I just hate the thought of having to do this again if I don’t have to. Has anyone had both ACL and MCL tear? I have heard that most people with only an ACL tear can usually get up and move around with little or no pain but that is not the case when I injured my knee. Which makes me think there is something else going on???
I’ll keep updating as I get more info - they are going to do another MRI in two days to verify the damage to my knee and then schedule surgery.
Until then….
Candice
Welcome Candice,
I’m 39 and a very active mom as well. I had my surgery just 3 weeks ago. I went with the allograft. I did have a complete ACL tear a small tear in the MCL, meniscus and a hairline fracture on the top of my tibia all from skiing. My Dr. thought that the allograft was best for me and you could say that “I” didn’t want to “Rob Peter to Pay Paul” by taking away from my hamstring or patella . I was like you and very confused on what to do. I think for me I made a good choice. My recovery is going good. And talking to the Therapist from what they say most of the allografts that fail are the people that feel better in a few months and get back to what they were doing before it really has time to heal. I was told 8 months before I need to even think about snow skiing. This summer on the lake will not be much fun but I will do what it takes to let it heal. You can see on this site that some people went with allografts and some with autografts. I really can’t say which one is better. I can only say that I’m happy with mine so far. Keep us up dated.
Amy- How is the recovery going???
Kimber- so far I ‘m not going to have to drain the knee yet but that fluid that pops back and forth when I do my knee exercises just freaks me out.
Tracy: Your knee is popping? That would freak me out. Its good to hear they arent draining it, the thought of someone sticking a needle in my knee….
I am an active mom myself but my sport was fighting. Unfortunately I wont be able to do any of it for a year. I got a huge frown from my PT when I told him I punched the bag standing. He says for now, I have to do it sitting down on an exercise ball. *Sigh*
The pain I feel when I do my flexion/extension exercises is on the back of my leg around where my calf muscles connect to the underside of my knee. It prevents my knee from full flexion. Anyone have this issue? It hurts like a mutha! And I still do not get a good nights sleep. How are you sleeping Tracy? Better?
Amy: I hope you are doing okay! Let us know how you are doing.
To Tracy, Kimber and Candice:
9 days post-op. No swelling and minimal pain. I still have this huge brace on. I see the doc on Friday. Start formal therapy on Monday. I have been doing my own for a week now. When I take my brace off my knee and leg feel light and unstable. Weird feeling. Kimber, I have the same with flexion and no I don’t sleep good either. Not sure if its cuz of my age. I could not sleep prior to this either. Geez seems like I never sleep. Anyways I need to get back to work. I am in Michigan and the cold and looking at the snow bumms me out cuz I can’t XC ski. Candice: I hope you are doing ok. Amy
Hi - Thanks to everyone that responded to my post! I got my MRI done today so I should know something by tomorrow as to the extent of the damage done. OK so I called around to a few orthopedic docs and I won’t be able to see anyone until March 5. How long does it take from the time the app is made to the time they schedule surgery? I ask this because not only am I an RN I work as a children’s photographer and since the weather is starting to warm up a bit I’ll be getting busy with shoots. My concern is whether or not I should wait until the fall to schedule surgery, I’m assuming that since they are letting me wait this long for an initial app then surgery isn’t something that is very immanent? My initial doc said that he would go ahead and recommend surgery as soon as possible (but he’s not an ortho doc)… which brings me back to what Tracy mentioned about getting the allograft for a faster recovery period….ahhh so many decisions to make. I am now into my sixth day since my injury and I can barley stand to put weight on my knee without it throbbing or feeling like I’m going to fall on my butt. Does the pre-physical therapy actually work to get the strength back in your knee or do I still risk my knee giving out and re-injuring myself (that is to say that I’m only doing minimal activity) further?? This all just seems like a very slow process for how much pain I’m in. I’ve got some pain meds but I’m reluctant to take them since I have two boys and I have to be functional during the day, so for now I’m just taking 800mg of Motrin.
Thanks guys (Amy and Tracy) for responding back! It does help so much!
Hi all,
I live in Seattle and I tore my ACL last Thursday night in a skiing accident (blindsided by an out of control skier going way too fast) and have already seen a surgeon. Right now I’m struggling with the allo vs autograft decision. I’m 44, but really active- running, climbing, long distance hiking/scrambling, backcountry skiing, biking. I don’t want to give any of these up, especially the skiing or the climbing. I was leaning toward allo-graft, but after reading more, I’m scared of the higher failure rate. I’ve read everyone’s experiences so far, and they are really helpful. I wonder if anyone in the Seattle has a good recomendation for surgeons? I went to the first one on my insurance plan who could see me, but I have no idea how good he is.
Any advice would be appreciated.
Candice:
I tore my ACL in May of 08 and decided not to get surgery until November of 2008. I too wanted to be somewhat active during the summer months, so waited until the winter. As long as you are careful and it would be wise to get a brace, I don’t see it as a big deal, but obviously listen to your doctor over me. I did tear up my Meniscus a bit by using it over the summer, but nothing too major. I was out backpacking, disc golfing, etc. but laid off on activities that would put a big impact on the knee. Some people actually don’t even get the surgery, but that is for folks who are not active.
Bari:
Again, I am no expert, but I don’t think there is enough research too compare the allograft vs. autograft. The one study you are referring to did not have a very large sample and the failure rate was due to people trying to get back into the sports too early. They say the failure rate is higher in younger patients probably because they are more apt to jump back in the game too quick. Just my thoughts though.
Candice:
I saw a sports medicine orthopedic surgeon. His specialty is knees and shoulders. I got in appt. in 4 days. Be demanding. I did prehab for 3 weeks x3 week. prior to surgery big help. Check physcian referrals at a good academic hospital. I would only go to one that does research or is a teaching hospital. More evidence based medicine. What area of nsg. is your specialty? I got 2 opinions. I had a compete tear so my options were narrow. I went with the allograft. My doc is the Dept head of ortho research so I knew what he was talking about. I will just ease up this summer and be back skiing in December. Please comment.
To all:
10 days postop. I was able to get rid of the big brace and now use a smaller one. He said everything is on target. need to bend my knee more. Hopefully will ditch crutches by next week. Start formal pt. on Monday.
To Bari: Email Henry he’s from Seattle abouth ortho doc or call Univ. of Wash. They do alot of research. Good luck. Yeah I feel free. Back to work w/restrictions in 2 wks.
Candice: I think you are too far gone for pre-op PT but a PT or doc would tell you. Just be honest with them about the pain.
Hanson: Sure there is debate among doctors, but the review I read (based in part on that article) agrees that allograft has a higher failure rate (there were 3 observational studies they looked at, not just the one). And my doctor tells me my previous ACL, an allograft, is already loose - in 5 years (although he may be biased toward autograft). Looseness is another allograft problem.
I agree, it does show a higher failure rate, I just think there needs to be a larger sample to come to any real conclusions. Either way, whether you are talking 2 out of 167 or 9 out of 158 the failure rate is not very high. As for the looseness, I sure hope my allograft stays put, haha. I guess only time will tell. Hope everyone is mending well.
Hello Everybody.
I’m now 3 weeks post-op and still making progress every day. I’ve stopped using my one crutch(still no brace) and I just walk very slow and concentrate on my steps. I went to therapy on Friday night and I can bend my knee on my own 110 degrees and with the help of the therapist he can push me to 115 degrees. And at that point I cried “UNCLE” HAHAHA. We lowered the seat on the bike one more notch and I’m peddling good. My sleep at night is getting somewhat better. If I have had my knee bent during the night it’s hard to straighten it out in the morning. It just takes a few minutes to get it going.
Amy- Glad to hear you are “big brace free” I put mine in the closet and hope to never see it again!!! Keep up the good work.
Candice- My doc told me that the more I could bend my knee before surgery that better my recovery would be.Therapy before surgery is also to help get your (quadriceps)thigh muscle working again. I’m sure you can tell it is week and you can’t flex it good. That muscle will shut down and you need to get it working again so you won’t feel so unstable. The “tens unit” will help to get the muscle firing again. My Dr. told me he would not want to do surgery for 3-4 weeks until some of the swelling went down and I could bend my knee at least 90 degrees. The damage is done, you are probable not going to hurt it anymore than you already did as lone as you take it easy.
When I said 3-4 weeks until surgery, I meant 3-4 weeks from the day I had my accident was how long they wanted to wait. After I posted that I was not sure if that was clear or not. Hope it was.
To all:
I agree with you Tracy. Your prehab and post is like mine. I recycled my big brace. I can walk slow w/o crutches. I am stiff in the am. I will be 2 wks post on Monday the 9th. I need to bend my knee more. Candice. Hope your are ok. Keep us posted.
Hi everybody - like others before me, so happy to have found this site…went looking for more info on graft options and was inspired by everyone’s post op experiences. I tore my acl, mcl and meniscus Jan 3rd skiing. I am 36 and mom of 3 under 7, former college athlete (read: already compromised knees and other aches and pains!) and still very active with kids, tennis, coaching, skiing etc. And I dont want any limitations ahead of me. My Dr. (Asnis at MGH in Boston) wants me to go patella tendon due to my age (young?) and activity level (high) but my PT at pre-therapy thinks I am crazy not to do allograft. I don’t like the contradiction but would prefer not to go against the guy with alot of school and a scalpel! Tracy, our situations seem simliar and you seem happy to have gone with the allograft. The idea of 6 weeks on crutches and no driving with 3 kids seems hard (rt knee), where as I think I will have a quicker recovery with the allograft - but dont want that to be my lone deciding factor. I already have creptice (sp?) in both knees and a family history of knee arthritis so not sure I should comprise further by taking out the patella tendon!
My surgery is Feb 25th so I will update prior with my decision which will be made in the next week. Thanks for everyone sharing their experiences.
FYI pretherapy has made a huge difference- one week ago could not get around on a stationary bike, today rode at full speed. Doc did not want me to have surgery until I was at 130 degrees. I started at 80 and was at 110 after 4 appointments.
Hi Sharon.
I glad to see all the active moms around here. Tomorrow will be 4 weeks post-op and I only used both crutches the first week until I got the bandages off and one crutch for 1 week after that just for support. My walking is getting better. I still have a little limp and going down stairs I still have to go left foot first each step but going up and can do that normal(just slow). I’m very happy with my surgery and scars look like that will be gone by summer!! My speed on the bike has increased. I’m at 118 degrees flexion and I can fully extend my knee on the table on my own. But standing with the pressure on it is hard to get it fully straight. I’m working on that!! I still have fluid under my knee cap and around the knee and in the back of my leg, not much but enough to stop me from bending it as much as I want to. I know that will just take time. Good luck with everything and keep us posted.
Thanks for the reply Tracy. Have you driven yet? Sounds like it is your right knee too…One plus for the patella tendon is quicker strength b/c of the bone-bone fusion. I heard my practice says 6 weeks on crutches with cadaver or hamstring - no compromise - b/c of the bone-tissue fusion. Thanks again, Shannon
Shannon,
It was my left knee. And I’ve been driving for 3 weeks now. I was only out of work for 1 week. They wanted me moving it a.s.a.p. He said the longer I kept it imobleized the less flexion and extension I would get back.I’m finding out every doc has there own opinion. I’m still on restrictions until I go back to see the Doc for my 6 week ck-up. My Doc is young and up on all the new techniques but he layed out my options with the cadaver or patella and let me choose, he said he would do either one. But because of my age(just 39 and holding) he preferred the allograft. I then talked to the therapist and got options from them. I figured they see patients recovery everyday and how many problems are occurring with each surgery. This site helped out too. So, I went the cadaver(allograft). The screws that my doc used are not titanium he put the ones in that my body will absorb within 2 1/2 to 3 years. I can’t remember the name for them. But I didn’t have to have metal in my bones or run the risk of my body rejecting it. I had a friend that it happened to with her metal screws. He did tell me that about the 12th week would be crucial because the blood flow would pick up in the new cadaver ACL and during that time I would need to really take it easy. I know it’s a lot to take in and a big decision, once you do it you can’t take it back. I want to be back out doing the sports I love because I’m not ready to give them up yet. The doc tells me there is no reason to stop sports and in 8 mo I’ll be normal again, I just have to take it slow. That is whats driving me crazy, SLOW. I don’t do anything slow. My nickname at work was “speedy” but not now. (haha) Therapy is going to be the main key either way you go. Hope to hear more from you.
Hi All,
I am a stay at home mom to a 5 year old and a 2 year old. I have surgery scheduled on March 11th for a complete ACL and a meniscus tear. My husband can only stay at home for the first five days. Do any of you think I will be able to take care of the kids on my own after the 5 days? We have no family in town to help out. I am not one to stay inactive for long periods of time although I do not play any sports or anything like that either. Just running after the kids all day. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.
I had the same surgery Feb 2 and went with the patella graft. I also have two kids, however mine are both in elementary. I would highly recommend having a back up plan. I was very fortunate to have friends and family to help out and I honestly don’t know what I would have done without them. Some people have said that doing an allographt is an easier recovery, so if that is the way you are going, then you might be ok. I elected to to the autograft as I believe its a better knee in the long run. (Had my other knee done 14 years ago - autographt and no problems) I’m very active with tennis and coaching so that is something that was very important to me. I still have swelling aroung the knee which causes some pain - to be expected. I use a brace and down to one crutch and it’s been two weeks. I wish you luck and a speedy recovery.
Jenny,
Thank you for the suggestions. This blog has been very helpful with all the personal experiences to read about.
I will be going with the allographt but I am a little uneasy reading about the risks. Then again there are risks either way.
The message sent before I finished thanking you again for the reply Jenny.
I hope the rest of your recovery goes well.
Hey all:
2 weeks post. can walk w/o crutches and a little w/o brace. Need flexion more. Back to work on the 23rd of Feb. I had a allograft r knee. To Jenny I am older than you but very active. There are risks with all. Just follow docs instructions. I am driving. Went to Laguna Beach, CA for 5 days walked the beach. No problems. Must do exercises each day faithfully. Thats they key,
Thanks again Tracy. Tomorrow is pre op for me so look forward to the discussion with the doc about graft - I feel alot more prepared with the right questions thanks in large part to you all. I’ll update tomorrow night. Natasha, I am scheduled for Feb 25th so I’ll let you know about my recovery as far as the kids go. I do have my parents coming in town for 2 weeks as my husband works alot of hours just to help with the up and down stairs, getting 2 older kids to school and activities, and deal with my 2 yr old too. I have also heard of people driving and walking around after a week but my dr is strict on the crutches for anything other than patella as the fusion of tissue to bone takes longer than bone to bone…so that is where I am expecting to need the help. I’ll keep you in the loop.
Thanks everybody!
shannon
Shannon, I really hope all goes well with your surgery. You are very fortunate to have your family coming out to help. After the feed back from this site I have arranged for my niece to come out and help us. I actually injured my knee almost 2 years ago and have not had insurance to do anything about it.
My doc says I should be able to drive within 3 days. Its my left so I just wonder if that will hold true after reading everyone’s experiences. I am a little apprehensive now because all my doc has told me is that he will use a graft from a cadaver. So I don’t even know where or what tendon is being used. He did say that he will use screws that my body will eventually absorb. So this site has definitely given me some serious questions to bring up with the doc.
Again I really hope all goes well with your surgery and thanks sharing.
okay, major bummer at the doctor today and thought I would share info for others. The practice I go to as Mass General Hospital is thought to be quite strong and on the leading edge of research and attends to many professional athletes in Boston and beyond. I was supposed to have surgery next wed but they will not do it as I am at only 120 degress flex and that is with pain. My mcl has healed well though. He said if I go in this stiff I will come out stiff and be very unhappy. I still have some swelling as well so I need to ice and elevate and more bike/pt. He said I am sure I could find someone to do this but he knows I want to get back to high activity level and could not do this in good faith. We have also decided to go allograft due to the tightness and my likelihood of scarring - so at least that is clear now. He also feels stongly that I should be on crutches for 6 weeks (half weight) to ensure strong fusion and he uses the screws that will disolve in a few yrs too (interference screws) - apparently this is more expensive but much better. PS just in case it does not come up with your drs, make sure they hand pick the cadaver and as young as possible (under 40 if not younger)
Uggh- so now another 3+ weeks, more moving around my family life, and a longer time to recovery
To Shannon:
I was in prehab for 3 weeks prior. I did not have 120 flex. I had an allograft hand picked by my doc. Told him I wanted hot young guy <30. Ha. Doing well. On stationary bike did 3 miles today. Can walk around house w/o brace. Should be interesting working next week. I will be with restrictions. I am a research nurse and know about Mass General. Did you get another opinion? I was off crutches in 2 weeks postop. Each doc is so different. Very confusing for a non medical person. Wish I could help you more. Did you check his resume and how many patients he has done? Just a thought.
Shannon: Major bummer!! So sorry girl. Please keep us update
Natasha: I had the surgery done on my left knee as well. I did not even try to drive till a week later. If you have a car seat that scoots back pretty far, I think you can do it. You dont realize what a luxury bending your knee is till you try to get in a car :O
Amy: You crack me up!
Shannon-
Need some referrals in the Boston area? I just had surgery w/ Dr. Mithoefer at Harvard Vanguard; he also works with the New England Revolution. He strongly recommends allografts. Tomorrow will be three weeks, and I haven’t used crutches all week, but I only had ACL damage. https://www.harvardvanguard.org/phys/phys3.asp?passID=6480
A couple of friends have had great results with Dr. English at St. E’s. http://www.caritaschristi.org/Physician.asp?P=Y&PerPage=20&SpecID=PSP000022&Distance=10&Page=1&Sort=LastName&PageID=PHY000395
That’s a real bummer Shannon. I hope you are not in constant pain as I was with the “flare-up” back in Sept, it went on for months. I wasn’t even able to get down and bath the little ones. That must be tough trying to arrange plans for your parents to help out. I hope they will still be able to stay with you.
I guess now I can let you know how things go on my side.
My knee has been acting up for a long time now so I have some practice getting in and out of the car with minimal bending. We shall see what happens.
Great advice about the doc picking the cadaver…. i will absolutely be asking my doc about this. I just assumed they would have some type of protocol.
Hey everyone,
New to the site and this seems like the most active thread so I wanted to post a question here. I’ll be two weeks out tomorrow and had my first real follow up yesterday. Got my staples out and the doc was pretty pleased with my progress. He told me I could go ahead and start sleeping without a brace. I tried that last night was very nervous about it. I forgot to ask if no brace meant I could sleep on my side or on my stomach (I have a hard time sleeping on my back). Anyone have any experience with this? Is it O.K. to roll in your sleep if you’re not wearing the brace?
Hope everyone’s recovery is going ok.
Nick
I’ve been sleeping w/out a brace since 1 week post-op. A body pillow makes it a lot more comfortable for me. At least early on, I couldn’t comfortably sleep on my stomach, at this point (two days away from 4 weeks), I may have broken that habit.
I should have added that I always slept on my side or stomach pre-op. Sleeping on my back was tough for me, I’ve been sleeping on my side since given the OK to sleep w/out a brace.
I stopped using the brace at night after 5 or 6 days because it was so uncomfortable and bulky even though they tell you to wear it. It’s intended to keep you in protection mode so if you kick or roll at night while sleeping you won’t hurt yoursself. My solution was to use an ace bandage, which also secured the ice pack to my leg and helps to prevent blot clots to keep good circulation. I would get my leg as straight as possible before wrapping and do it securely -but not too tight. This way I could sleep on my side with little problem. When I got up in the a.m. I would be sure to put the brace on or use both crutches so I wouldn’t over extend. Worked like a charm!
Thanks Jenny and Deidra! I think I’m going to try the ace bandage method. To clarify Jenny, did you sleep with ice on your leg? Or was it just the same ace bandage you used? Did you guys do allograft as well?
ok.. so this is the active thread where folks are talkin..
Hi All, and thanks for sharing. i posted two weeks ago in another thread but not sure anyone took notice.. i live in victoria, BC.. tore my ACL playing soccer in november and had surgery feb 3.. my recent posts follows..
>>February 11th, 2009 at 1:19 pm
i came browsing ACL blogs looking for this very topic [[Erics perroneal nerve damage thread]]. I had ACL reconstruction surgery feb 3 (i’m on day 9). used my semi-tendenosis. drugged up and doing well until day 5, then redness and heat spread across lower leg, especially along tibia. intense pain - almost unbearable when standing; pain meds don’t touch it; only relief is elevating leg. i was sure i had some type of cellulitis of something (infection) so went and saw my surgeon but he was pretty sure its from blood in the leg.
I took a day off of Dilotid (hydromorphone) on day 3 and used ibuprofene quite aggressively (2400mg/24hrs) to help deal with swelling. i tell my surgeon this and he explains to me that the reason he didn’t prescribe ibuprofene for me is that it can lead to continual bleeding of internal wounds (especially post surgery).. also it tends to slow down healing. [i wish the doctor or the pharmacist i had on the phone when i was asking about using ibu knew this!] So i only used the ibu for the one day.. its now day four since the leg pain came on but it began lessening yesterday.
To other who’ve experience this ‘nerve pain’.. were you also using ibuprofene quite liberally? How long has the pain remained post surgery?
>>February 23rd, 2009 at 1:39 pm
howdy folks - the intense pain i wrote about in the previous response lasted one week. I am now on day 19 and my recovery is steaming right along. i believe the pain was the result of post surgical trauma inside the leg (blood and fluids) AND some nerve trauma that doesn’t seem uncommon when the hamstring option is used (the graft is made from below the knee!!). Anyways.. this morning i got on my road bike (setup with a trainer indoors) and that felt great. i’ll be on it alot from now on.
I hope everyone is doing well. I been way too busy lately but I have been keeping up with all the post. I’ll be 6 weeks post op this Thursday and doing good. I still have a small amount of fluid under the knee that is just wearing me out. I can flex on my own 125 degrees. I feel I could do more but the fluid seems to be stopping me. After being at work all day by the time I get to therapy everything from the knee down is swollen and tight and that just makes it hard to bend. I’m riding the bike just fine and getting better going downstairs, as long as I have something to hold on to. I still have bad nights where I can not sleep good but I still try to keep my leg straight in bed. Straight or bent if I keep it in either position more than 10min. it is stiff to move it again. It just takes a few seconds to get going again. Now I know how my 92 year old grandmother feels.
Hello Everyone….. so my surgery is still on for March 11th. I was curious about sleeping with the brace. My doc said I only needed to wear it while walking around and off while sitting/sleeping.
Daniel, glad to hear it wasn’t an infection but that must have been scary. I really worry about blood clots as I have poor circulation and at times some mild RLS (restless leg syndrome).
Thanks for letting us know about the ibu. I cant believe the doc and pharmacist didn’t realize the risk.
I hope you continue to do well and please keep us posted.
Has anyone delayed surgery for whatever reason? If so what kind of results have you had and would you do it again?
Thanks!
I’m almost 6 weeks post-op, hamstring, from ACL surgery. Physical therapy is progressing fine, but this week I have had a harder time keeping the swelling down as we push it more. Then Monday my knee cap started floating or slipping. It’s the strangest feeling, and sounds like a squeaky door. I was alarmed, but them my PT said its normal and results from fluid under the knee cap due to swelling. Has anyone else experienced this?
I’m still not sleeping well either. I think its as much as not being able to exercise to tire myself out as much as it is the knee. I have been able to use pillow between legs to sleep on my side now.
Hello everyone… It’s nice to see that I am not alone in the struggle to decide what will be the best procedure! I have a severed ACL and torn meniscus. I am 36 years old…and single. This is very stressful… I am leaning toward allograft because of the recovery time… but I fear the results won’t last as long as the autograft. My surgeon will only perform the patella graft or the allograft. I am so confused! I know that I have time to make this decision…I just received my MRI results on Tuesday. Thanks for all of the great information…
Hello everyone!
I just had my 8 week post op visit and my knee is doing great. I can only go to 120 degrees flexion, but the Dr said that I am right where he wants me to be considering I used an autograft instead of an allograft. My hamstring is tight, so bending my knee is hard. But the ligament is strong, and I can pretty much do anything (well no punching yet due to rotation.) I can walk up and down stairs, ride the stationary bike, squats, lunges, etc. He pointed out that from 2-3 months post op, the ligament is at its weakest and that this is when most re-injuries occur, so I have to be VERY careful right now. He said I can do some straight running (no cutting, changing of direction rapidly) at my next visit in 6 weeks. Oh and he did point out that my quads in my left leg are pretty much down to nothing right now which SUCKS since I had good strength in it before this stupid injury.
As far as the brace in concerned, I was sleeping without it because of the ice machine, right after I got out of the hospital. I had my leg elevated though and I wouldnt even think about turning while I slept, which is probably why I woke up every 2 hours. After the ice machine was off, I wore the brace at night till my Dr said I didnt need it anymore. The thing didnt fit anyway because the swelling was down anyways. But that first night sleeping without it was really wierd!
Hey Guys!!
This could work to my advantage. See how we have to see the bright side of things. I hope everyone has a good weekend!
Yesterday was a real bad day for me. I fell coming down my stairs at home yesterday morning. Yes, I landed on my bad knee with it behind me. Basically I sat on my heal. Good thing I was still holding the rail!! I wont even talk about the pain I felt. I went on to work and called the Dr. and of course they told me to come right in. Good news was after bending it like that my allograft is as tight and nothing came loose. I’m very sore today and went to therapy tonight. We went slow and after all of that I gained 3 degrees. I’m now at 128. I don’t recommend the staircase treatment, not fun. I just want everyone to be extra careful. My husband is making me stay down stairs for a while longer,no more taking my sons laundry upstairs
Tracey, I was talking to my PT about injuries they have seen during PT and she mentioned someone doing what you did. She said actually there is great benefit (although not recommended to use that method) in that you quickly break up all the scar tissue. It’s what they would do in surgery if you weren’t getting the bend they wanted. I can’t imagine the pain you must have felt, but my point is it comes with a lot of benefit. God bless.
I’m 6 weeks post op and yesterday was able to stand on surgery leg on balance board throwing ball against trampoline and catching. I couldn’t do it just 7 days ago. Everyday gets better. The real question for me is at 36, will I play the game I love so much again-basketball.
To all: Kimber and Tracey:
I am always afraid of tripping down the stairs. Yikes. I am back to work with the brace still I can flex 100 degrees. It was 4 weeks post op yesterday. Doing ok. The PT breaks up the scare tissue by rubbing my leg. I started doing that also. This blog is so good I like all comments.
shannon How are you doing?
Take care to all TGIF.
Tracy: OUCH!!!! That is one of my biggest fears right now. I cannot imagine how much that hurt. :O
Amy: 100 degrees at 4 weeks is awesome, I am very jealous. My PT breaks up scar tissue too, feels wonderful huh?
Jay: I think you will be able to play again! Cutting, any quick changes in direction are frowned upon for awhile. Do you balance on a coreboard? I found a website with strength training videos for acl recovery, though I dont know if they are for people who have had reconstruction surgery.
Hey everyone! I finally had my surgery yesterday, after 5 weeks of waiting. I had the allograft (achilles tendon). So far there’s been a lot less pain than I expected. I’ve got the big huge brace and crutches right now, but doc said that I can begin weighting the leg as of today and get off the crutches as soon as I feel comfortable. Took a few steps and they definitely felt wobbly, but I’ll keep trying. Have been on the CPM machine for an hour so far this morning and am able to get to 60 degrees with minor discomfort; will be using 3x per day for 2 hours at a time. Follow-up scheduled with doc for next Wed. and if all looks good will begin PT then.
Hello Everyone!
While doing research about knee ACL surgery I’ve found this blog, which is great. Next Friday I will have a surgery. I will have Allograft installed and other things done to my knee (ski injury). Well I’m somewhat scare, kind of afraid of the pain and post recovery. I just hope that everything will go well.
Hi Bob!
I’m having my surgery next Friday as well. I was injured skiing on 1/29. I’m having the allograft (someone else’s acl) and may have torn meniscus to repair - won’t know till they go in there. I’m also terrified of the recovery/pain. Sorry - don’t have much to offer you other than we’re having surgery the same day….I do know that my friend had the same surgery last March and she completed some VERY significant bike rides that summer (RAMROD - ride arount Mt Rainier with 10,000 feet of gain, then 3 weeks cycling in Colorado and Utah), so I have inspiration. She worked really hard early on to get mobility back so that they would let her begin cycling. She also skiied to the summit of Mt. Baker 10,700 feet and back down under pretty crappy, icy conditions earlier this year, so we have hope!
Bari
To Bob:
I am a nurse. You will be fine. Tell you doc you want the cold pack machine. Passive CPM and lots of Vicodan. Pain wasn;t to bad. I had the allograft to the ACL r knee also due to a ski injury in Utah.
Kimber, I think it was a coreboard. It’s curved to wear it wobbles back and forth making you balance as you throw the ball. They are going to have me go to a D1 facility (for athletes; lots of high school athletes train there) at the end of PT b/c she wants me to have confidence in the knee. What I worry about is if it can to happen one knee, after 36 years of playing basketball am I now just biologically dispositioned to hurt the other knee. I’m torn, no pun intended :). Hope your PT is going well.
Hello Everyone,
I would like to thank everybody for great support. I feel better already.
I just want to go through the surgery and I’m sure after couple of days I be OK.
Bob
Jay Dale-
I’m also attending a D1 facility here in Chattanooga, Tn. Way better than the place I went before surgery. When I walked in on Thursday at therapy the day after the fall, they did not think I would be moving as good as I was. I was more sore but pushed through it anyway. But you are right, they told me the same thing. I did break up some fluid and I’m sure some scar tissue, just glad that was all I broke up. We must have had our surgery on the same I was 6 weeks post-op on Thursday. And yes, you will play again!! Maybe not for a few more months but I have 3 years on you and I plan to snow ski and wake board again and coach my sons basket ball team next year. It was hard not getting out and playing with him this season. We will all get back to our sports, it’s just going to take time. Good Luck To Everyone!
Now THIS is a great blog. So many supportive and polite people! I, like many of you, tore my MCL (Grade 2) and my ACL while skiing 3 weeks ago. The MCL must heal via immobility and constant 30 degree position before I can do the ACL surgery. I’m hopeful that on Tuesday (March 3) the doc will let me “shoot” my crutches and begin MCL rehab. I’m told that’s about 6 - 8 weeks, then ACL surgery and all the joys that have brought us all together!
The conversations around surgery or not, auto/hamstring/patellar/allo graft and PT have led me to these conclusions (for those of you unsure or searching for opinion): Avoiding the surgery would be a mistake if one ever wants to enjoy “change of direction” activity like skiing, lacrosse, or most other field / ground sports. I’m 43 and my doctor is giving me the option, but agrees that if I want to “get back out there” then I need the procedure. Allograft is a less painful, less invasive, if not “creepy” solution; I’m leaning that way. I don’t like the idea of on-going kneeling pain from the patellar tendon and my doc is not a big fan of the hamstring procedure.
Good luck to everyone, and after shoulder surgery last year and this upcoming adventure, you can add me to the list of “do what the PT tells you to do!” disciples.
Last point: the encouragement and positive vibes from this blog have definitely lifted my spirits. I’m sitting here on the couch (again) while it’s snowing and reading about all of the quick recoveries, biking, jogging, etc., have been a big help. THANK YOU.
Bari: I was just scrolling up and saw your original post. You WILL be back to doing all the things you love, just gotta be patient. Sorry to hear someone else did your injury for you, but stay committed to the knee, not the sports. When I had my shoulder done last year I was convinced I wouldn’t be able to throw a frisbee or a ball with my kids, but I’m good as “slightly used” now…no problems at all just a few scratches on my gelcoat!
Day 3 post-op. Very little pain/discomfort remaining. I managed 4 hours in the CPM on day 1, then 6 hours on day 2, so have upped the angle to 64 degrees today and am currently in my 2nd session of the day. I’m still using the crutches, but am putting more and more weight on the leg each time I’m up and have even gone down to 1 crutch several times. So far my recovery continues to be easier than I had expected or hoped! Wishing you all the same!
Lidija, what is the CPM and what does it mean to be “in” it? Glad you’re doing so well.
Hey All,
Felt like posting a follow-up on my original post re: sleeping w/out a brace…it still sucks. I tried wrapping it with an ace and that worked a little bit, but I still find myself waking up in the middle night pretty regularly. I’m over 2 weeks out (19 days to be exact, so really almost 3 weeks) and I don’t really have any pain in the knee otherwise - except of course at PT. I’m on the bike. Bending to 110 degrees. Off Crutches. But I still can’t sleep through the night.
to anyone who’s a bit farther along: when were you first able to sleep through?
I’ve taken to using a leftover pain pill before bed, but I’d really rather not have to do that.
Tom CPM is Continual Passive Motion machine. You put your leg in it and it bends you. Continually…while you are passive. Meant for right after surgery to keep your knee flexible. My doc didn’t give me one.
Nick:
I am 5 weeks post op and still have trouble at night. Sometimes I will pop a Vicadin or 600mg Motrin. They don’t like you to prop your leg on a pillow but I find that helps and Ice it. Also, if you turn on your side use a pillow b/t you legs. Hope that helps.
Nick, I’m 6 weeks post op and still have trouble sleeping through the night. I seem to crash early at 9 or so, wake up and watch TV from 1-3, and they fight to sleep until about 5 or so. I can turn on my side using pillow between legs which helps. I think it may be due to inability to get real exercise that tires that body out to sleep well. I always slept best after 2 hours of basketball that day. I’d like to know too at which point people resumed normal sleep patters pre-op too. Good luck to all.
I had problems sleeping up till approx a week ago and I am about 8 weeks post op. My doctor said this is common, and prescribed me Ambien, although I still woke up but only once or twice. I now sleep all the way thru the night, so there is hope!
And my doctor is not a big CPM fan, he doesnt prescribe them to his patients. It is frustrating that there are so many different opinions when it comes to these doctors! Some say yes to CPM, some say no. Some say use allograft, some say autograft. Grrrrr….
OH!!! Before I forget…
I found some great videos for ACL rehab on YouTube. He explains what you can do for each stage of recovery and has someone demonstrate. Search for ACL rehab by HumanKinetics461.
Thanks for all the sleep advice guys. Glad to know its not just me. Now that I’m sleeping without a brace my worst fear is that I’ll roll on my leg awkwardly or just leave it in a weird position for too long and stretch out my graft. I don’t even know if that’s something that can actually happen. But I’m a nervous nelly.
Kind of in the same rhythm as you Jay - sleep early, wake up in the middle, ice watch TV grit my teeth. I’ll be happy when this part of it is over.
Nick, I haven’t checked this sight for a few days so to answer your questions-I had the patellar graft. About the ace bandage - I would wrap my leg at night and then the final layer I would secure my ice pack. Your not going to stretch out your graft. Put it this way, if you do, then the Dr. didn’t do a good job. We are all stiff and fighting for flexion because our grafts are tight. you would have to do something terrible to make that happen and I think you would wake up.
I’m 4 weeks post op and have the same sleep issues. I’m so tired during the day and can’t wait to get to bed. Usually @ 11pm. By 2 am I’m wide awake and can’t fall back to sleep until @5am. Have to get kids up at 6am. It’s driving me crazy! Plus, only thing on tv is infomercials. The only thing that has worked for me in addition to taking my percocet is I’ll take 2 benadryl. But I hate to do that every night.
i’m very disappointed in my flexion. I’m currently only 100 degrees and feel that I should be much further along. I so badly want to ride the bike, but I can’t make it all the way around yet. It’s those little milestones that I look forward to these days.
Only the strong can handle this and it appears that we all are. Best of luck to everyone!
Okay…I still haven’t made the decision Allograft/Autograft! The pro’s and con’s have my head spinning! How did all of you make this decision?? I am 36 years old, fairly active (gym: kick boxing/step class) HELP!!
Marti-
I’m 28, pretty active (jog & work out 5x a week, play flag football, ski, hike, etc), and am happy so far with my cadaver tendon / allograft. But I’m just over 4 weeks out, so it’s possible I’ll feel different in the future.
I chose the allograft b/c I didn’t want to risk the recurring knee pain that’s possible w/ a patella tendon autograft, and I didn’t want to take a piece of my hamstring out when I need it most for recovery.
Hope this helps.
Deidra
My reasons for going with the allograft were pretty much the same as Deidra’s: didn’t want to deal with the long-term patella issues and didn’t want to harvest from the hamstring. The few studies noted above indicating allografts are weaker were such small sample sizes that I did not consider the numbers statistically relevant. Also, an achilles tendon allograft is supposed to be as strong as a natural ACL. Finally, I truly believe that the determining factor is the surgeon, and I trust my doctor. I knew which way I wanted to go before he made the recommendation, and when he did he said he’d go with an allograft if he needed the surgery. That was enough for me. I did second guess my decision at times though (obviously, as I found this blog!) because of the infection/rejection risks, but ultimately decided that the chances were so small that the benefits of the allograft outweighed the risks. Part of that, again, came down to trusting my doctor, as he works exclusively with one lab in the Seattle area for the graft tissue because of their safety and quality record. I had to schedule my surgery 5 weeks out due to the lab’s waiting period for a graft. (And that hurt, because that means I’ll be back in hiking condition that many weeks later this summer!)
Tom - here’s some good info and a photo of the CPM machine: http://www.arthroscopy.com/sp06001.htm.
Day 4 - I’m off the pain killers now and down to just ibuprofen during the day. (I am planning to take a 1/2 percoset at night to help me sleep though.) Just did the dishes and was able to walk around the kitchen without crutches, but I am still using 1 crutch for longer distances and stairs. Tried the CPM at 68 degrees this morning and it was a bit too much, so backed it off to 66. I’m definitely feeling more sore/tender today now that the meds are out of my system, but it’s a dull pain and not keeping me from moving around. Most of day still spent on the couch with leg elevated/in the CPM though.
Thanks Deidra and Lidija! I am defiantly leaning toward Allograft…so hearing from people that made that choice… helps!
My concern: I called my OS yesterday and spoke with the PA. I asked if I could know the bank that the graft would come from (I wanted to check it out) and I was told that the ONLY information that I could have is… the age of the donor. Now after reading that Lidija knew where her graft came from…I feel like I should call back and be told that information! After asking a bunch of questions about the allograft…the PA told me:”I tell patients that have ANY concerns about the Allograft… to do the Autograft. (???) Maybe I need to talk to the OS directly. I really want to feel good about my decision… and I don’t want to have chronic pain in my patella! Hmmmmm??
Marti:
Your doctor should know the bank. I requested a specific graft. My doctor soaks the graft in antibiotic and then Nucks it to prevent antirejection.
Hey Jenny,
Thanks for your responses. Sorry to hear you’re sharing my (and most everyone else’s) sleeping problems. I took a vicodin at 12:00 last night and crashed by 12:30. Made it all the way to 6:00 before the pain really kicked in…so that’s progress, but I’m running out of vicodin.
Re: your biking - how high do you have your seat? I started with a really, really high seat when I was at 90 degrees flexion. Couldn’t go all the way around the first few times. But made gradual gains.
Keep on truckin’ everyone.
Lidija, thanks for the link on the CPM. Looks like a helpful tool to get moving. Marti, I too was confused by all the choices and the surprising lack of definitive information. As I got caught every elevator ride and office entry answering “geez, what’d you do?” with the brace on, I was shocked at how many people have had ACL recon. One of my good friends said he’s done BOTH: patellar on the left knee and allograft on the right. He strongly suggested the allograft. He’s early 40’s, very active (soccer, running, basketball), and besides all the pro’s and con’s we’ve discussed here, he said something interesting….from a “liveability” standpoint, the patellar graft gives him nagging but constant problems. His doctor told him about the possibility of pain when kneeling, and the issues with the harvest site, etc., but he said that when you’re speaking with a doctor in the office the descriptions of discomfort are lost in the context of life. Another 40-50 years is a long time to be in pain that often, and he wishes he had done allograft on both.
Sorry to pass along a 2d hand opinion, but I trust him.
I’m waiting for my MCL to heal before I can do surgery, and have been on crutches and leg brace for 4 weeks. I was so happy when the doc said I could lose the crutches….I can carry coffee again!!!
Thanks again to all for the positive vibes.
Hello to all. I found this website recently after my 3rd ACL reconstruction on my right knee. I had the allograft procedure 4 weeks ago today. I’m 40 now, but my original injury was at 16 and it happened on the basketball court. In 1984 I had autograft surgery using the hamstring. I didn’t feel my knee ever regained full strength after this surgery, but I’m sure there have been many improvements to this method since then. In 1991 I tore my ACL again on the golf course of all places! It was kind of a freak accident, but none the less I was right back where I started. For my 2nd reconstruction they used my patella tendon for the repair. This procedure was very painful and it took nearly a year before my knee felt normal again. Once again, things are likley different with this procedure now. This method resulted in a very strong knee, however I did have the common problems and discomfort with kneeling. My knee was always very touchy if I banged it into anything after this procedure too. I got along fine after that procedure for 17 years until my knee started to buckle frequently in the fall of last year. I had no specific trauma to the knee, it just started giving out on me. I went to a surgeon (not the one who did the first 2 surgeries) and he suggested the allograft for my life style. I am active and exercise a lot, however I would never considering getting on the basketball court or putting on a pair of skis. Too much risk under my circumstances. I’ll stick with my walking, swimming, cycling, etc. So far so good with the allograft. I have been amazed that there really hasn’t been much pain compared to my other surgeries. The first couple of days yes, but the pain meds took care of that. The most pain has been since I started PT last week. I gained 23 degrees in one week and I’m now at 107 degrees. I use the CPM machine 3 hours per day too. My therapist recommended I get a Nordic Track ski machine once I’m healed up for hamstring strengthing. My quads have shrunk big time since surgery. I can’t cycle yet, but soon! I was only on crutches for 5 days and just wore the brace 2 weeks. I slept fine once getting rid of the brace. Good luck everyone and take care!!
I’m a big Nordic Trac fan. Great workout, no impact whatsoever, and in comfort of own home!
Met a guy today who had ACL, MCL, PCL, and meniscus tears. He had allograft surgery in late November and is very happy with his decision. I told him about this blog and how common the sleep problem was…he lit up into a smile as though recalling a fond memory. Also said that his recovery went in “steps”. Weeks would go by with no apparent improvement, and then a big jump in mobility. He reiterated that patience was vital to his recovery.
Here’s an odd one for you all…I could have slept without my brace last night and I actually CHOSE to wear it. Some things defy logic!
Hey Everybody!
I just wanted to say that everything is still going well even after my fall down the steps last week. I’m 7 weeks post-op now and at therapy tonight I got 131 degrees flexion laying on my back and 123 degrees on my stomach. My sleeping has improved this week. I have the same sleep problem. But it is getting better. I never slept in my brace. I only wore it home after surgery and never had to put it back on. At this point I must be having some nerves reconnecting. I’m having “little” sharp burning pains across my knee that last a few seconds. Nothing too bad but I know it’s there. Anyone else having odd little pains like that?
To Tracey:
Odd pain across knee yes I get those.
Sounds like you are doing also. My flexion is better.
Take care
Tracy, the little burning pains are your bones healing after the drilling required by surgery. It’s normal and actually a good sign.
I just wanted to say thank you to everyone…reading your thoughts and experiences has defiantly assisted me in making my decision.
I am going to have: Allograft. (Ahhh…its feel so good for this mental struggle to be over!) My tentative surgery date is April 21st. I live alone…so I have a few good friends that are taking time off to help me through this. (I am very lucky to have them) Besides the ACL, I have a “severely torn” meniscus…so I guess my recovery time will depend on what they see once I am in surgery. I start PT next week…I am going to work on getting as strong as I can during the next six weeks!
My worst complaint is… lower back pain! I guess I am walking incorrectly and putting stress on my good knee and lower back. Also, I am having a lot of trouble sleeping. It’s going be a long six weeks until the surgery…and then the FUN begins!
Good for you, Marti. You’ll do great. And yes, back pain is sometimes related to knee problems, and knee work makes the back pain go away. Client of mine had back pain, couldn’t make it go away…had knee replacement and back pain was gone.
One week post-op. Completely off crutches now and CPM up to 70 degrees. Saw the doc yesterday and he said to start working on my extension and stop propping my leg up on pillows. OMG, now I understand everyone’s comments on difficulties sleeping! I couldn’t make it but 5 minutes before giving up and putting a folded up towel under my knee. (I figured letting it happen in stages might be better than going cold turkey…) Started PT today and was able to get to 90 degrees flexion with assistance - amazing! Most of this first PT session wasn’t too bad until the russian electrical stimulation - that was, ummm, uncomfortable at times. PT set up for twice a week going forward. Now it’s time to do some of that homework!
This site is amazing! I am having trouble navigating the various posts but think I am almost there. I love reading everyone’s recovery story. I was hurt skiing on Feb. 15 and am scheduled for surgery on March 17. Left knee ACL. Am still on the fence about grafts but after reading the posts this morning am leaning allograft. I am currently in pre-hab. PT though have cut it back to 2x per week to save on insurance money for post-op.
I too am an older active mom- and an RN, looking forward to getting back to my usual active life style.
Will continue to monitor this site and post once my big day arrives.
Thanks again! What positive attitudes you all have!
OMG…I feel so blessed to have found this site. I have been stressing over this decision for weeks. All of your stories have helped ease my mind more than you’ll ever know. I’m 35, a first grade teacher and a mother of 3. I tore my ACL in my left knee on February 3 during a dance class. (I was almost too embarrassed to tell my friends/family. I don’t even have a good story like the rest of you.) Surgery is scheduled for March 12. I wasn’t sure up until… literally this moment, but I’m going for allograft. The thought of disease transmission has kept me up for nights on end, now I realize I’m being a little neurotic. I’m still very nervous, but am so grateful to all of you who have shared your pre and post stories. I’m looking forward to reading more.
Can anyone tell me how soon they were able to drive? Right knee/Acl allograft with meniscus repair. Thanks!
Marti:
3 weeks post. I had ACL allograft R. knee
Oh thanks Amy…that’s encouraging… since I am single!
probably the toughest is the patellar autograft. It’s tough work on the recovery and rehab side. Whatever you decide your PT is extremely important, so take it seriously and make sure you put the hard yards in every session. Don’t rush back in to play - just focus on range of motion and strengthening those quads and hamstrings.
I am not your doc or PT but just give it 1 year to get back to any kind of sport..work on those legs…….
good luck to all and get well..
Hey Stacy,
Looks like we are the newbies here and we are roughly on the same schedule. I am scheduled for surgery on the 17th. Have been debating the graft options for days. I do health research for a living so you can imagine the hours on this one.
I have my pre-op tomorrow and have pretty much decided allograft as well. I think the disease piece is so very minimal and the healing, pain piece (easier, less) significant.
I will follow your progress and be cheering for you. Glad to hear you are nervous, I am actually getting quite scared myself. Worried about the pain and worried about the rehab. I am active and fit but 48 and this seems like a huge challenge. Does everyone feel this way?
Will follow your posts!
I just had the surgery on Friday (Allograft) and started on the pain meds immediately after I woke up since there was a strong pain in my knee despite the nerve block they gave me before surgery. I didn’t handle the narcotics very well. By Saturday morning I was nauseous, dizzy and couldn’t pee (evidently it did something to the sphincter muscles). I switched to ibuprofen and tylenol per Dr’s orders and after a great night’s sleep I feel much better today. I’ve been doing the isometric quad tightening exercises since Friday night and the passive leg stretches with my leg propped on a towel. My leg of course is very sore but no tooth grinding pain to deal with like I thought there might be. I’m kind of tired of being confined to the bed and crutches, but am enjoy the excuse to be waited on hand and foot by my fiance. I strongly advise anyone facing this surgery to make sure you have someone with you at least through the second or third day. I was a wreck yesterday. Today, off the pain meds, I’m coping much better. Tomorrow is my first PT appointment, where I guess I get to start bending my knee. On crutches, you can’t carry ANYTHING. I’ve begun putting drinks in a Nalgene bottle with a lid, but soup or anything on a plate is a problem. Glad to know I don’t have to deal with that for very long!
Hi Tammy.
Thanks for the encouraging words. I think it is normal to feel nervous. Who wouldn’t be??? I’m sure we’ll both come out of it great. For me, reading about everyone’s experiences has really helped to ease my mind.
I’ll pass on a bit of info. from my doc. that I hadn’t heard before. He doesn’t recommend the hamstring graft for women. He said that more often than not women have very thin/weak hamstrings; therefore, the knee is still unstable and at risk of reinjury.
I have been doing PT for 3 weeks. It has helped me regain a good bit of my range of motion. It also has given me a small sense of what to expect after surgery. Are you doing PT now? Good luck with your surgery. I am looking forward to following your posts.
P.S. - My dad was killed by an impaired driver a few years ago and is now my guardian angel. I believe he will be watching over me during the surgery. I will also ask him to watch over you on March 17. Take care.
hey everyone, nice to hear all these stories and know i’m not alone. i tore my acl and medial meniscus and am due for surgery soon.(havent set a date yet) so many things are on my mind and i’ve totally freaked myself out looking at pictures and watching videos of surgery almost to the point where i’m trying to talk myself out of the surgery.. well i also have no idea which type of repair i should do that seems like such a hard choice to make, help? also, i was wondering how long everyone thinks i will be out of work… i bartend and waitress so i am always on my feet.
To Stacey, Tammy:
I had the allograft on the 26th of Jan. Back to work on the 23rd Feb. In brace @ work. I am a research nurse and walk all over the hospital. Huge hospital >1000 beds. Anyway, you both will do great. Listen to your doc. Pain about an 8 out of 10 first day then <. Take pain meds have everyone wait on you. I am 55 years probably the oldest in this whole blog. I am riding a stationary bike 8 miles day.
To Alisa: Unless you are in the medical field don’t look @ all that OR stuff on the web. I freaked out about it too. Stopped looking @ the pics. Go with allograft. See above note. I am doing great.
Thanks Amy. I am getting more and more nervous. I was ready to cancel the surgery at one point over the weekend. I wish it were over already. Thanks for sharing …what to expect the first day. Did you have the pain pump? I was wondering if it is painful to remove. How soon after the surgery did you begin PT? Sorry for all the questions…..I’m trying to mentally prepare.
Thanks
Stacey:
Don’t cancel.
1. Day of surgery. Make sure you have a good MDA (anesthesia) to give you the block. Then they put in the pain pump. Usually its a form of Lidocaine.
Stays in 3 days. Patient usually removes it. Its about 10 ” long no pain on removal. Just make sure you clamp it off. ( Directions on pump.) I had a passive CPM machine delivered so I took the bandages off on Wed 2/28. Had surgery on Monday 2/26 and started PT with the passive CPM. Formal PT was after 12 days (Dr. check) You must start process soon. Do not hesitate. Take pain meds every 4 hours. Especially @ night and when you are doing exercises. You will be fine. Very common procedure.
I’m 7+ weeks post op (125 bend) and have follow up visit today. More than anything I just miss cardio exercising and breaking a good sweat. I thought I’d respond to some of the posts over the weekend in random order. (36 male, ACL from hamstring, meniscus repair). I drove to work 7 days later, but my hamstring hurt pretty good. I just moved the seat way back and tried to keep leg straight as I could as I drove. Had to use both feet to drive. The pain after surgery wasn’t bad, I just remember broad big ache, not any knife piercing pains. My nurse said don’t wait until you have pain to take medicine so I followed her advice. I have a desk job so I was back at work 7 days later, and even then eased into it w/3/4 days. After hours and hours of research, I concluded there is no clear answer on hamstring, cadevar, or patellar. It just depends on personal preferene to pros & cons, and your own surgeon’s preference. Good luck to all.
Staci and Amy
Just research the pain pumps. I’m not trying to scare anyone but I was told by my Doctors not to get one. There are some problems with the lidocaine and marcaine causing the cartilage to deteriorate over a period of time and it could not show up for a few years. My husband had a pain pump for his shoulder 5 years ago and he is now having problems with his cartilage now.This is new studies and is just now coming out. Just look it up on the web. Like we have said before every Dr. different. Good luck
My Dr said no to the femoral block, and the topic of a pain pump never came up. Percoset and my GameReady (ice machine) effectively managed the pain, and I weaned myself off the Percs w/in 72 hours after surgery. I didn’t replace them w/ OTC drugs (Advil, Tylenol), but I think GameReady helped a lot.
Every doctor is different, but they’ll encourage you to call anytime if things aren’t going well after surgery. My doctor and the nurses reiterated this many times, that it was fine to call day or night over the weekend since my surgery was on a Thursday, but if your first pain alleviation plan doesn’t work, they should help you set up an alternative plan quickly.
Just back from my pre-op with official decision of allograft. Did tons of research and basically came down to no harvest site so only one injury to recover from, very little (if any) risk of disease transmission or rejection, quicker recovery and less pain. Does this square with all of you?
Stacy, I too am worried about the pain. Was given a prescription for dilaudid and am hoping it will do the trick. I have been told the post op pain is no worse than the injury pain?? Comments anyone?
I am allowed weight bearing with an immobilizer and crutch. Crutches untl stable on leg. Immobilizer until I regain quad. strength and timing. PT begins formally 2 weeks post op.
The only thing they didn’t discuss was showering…. anyone??? Somehow, it just seems to make me feel better!
Stacy, do not cancel. We will go through this together! Alisa, stop with the videos, they will do you no good and even as a medical person, they are gross!
Hi Everyone…. just wanted to drop a quick note and let you all know that its on for this Wed. (11th). I am so nervous about going under, not so much the recovery. Thank you all for the posts as they have really put things in perspective for me. I am 31 and have been putting up with with a severed ACL and meniscus tear for almost two years now. No sports injury just a freak accident. Will post and let everyone know how it goes for me. Thanks again to all for sharing and good luck.
Natasha:
You will do fine.
Natasha, the going under IS the most un-nerving part, and you will likely have a few options. You can be anything from mildly aware of what’s going to completely out of it and sound asleep. Like anything else in life there’s always a risk, but this is a very short procedure. Anesthesia is like magic to me, but I’ve found the doctors willing to answer ANY questions you have. ASK THEM. Whatever you want to know, they will tell you, and often just eliminating the unknowns can make you more comfortable.
Stacy, don’t cancel the surgery. I thought for a few days about not having it (I’m 44 and most of my activities are “straight ahead” type stuff except skiing and golf), but I knew I’d regret forgoing it later. I can’t even schedule mine until the MCL heals which is at least another 6 weeks. I too wish it would just hurry up and be done! Too much time to think about it!!
Re: the pain pump, my daughter (13, just had patellar graft 10 days ago) had it and it was no problem at all. There was a little “bulb” that indicated when it was empty (took 3 days) and it literally slipped right out when it was time to remove it. It’s only just under the skin surface, held in place with an easily removed tape, and she didn’t even feel it coming out. Our doc said the benefits outweighed the risks (biggest one was of infection at the site), but I’m glad to know about these new studies that Tracy T mentioned. I’ll certainly ask.
Thanks to all of you for your insight. I will definitely talk to my doctor about the pain pump. He seemed to highly recommend it. I’m thinking of returning to work roughly 2 1/2 weeks post surgery. I teach, and can rest fairly often. I would be driving myself…..L knee injury and I use my R to drive. Does this seem realistic???? Thanks
I was worried about the pain as well just because I don’t like to take pain meds. My worse day was the day after surgery. But I only took 5 “half” tabs of Percocet for the first 2 days and nothing after that not even aspirin or Tylenol. Everyone tolerates pain different. I just can’t tolerate the pain meds. Just getting out of bed to go to the bathroom made my knee throb but nothing I could not tolerate. I only took a week off from work and was back driving(my left knee too). I’m a dental assistant but I was on desk duty. I’m still not assisting too much right now. If I’m standing up a lot my leg swells and then by the time I get to therapy I can’t bend my leg good. My therapist gave me a knee sock to wear for the swelling. It is getting better every day. Prop it up as much as you can at work and take a ice pack with you. You will be fine and don’t worry too much. I will be 8 weeks post-op this Thursday. It will go by fast. Best of luck!!
Automatic transmission? You should be fine pretty soon after surgery, once all the pain meds are out of your system, especially if your car has a “dead pedal” where your left foot would go. It takes the strain off the left knee, calf, and quad muscles. Also, if you have a high vehicle like an SUV be aware of the need to put weight on your left leg (think about how you get into a car….the things we take for granted!), and you may not want to “pivot” on the ball of your left foot. You might want to “back” into the car’s seat, sit down, and then swing your leg in. Don’t try to be graceful… The other thing to be aware of is getting in and out - you want to be able to put the seat all the way back. This is easy with power seats but again you’d be surprised how much effort it takes to bring a manual-adjust seat forward when you can’t use your leg. And lastly, again depending on the height of your vehicle, getting out can be harder than getting in. The actual driving is easy (almost a relief) compared to the first few times figuring out the in and out. Suggest having a friend help you in the beginning. Minivans are great for this because those seats are typically right at hip-height and the weight transfer is much easier.
A manual transmission obviously presents challenges, but between steering wheel and seat adjustments, I found a position that works.
Tom…Thanks for the tips. I do have an automatic, it’s a truck so a little high and difficult to get in to. I’ll need to give that some thought.
Tracy…I’m the same as you with regard to pain pills. The last one I took a pain pill, it made me so sick to my stomach I thought I would need to go back to the hospital. I’m really worried about the pain afterwards.
To all of you that have been writing your thoughts….thank you so much. I am so nervous, I’m making myself sick to my stomach. Hearing your stories and successes helps me when I’m just about to change my mind. I can’t wait to be the one talking about my good experience and putting other people’s minds at ease. Good luck to everyone with PT and speedy recoveries.
Tracy
Thanks for the pain control advice. I am like both you and Stacy, I cannot stand pain medication. They gave me a prescription for dilaudid and I am afraid I will be a zombie!
You are now 8 weeks out, how do you feel? And how are you getting around? They just told me today it will be very slow going for 4 months, and no golf this summer which was kind of a bummer.
I find the frustrating part now is not having the endurance I am used to having. They said that would continue for the first few months.
How far do you walk at this point without getting tired out? What have you added to your PT regimen?
One week and counting! Thanks so much everyone for the great info!!
I wanted to tell everyone that your posts have helped me so much. I’m 43, tore my ACL skiing and I have surgery tomorrow, the 11th, going with the allograft. I keep second guessing my decision to go through with the surgery at all tomorrow, so scary. But, I will be thinking about Natasha having surgery at the same time! That will help me.
Thanks, you have all given me courage to go ahead!
Tammy:
I am like Tracy 7 weeks out. I ride the stationary bike for 10 miles every other day. I go to PT 3x week. I walk all over the hospital for my job its a >1000 bed institution. I get tired at the end of the day. Usually I am @ work x10 hour days.
Amy - You are a warrior.
I’m just under 4 weeks out now (4 weeks exactly tomorrow). Bending my knee (with assistance) to 112 degrees. Walking without crutches. No real pain in the knee. Sometimes when I do mini or functional squats at PT it stings a little, but other than that I’m pretty good. Slept very well last night, might have been a function of the poor night of sleep I had the night before, but I’ll take what I can get.
Actually, what’s really bothering me is my hip. It gets really tight and I can’t do the stretches I would normally do to loosen it up. I work a desk job as well so I’m constantly having to stand up and stretch or walk around. Anyone else have the tight hip problem? Any solutions? Or suggestions?
To Nick: Its because we are still out of alignment. I encourage you to make sure you do heel toe when you walk and swing your knee like your uneffected leg otherwise its very painful.
Nick
I had been having crazy hip pain until the PT “taught” me how to walk again. I had been swinging my leg around (kind of like doing hurdles) rather than bending the knee and walking heel toe heel toe. The PT had me practice calf raises and do lunges as well as practice walking over a log backward and forward with my back straight like balancing books on my head. He also said to toe in a little when I walk and the difference is amazing! Of course I am pre-op not post op like you.
Amy- you are a warrior! I find doing about 25% of my usual activity exhausting. I usually shoot for 10,000 steps per day plus my exercise classes. I asked when I could do that again and the PT said probably not for 4 months! Can this be true?? Please say no!
Renee & Natasha
Best of luck tomorrow! Please keep us posted on your progress. Those of us who are going next week will be following you closely! Heres to a speedy recovery!
Hi all,
Just a little over 4 months post-op, so I thought I would give you folks good hopes. I experienced the pain, trials and tribulations you all have and are experiencing. Now, I am feeling great. I don’t even realize I had acl surgery (allograft) and it feels so much more stable. Obviously, I am not playing sports yet, but riding the bike, walking, etc with just a small amount of swelling when I really push it. Just keep thinking about how much better it will be, even though those first couple of months can be mentally tough.
Cheers to healthy and speedy recoveries!
Hanson
Renee and Natasha
GOOD LUCK TOMORROW. I will say a prayer for a successful surgery and speedy recovery for you both. I go in on Thursday the 12th, so I will be looking forward to reading your posts and going through the recovery process with you. You both will do great tomorrow!! Try to get some rest tonight, it sounds like you won’t be getting much sleep for a few weeks based on previous posts. Take care
Thanks so much for the well wishes and prayers. So far, I’m wondering if I will be able to sleep I’m so nervous! I hate to waste my last night on my stomach for awhile so I’ll get off the computer and give it a try. I will try and post tomorrow after I get home.
Good Luck, Natasha and to you, Stacy next!
Stacy, Natasha & Renee,
Good luck with the surgeries this week. I wish you all the best. And you will get through it. Keep us posted please.
Tammy- I’m getting around good. This week I have seen a lot of improvement. I’m walking better. I have some discomfort and popping when I walk and that is normal I’m told. I went to therapy tonight and I’m now at 134 degrees flex.I’m spending about 2 hours at therapy, 2 nights a week. I’m riding the bike, walking more at work. You will get your energy back.I was sluggish the first few weeks too, and then after surgery about 2 weeks again until my energy came back. Try to eat right. I think it was because after surgery I did not have a good apatite and did not feel like eating. I lost 4 pounds. I just can’t wait to get my muscle back. One real skinny leg and one normal leg is driving me crazy. I feel because of my age(39) it will take me longer to get my muscle back. Everything is harder the older we get(haha). I just don’t heal as fast as I use to.
I’m back to sleeping on my side 4 days post op. Don’t sweat it!
Stacy
Tomorrow is your big day? You will do just fine. Please please keep us posted, I am right behind you and will monitor your progress ok? Fingers and toes crossed for you.
Quick update before I fall asleep again! I really couldn’t have had it go too much better. My doctor did a femoral (I think that’s how you spell it) block and it was (is still!) great. It hasn’t worn off yet so my pain has not been above a 2 out of 10 all day. I felt sick to my stomach and they put Phenergan in my I.V. and that helped a bunch but made me very sleepy. I have slept off and on all day. The brace is HUGE and I have to wear it for two weeks and no weight bearing for two weeks. This seems a little daunting, I can’t see it fitting it in the driver’s seat.
So Stacy, don’t sweat tomorrow, I built it up in my mind to be a lot worse than it actually was and I’m so relieved that part is over and you’ll be feeling the same this time tomorrow.
I’ll let you know how I feel after the block wears off!
Oh, and that’s good to hear, Bari! I’ve had a hard time being on my back just today so I’ll look forward to day 4!
Good job Renee; congratulations the surgery being over! Stacy you go tomorrow, right? We’re all thinking good thoughts for you. To all: I mentioned my daughter had surgery about 2 weeks days ago; she’s came home from PT today depressed and I showed her this blog. THANK YOU for your positive comments and honesty…she feels much better!
Renee…Congratulations! I am so relieved to hear that everything went well. I can’t wait to hear more details and track our progress together. I’m jealous now… I wish mine was over too! I’ll try to update tomorrow.
Tom B. Thanks for the well wishes. I feel the same as your daughter. Very thankful I found this site. Everyone is so honest, it puts my mind at ease.
Stacy, Hope you read this before you leave. Best of luck today, please keep us posted! You will do just fine, I am sure.
Renee: You are amazing, thank you so much for posting I am up in a few days and you are an inspiration!!!
Will follow you all over the weekend, I am getting my house set up and ready for “rehab” time.
Thanks everyone! It’s so nice to have the encouragement of all these great people. Tom, my daughter had knee surgery 2 years ago, not ACL, but I know she would have felt much better had there been a site like this for her. It’s amazing how much better you feel knowing you’re not alone!
For an update this morning, the block has mostly worn off and I have some pain in what feels like the incision points, still not unbearable though. I slept on my side (I hope that is ok?!) and set the alarm for every five hours to take a Vicodin so that the pain doesn’t get away from me like I was told it could. The brace hurts when I stand up because it’s so heavy it pulls on everything. I forgot to ask if I can take it off when I’m sitting down (?).
I’ll praying for you, Stacy, I guess you’re there now. Post when you can!
Tammy, you will do great. I did everything I could think of in the house beforehand. I am kind of enjoying getting waited on :), that doesn’t happen often. I will look forward to hearing how it’s going for you!
Hi Renee,
I actually don’t go in until 1:30 today. I will be stressing over it all day. I am a side sleeper too. I was encouraged by hearing you say you slept on your side the first night. Did you get a pain pump? I am still unsure about whether or not to get it. My doc recommends it, but I am not totally convinced yet.
Hello All. Well the surgery went fine and was surprised I was able to bear weight on it when coming home from the hospital. I have two small steps at the front door and made it up with little help from the crutches. I slept off and on most of yesterday and only took two pain pills. I have a terrible headache this morning and still some nausea. My doc said that I have early arthritis because the injury was so old.
All in all I have been walking on my own half and using crutches half of the the time. My doc told me he wanted me bearing as much weight as I can tolerate as soon as I could so I have been. Sorry if I’m being redundant Im still a little groggy and cant believe I am able to walk around so soon.
The brace is VERY cumbersome, I am already tired or it.
This is going much better than I anticipated. I do feel a lot of pressure and at times some sharp shooting pains around the incision points.
Stacy I’m praying for you … you will do great. I was very scared about going under but it all worked out. Think positive and it will be.
I’m loosing track of who else is up next but good luck to you all and keep up with this blog…. I know we all know how much help it has been.
So how are you all sleeping on your side? I wanted to so bad last night (1st night post) but was worried I’d mess the brace up.
Natasha,
Glad to hear you are doing so well. I had my surgery on Friday and was able to walk within a few days. I began rolling to my side on the second night. I rolled to the side where the brace would be on bottom and used a bunch of pillows around my body to prop me in place. They took the brace off on Monday at my first PT session and now I can sleep on my side and stomach. Pillows help a lot. I have 5 in my bed. Boyfriend slept in another room until last night just to make sure I got a good night’s sleep. I’m starting to feel much better. Leg is still very sore - it’s not the knee but the shin where all of the fluid drained. Sometimes it feels like the shin muscles are ripping away from my leg when I do the leg bending exercises, but this should go away when the swelling subsides.
Good luck!
Bari
It is so great to hear you all did so well!!! Good for all of you! What an inspiration and what a gift this site is.
Natasha…I’m so glad to hear that your surgery went well. It’s gives me alot of encouragement. Did your doctor give a reason as to why he wanted you bearing weight so quickly. I’ve heard mixed opinions. Well….I’m getting ready to go in for my surgery now. I pray that mine goes as well as all of your did. Take care everyone!! I look forward to reading about your progress and seeking your advice.
Sorry for all the typos…I’m a little nervous. My brain and my fingers aren’t working together very well. LOL
Natasha, you are doing so great! My doctor won’t let me weight bear at all for two weeks, it’s crazy all the differing views the doctors have. I wish I had your doctor! I agree with you about the brace, it’s inconvenient. I was able to sleep on my side by just resting my good leg on top of the brace, it’s so sturdy it didn’t even bend in so it was quite comfortable.
Stacy, you’re probably done as I type this! I didn’t get a pain pump at all, just the femoral block and the pills. I’ve taken a lot more than Natasha, I’m afraid not to the first 48 hours. Maybe I should try to be braver!
I am already VERY tired of sitting on my bum all day. I don’t even go to PT for ten days but have already started the exercises but it’s not too pleasant.
Renee,
Everyone is so different, don’t think you should not take the pills. I have the hydrocodone 750mg which say to take every 6-8 hrs. I am a light weight when it comes to pills so maybe that’s why I am getting away with it. I would go crazy not being able to bear weight for two weeks. That is so crazy. I’m not sure why there is such a difference in opinion about weight bearing. I talked to the nurse today and she said continue on with what I can tolerate but make sure I wear the brace at all times when up and walking.They want me to start PT in 7 days.
I put the brace over my stretch pants today and went outside with the kids. Just standing around with one crutch watching them play. I had to sit down after about 10-15 minutes to rest.
Maybe if you talk to your doc he will loosen up on the two week restriction?
Bari, You said they took the brace off on Monday. Is that for good or are you still wearing it off and on? How long has it been since your surgery? The swelling is normal huh? It sounds so painful, not looking forward to any of that. Is it mainly due to the PT. Ive seen a lot of you folks commenting on PT and pain. I guess as the old saying goes, “no pain, no gain”.
Stacy, I look forward to hearing from you and am pulling for ya.
Thanks, Natasha, you are right, everyone is different. My pills are 500mg and I’m not super-sensitive to drugs. You are a rock star, though, outside standing around with the kids!! I’m definitely not as tough as you! I’ll blame it on the fact that I’m older, not wimpier
I’m in a lot more pain tonight, though still not unbearable. That’s a good idea, I’ll ask my doctor if the two week thing is negotiable at all.
You guys should be so relieved and proud of yourselves! Outside already, I hope!!
Did anyone get a script for dilaudid for pain? I am really worried about the strength of this med. I only weigh about 115 pounds, I am afraid I will never wake up??
Stacy, can’t wait to hear from you. Hope you are doing well.
Renee,
If you had a meniscus tear that was repaired, it’s normal for you not to be allowed to bear weight. I’d check with your Dr first before listening to all of us.
Natasha,
Yes, I had my first PT appointment on Monday after my surgery (on Friday). They removed the brace and gave me some exercises to begin working on. But, mine was a straight ACL tear with no meniscus damage or other trauma. It would be different if you had other damage. They told me I don’t need to wear the brace but to carry one crutch while walking to warn people that I need extra room and care and also to use as support in case I trip (which I tend to do since I dont’ raise that leg as well).
My second PT appointment was today and I’m on the stationary bike now and have a lot of sqaut and lunge type exercises to do.
But, I think everyone is different and every doctor has a different method.
Haven’t taken any pain meds other than ibuprofen and tylenol since the morning after surgery (they hydrocodone made me feel AWFUL). Pain has not been bad at all. It’s really just soreness from the swelling and incisions. But, the more I move my leg, the more the swelling is reduced as the fluids get pumped away. Feeling much better today!
(Plus, I had allograft, which is supposedly less painful than autograft).
Bari
Renee… you are so funny. If I didn’t have my kids I would probably be laying around a lot more. I had an acl and meniscus with the allograft.
Guess I will be taking it with me next time I venture out.
I haven’t taken anymore of the pain meds either. Last one was yesterday around 4PM. They just make me feel so loopy.
I am really sore tonight. We went out to eat and the waitress didn’t see my big braced leg sticking out the end of the booth and leaned right into my foot which caused a lot of weird pains on the ride home. I am sure all is fine but I understand now why they are telling you (Bari) to carry that crutch. My husband told me I should take it in but I insisted I dint need it
I cant get in to PT until Friday and really want to get started. I’m afraid the longer I go the longer it will take to regain flexibility. When I try the exercise with the towel it hurts like crazy and I’m not sure how far to push myself. The paperwork was not that clear on how may to attempt just to attempt them 5-10 times a day. I’m so confused.
Natasha,
For the towel exercises, the pain that I felt the most was actually from the swelling in my calf and the tight tissue below my knee, not the actual knee. It felt awful and scary, but I did the exercises about 5 times per day, with however many repeats felt comfortable (probably about 10). I just pulled the knee in very slowly, a little more at a time. The pain in the shin is AWFUL and it feels like you are ripping your ACL out, but you aren’t.
Bottom line, use your own judgement. You’ll know when enough is enough.
Good luck!
Bari
Hey guys. I know a lot of you have just been checking this comment thread for updates. I’d like to encourage you to check out the forum that i’ve been working on. Unfortunately you do have to register to use it, but I think you’ll find that it’s a better format for the kind of discussion that we’ve been having on this thread.
Let me know if you have any problems or suggestions!
Hey guys,
Has anyone heard from Stacy? I have been away this weekend and have had spotty internet. Hoping she is ok.
Natasha: What did they give you for pain? My Dr. gave me an Rx. for a very strong medicine and I am afraid I will be out of my mind. Tough enough navigating around on crutches with a brace let alone totally drugged!
Hi Tammy, I have been wondering about Stacy as well. I really hope all has gone well but have not seen any posts from her.
They gave me an rx for 750mg of hydrocodone (vicodin), an anti-inflammatory and a antibiotic. I only took the hydrocodone the first two days because they made me feel so loopy (out of my mind). I have just been taking the anti-inflammatory for pain. Last night I had a lot of pain but got thru it with no pills. My 5 year old is sick with a stomach bug and I wanted to be coherent in case he needed me.
Are you doing okay with the pain? How many days post are you now?
I’ve been looking for Stacy’s posts too, I hope she is okay.
I’ve been taking Vicodin every 8 hours with no side effects and as a result, very little pain. Everyone handles the narcotics differently and I would rather have pain than feel loopy but I haven’t had to choose between the two. Tammy, you will just have to see how you handle the drugs. Darvocet is less powerful but my sister prefers it because Vicodin makes her feel bad, so you might ask about that.
Can anyone tell me how long they used the ice machine? Also, when is it okay to sleep without the brace?
Thanks Natasha and Renee.
I am going in on Tuesday. I have a prescription for Dilaudid which is an extremely powerful pain killer. I only weigh 115, I am worried I won’t even wake up!
I think we have some vicodin around the house (left over from my son’s wisdom teeth) so I think I will have that on hand in case I can’t handle the other.
I am allergic to anti-inflammatories, can only use tylenol so I am between a rock and a hard spot.
I will also ask about darvocet or something a little less strong.
Natasha you are having a really great recovery it sounds like, you too Renee,
I hope I can be like both of you!!!
Will keep an eye out for Stacy.
Tammy
Hi Everyone! Sorry it has taken me so long to update. My computer is upstairs, and as you know, I can’t get up there yet. Everything went well. Little tough coming out of anasthesia on Thursday night. Went to PT 13 hours later on Friday morning, not pelasant, but tolerable. Took the Percoset) for 2 days, now just Tylenol. Did have extreme pain on Friday night, went ER per dr. request. Apparently had a nerve pinched. They gave me 3 different pain meds through my IV, but it didn’t really help. Going to PT 3 times a week now. Almost 4 days post op and getting around great with crutches. I’m glad to hear everyone is doing well. I’ll update soon. I’m going to bed. PT kicked my butt today.
Just wanted to say good luck tomorrow, Tammy! I will be thinking about you and praying for you, you’ll do great. Post when you can and let us know how you did.
I’ve way cut back on the pain meds and my exercises are going pretty well. Sleeping is still a huge bummer, tried to go braceless and ended up putting it back on in the middle of the night, just felt too unsafe. My biggest problem is that I seem to have no energy and the crutches are exhausting, probably from a lack of sleep.
Hope all is still good with you Natasha
Just noticed your post, Stacy! So relieved to hear from you, I was imagining all kinds of things. Wow, that’s pretty intense that you had to go to the ER but sounds like you are doing awesome! Are you allowed to weight bear or are you fully on crutches? I haven’t been to PT yet, just doing exercises the PT at hospital told me to.
Good job, Stacy, isn’t it a relief to have that done?!
Oh Stacy, I am so happy to hear from you. Sorry about your complication but glad to hear you are doing better.
Went to my other house today where I am going to recover. Turned on my internet so I can check on you guys and post.
Have to be there at 9:45 tomorrow surgery at 10:15. My only concern still is the pain med they prescribed. Very very strong. I am going to try to deal with that before surgery. I hate medicine.
Renee what are you doing for meds now? Heard the sleep issue is a pain in the butt. I am planning on tylenol pm as soon as I can.
Talk to you all hopefully tomorrow afternoon.
Hey gang! Thanks to everyone for continuing to share their stories and best of luck to you all for speedy recoveries!
I’m now 2 1/2 weeks post-op. I’ve had the CPM at 90 degrees since Saturday (am actually returning it tomorrow), have been doing all my exercises, and my flexion is up to 105. I got on the bike for the first time at PT today, which was a WONDERFUL surprise (the beginning of getting back to my normal activities)! Still wearing the brace most of the time, though I’m taking some steps around home without it. Continuing to wear the compression sock and icing often, as there is still some swelling and mild soreness, especially just below the knee and next to the largest incision. PT said I can go ahead and start sleeping without the brace and so will give that a go - nervous to try based on earlier comments though… my extension still needs some work and I’m sure it’ll be uncomfortable…
Overall I’m very pleased with my progress. It feels better and stronger every day!
Hey Stacy….. SO
“/[;.’ glad you are ok. So what did they do to fix the pinched nerve? I hope the rest of your recovery goes well. So you started pt so soon huh? I really wish I could be starting sooner but wonder why you started so very soon. I don’t recall anyone else here starting so soon either.
Tammy I know you will do great and we are all thinking of you. Check in as soon as you can. Having this place to connect with everyone really helps me a lot.
I am still doing well. I tripped up the steps yesterday eve and had a lot of pain during the night but it was much better this morning so decided not to cal the doc. Had to take both the kids to the doc this morning and they both have pinkeye and ear infections. Boy I guess when mom goes down everyone goes with her :-).
Have any of you cut over to the forum Henry was talking about?
Henry I took a look at it a few days ago but find it hard to cut over because we have all this string going.
Hello new friends….I just registered on the forum. Henry has made it very simple, but I must say te blog is nice because there’s no need to choose topics; it’s just stream of consciousness. Perhaps someone will create a forum for “random thoughts”.
Glad to hear you’re all doing so well. Ally (my 13 yr old) is having some scar tissue build up..I think she’s not moving enough, and I really want her to read your stories and accounts. One more big thanks to everyone. I’m still 6 weeks PRE surgery, but my MCL is healing nicely. Got on the bike, can go down AND up stairs now like a big boy, and don’t have to scoot the seat all the way back to get in the car. All wonderful until surgery and I go back down to square one again!!
Good luck today, Tammy! I am now taking a Vicodin (500mg) in the morning, and one at night. I’m going to call the doctor today and ask if I can do Ibuprofen or Tylenol instead and save my remaining Vicodins for PT. Pain has never been at all unbearable with the Vicodin.
Ally, my daughter had knee surgery too and the moving was the hardest part. She did some crying at PT but now walks like a champ. Hang in there and post your thoughts if you think it would make you feel better. We’d love to hear from you.
Tom, I know how you feel. I got where I could do 20 minutes on the stair climber pre-surgery (took me 8 weeks to be able to do that) and it’s so frustrating to know I’m back at the beginning. My quad is moving so much better now after surgery than it did during pre-hab (I did my own) so I think all the pre-work really made a difference. Sounds like you are doing well.
Natasha, be careful!! Freaks me out that you are going upstairs and I’m not even allowed to weight bear. My dog has pinkeye! I hope he doesn’t give it to the rest of us.
Lidija, thanks for the update, you doing so well gives me hope!
I signed up on the forum as well but didn’t really know what to do from there, random thoughts and a post-surgery questions forum might be good.
To all;
I am back to work and doing great. Good luck to all.
To Tracy and Henry and Kimber thanks for your insight.
Ok quick post. Got home a few hours ago. All went well, ACL and meniscus repair (can’t type)
Using dilaudid. They gave me 2 in the recovery room the last one at 1:20 and I just took one at home,
Also took 2 tylenol and I used some Arnica (a homeopathic med)
Pain isn’t too bad, more of a dull throb and the worst part is it isn’t in my knee but in my lower leg on the outside. Dr. Said from where he stitched the meniscus back together.
Makes me cranky but not out of control.
Will check back in later
Great to hear all went well Tammy! Rest away and hope you have a great recovery. Keep us posted.
Hope you are doing well Stacy.
Renee… the stairs are actually just two small steps that lead from our living room to the dinning area. But I don’t have a choice not to use them or I would be stuck in the family room all alone. Thank you for your concern as it reconfirms what everyone around me keeps telling me. I hope I’m not over doing it I just cant sit still for long periods.
I finally slept on my side and almost made it thru the night for the first time. Still just relying on the anti-inflammatory. I have been able to do laundry, dinners and dishes for a few days now and even vacuumed today.
Everyone…please keep posting about the pt as I am anxious to start but now worry about the pain. What kind of exercises do they have you do?
Thanks again to all!
Renee , Natasha,Tammy, Stacy and Amy and any one I missed!
Glad to here that you all are doing well. Just remember that you will have good days and then a bad day will hit. Don’t get discouraged at all. I’m 9 weeks now and this weekend was bad.I was stiff, could not bend my knee that good. But went to therapy and I can flex on my own 136 degrees on my back and I’m about 4 inches away from my heel touching my butt when I’m on my stomach.I never thought I would get this far but doing better everyday. Keep up the good work.
Good morning
Post op day 1. Not a bad night last night. Did use my dilaudid. Only one at a time (2mg) about every 3 hours. Used 2 initially to go to sleep. Figured out a way to sleep half on my side so actually got some sleep. Biggest problem I had was that I had to go pee about every hour or so. What is up with that? They must have pumped me full of fluids in the OR! Finding the dilaudid makes me a bit spacey but does a good job with the pain. Had breakfast today so plan to start the tylenol with meals. Would like to wean off this med as much as possible.
Find standing up feels so good. Did anyone else notice that? I have an immobilizer but can bear weight with the crutches. I am suprised as I had my meniscus repaired as well.
First PT is on Monday, in the meantime have a sheet of exercises to do. Havent tried bending yet, will try soon.
Tammy! Sounds like you are doing great! I’m so glad to hear it. According to the nurse in the OR, we heal better when we aren’t in pain so we shouldn’t be afraid to medicate as needed. I am down to taking mostly Tylenol, I want to save the Vicodin for PT. Had a great night sleep using a 1/2 of an Ambien, slept 10 hours and only woke up twice briefly, huge improvement.
Natasha, I’m really just super jealous of you. I am very active normally, gym 5 days a week, running, I have a horse, and it’s super frustrating to have to sit on my bum and not bear weight when I know I could do it!! Especially when the weather is so beautiful, perfect horseback riding weather. Oh well, I did have my breakfast outside this morning and that was a huge mood booster. Oh and I’m not concerned about you and PT…vacuuming?!? You’ll do fine
Tracy, thanks for the post, I think I will need to hear that kind of thing, it’s easy to get discouraged. Sounds like you are doing so well, almost being able to touch your butt sounds impossible!
Hi Everyone! I miss reading your posts each day. I check as often as I can.
Tammy…I am glad to hear that all went well. I’m sure you’re relieved that it’s over. Congratulations! I took the Dilaudid at the ER and know exactly how you feel regarding “loopiness”. I didn’t like that medication. I began Tylenol on day 3. It doesn’t completely take the pain away, but it helps. I also had to pee every few hours for the first few nights. I think it was a combo. from the fluids and how much I was drinking at home. They told me to drink alot because the pain meds. “bind” you up. That’s the last thing I needed. I can bear weight with crtuches, not full weight, and without crutches, but can’t walk on my own yet. I can’t even lift my leg on my own yet, it’s frustrating!!! Hang in there…I’m sure your recovery will go great!
Renee…I am feeling much, much better. Going to the ER scared me, especially when none of the IV pain meds were working. But I feel much better now. PT is grueling. I feel like she is going to snap my leg in half when she bends it. I go 3 times a week now. I notice slight improvement each time. I have heard a few people talking about the CPM machine…what do you know about that? I don’t have one. I’m wondering if I should ask for one. How is your PT going? What kind of exercises are you doing. Are you weight bearing yet?
Natasha…I’m sure your PT will go great! I was a little surprised they had be start 13 hours later, who knows what the right thing to do is. We didn’t accomplish much the first day, but she’s been working me hard this week. I do notice improvement each time I go. Make sure you do the home exercises, it really helps. As for the nerve, I had so much swelling that the bandaging was pushing on the nerve. So, loosening the bandage and IV meds. to reduce swelling is what finally relieved the pain. It was awful. I haven’t had that sort of pain since. Straight Tylenol, only 1, every 6-8 hours. Good luck with your PT and recovery, I’ll keep checking back on your progress!!!
Everyone…thank you so much for sharing your stories and for sharing your concern for me and each other. Every tiny bit of information helps. I’ll check back when I can. How soon before I should expect to climb stairs or drive?????
Argh….I can’t tell if I’m happy that my surgery is 4 weeks away or sad….all of you are making such great progress; congratulations. I wish mine were done already.
Ally (again, my daughter) and I were at PT together today, and they have her doing some leg lifts and some stationary biking as well several minutes of ice (that machine that pumps cold water around a cuff wrapped around the knee) to close out the session. Therapist said she needs to really do more bending while seated, and she has some build-up of some kind that “catches” at times. Doc says that it is scar tissue, so ladies, please: don’t just sit there. Keep bending, moving, stretching, and working out the pains.
So Stacy, are you glad you did the procedure?? It sounds like we all heal at different rates, but I would think the stairs and driving will come in several weeks. Up is easier than down, and going down like a 5 year old is a lot safer than trying to do it like a grown-up. TAKE YOUR TIME. No such thing as an emergency when you’re trying to get your body back together.
Bye all….have a great rest of the week.
Good morning.
the high point of my week!
Day 2 post op. Interesting. Yesterday I felt absolutely wonderful until about noon (24 hrs post op.) It then dawned on me that the marcaine block had worn off. OUCH. I hadn’t taken any pain medication for 6 hours and spent the better part of the evening trying to catch up. So hint #1 take your medications on schedule for a few days.
This morning there is pain present, however, not unbearable. Just aching. One interesting thing is I get these little electrical jolts on one side of my knee… anyone else? What the heck is that?
The ice is absolutely helping, standing helps and I am now touching down heel toe with the crutches which feels great.
Let me hear how everyone else is doing. Looking forward to bandages off and a shower tomorrow
So good to hear from you from everybody! Tammy, I was completely paranoid about the block wearing off because I could tell it was taking the pain away so I made sure to take a Vicodin every four hours the first two days and the pain never got out of control. I’m getting electrical jolts and some spasms too, the jolts are especially pronounced where the screws are. Nice. I can’t feel the skin at the bottom of my knee, is anyone else feeling that?
That’s awesome that you can weight bear, Stacy. I know I could if I was allowed. I have my first doctor appointment since surgery on Tuesday and I asked if they were SURE I couldn’t weight bear until then and they said YES!
I’m trying to do the stretches, leg lifts(which are easy) and heel slides (not so easy) several times a day. I also laid down on the couch and did sit-ups and used some barbells to work out my arms. I hate to go completely to square one!
With Natasha’s inspiration, I unloaded and re-loaded the dishwasher while sitting on a stool. Who’d of thought that would ever feel good?!
Enjoy your shower, Tammy, it is awesome to shower! Tom, I completely do not regret doing the surgery.
Just FYI, I am just under 2 weeks since my surgery and have been driving a manual transmission since Tuesday (left leg is the surgery leg, and no problem with the clutch). I can also walk up and down the three flights of stairs at work. Carefully and slowly, but I can do it as long as I hold the hand rail for balance. I have 125 degree bend at PT. I had an allograft, so I’m sure that if I’d had my own tissue harvested, I’d be much less flexible. But, agree with Tom - work through the soreness and pain.
Bari
When did you begin to feel “normal”? I am just 2 days out and can’t even imagine bending my knee or even walking right now. I can extend fully and it actually feels good. I thought I might try bending it today. I have been partial weight bearing with the crutches and it doesn’t feel bad but I thought I was just doing well to get around!
Renee- don’t you love those jolts? What the heck? They jump me out of my skin! I haven’t taken my bandages off- have to leave them on till tomorrow, so I don’t know if I will be able to see my screws. I supposedly have the bioabsorbing screws??? At least I won’t alarm when going thru the airport!
Good idea on the sit ups and stuff hopefully I will feel like it in a few days.
You are doing well, Tammy! We have to be careful when reading the posts to remember that we’re all different ages (I’m in my 40s), different injuries and different recommendations from our doctors. It’s easy to get frustrated if you feel you’re not doing as much as others, but we have to go at our pace. It is great to hear what others are doing so you know that you can push yourself more. Bari, awesome, pushing on the clutch!
You will just see the spots where the incisions are, I was pleasantly surprised when I finally unwrapped my leg, it wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be. My doctor told me which incisions had the screws and those incisions are a bit bigger than the others and I feel the most (yes, very weird!) jolts from those spots. I think Tom was the one who said it was part of the healing process so I just remind myself of that!
I didn’t feel like doing too much the first few days so I didn’t. My leg hurts the most when it’s hanging down, which seems opposite of how you feel. Because of that, I have a hard time staying upright too long, I have to sit down and elevate. I’m afraid to bend it too much and because I haven’t been to PT I don’t know how far to push it.
I don’t feel close to “normal”. I just have been very diligently, since the day of surgery, doing the quad exercises and and when they removed the brace on day 3, bending my knee past the point of comfort many times a day and also working very hard to get normal extension (that hurt worse than bending). I’m still VERY sore all of the time. I hit the wall on Tuesday, and other than PT, did no exercises. Slept from 6:45 pm to 6 a.m. that day. But, each day is a gradual improvement over the last. I rode the stationary bike for 35 minutes last night - was very stiff this morning. I’m trying to walk without a limp, even if it hurts. My whole life now is about trying to function normally, even if it hurts. The PT wouldn’t give me a straight answer when I asked him how long I could expect to be sore….. I’m not sure how soon I’ll feel ‘normal’!
Hey Guys,
Bari-
I’m 9 weeks today and I still don’t feel quite normal. I have found that after being at work all day and I come home and take off my shoes(new-balance) I can walk better bare footed. I’m thinking I might need to talk to the therapist about a good pair of sneakers. I have stiff days and the knee still hurts some.I had slight arthritis in my knees before my accident so I’m sure that is not helping matters in my case. I have popping in my knee now that I’m walking a little better and they said it was all normal. But I can’t wait till I’m normal again too. We are the people that just like to play hard. Welcome to the ACL club. Just keep up the hard work. The time really goes by fast.
Good Morning! Post Op Day 3!
Thank you for all of your comments everyone. It is so nice to have some experience ahead of us!
Yesterday and last night were so much better. Down from 6 pain pills to only 4! And, only one in the middle of the night YAHOO! Finally found a way to turn to my side a little, my back was killing me.
Big new of the day… a SHOWER! Wow did that feel good! Finally got to take the bandages off, have 4 holes (don’t know why) one seems quite big..will ask the Dr. on Monday. First post op visit and first PT on Monday. Let the wild games begin.
You guys truly are amazing, what an inspiration! Thanks for all of your notes!
Stacy: How are you??
Hi All, I tore my ACL and MCL on Feb 18 skiing in Lake Tahoe (Heavenly). I am 35, and live in NJ, so it took me a while to get back to the east coast and into a doctor’s office. I was finally told today that I ruptured the ACL, so badly that I bruised the bones around it (still don’t understand the consequences of that yet). I have surgery scheduled for Apr 21, and my doctor said he prefers allograft. After reading all your posts, I am somewhat concerned about the durability of that choice, but will have a discussion with my doc about it. He’s a part of the Hospital for Special surgery in NYC that caters to mostly athletes, so I would hope he would have a trustworthy opinion!
It’s been a month now and I have been in PT, have a brace and am walking with a cane and a pirate limp….I can only bend my knee about 100 degrees, and am somewhat frustrated that after I get back to being truly mobile i will have to go into surgery and do it all over again. But after reading all your posts, and knowing that there are people out there sharing your experiences and frustrations, makes me feel like I am not alone. I learned more on this website than any other that I googled! Thank you to whomever started this forum!!!
I will continually check it and add my experiences as I have them.
Kelly, we all feel for you, definitely keep posting on your progress before and after. This website has been a godsend for me, it really helps to know you are definitely not alone (thank you, Henry).
Yesterday was bad, just in terms of still not being allowed to put any weight on my leg, I was so sick of sitting around I thought I would go insane. Today was better, went out to dinner and rode the little cart around at Walmart (embarrassing), went with my husband to watch him feed my horse.
This too shall pass! Hearing from Tracy and Bari makes me feel better, they are an inspiration as you all are.
Glad to hear things are going so well for you Tammy. Looking forward to hearing from Stacy too. I’m sure Natasha is already running a marathon
Happy healing, all!
Kelly, I did the exact same thing….ACL and MCL tear, and done skiing in early February. Keeping the MCL immobilized for so long (and yes, crutches and brace) definitely weakened the whole leg, but just stay with the PT. I HATE the fact that I’m finally walking without a limp and I can almost squat but have to go back to square one in late April (my ACL surgery). Pain is weakness leaving the body…frustration is the resistance that says you’re doing it right….and small goals are better than big ones. Just stay with it.
And for those of you following the adventures of Ally, my daughter, she got a bit of tough love from the doc yesterday, and it worked. She’s really been working hard on the bending and straightening and she’s feeling not only better, but proud of herself.
I read her some of your posts last night and I know it helped. You’re all wonderful!
Hello everyone, just checking in. My thoughts go out to those who have just had surgery or will be having surgery, hang in there! I just signed up to the forum, can’t wait to post there. It is so good to see all the support and encouragement.
Hi Everyone. I think I’m the only person on the planet without a laptop. I scooted myself up the stairs this morning so I could check in on everyone. What a sight that must of have been. I’m post-op 8 days and doing much better than a week ago. I haven’t taken any pain pills or Tylenol for 3 days now. It feels good to get my head out of the clouds. PT is going great. It lasts about 2 hours each time. Is that typical? When she bends my knee I feel like my kneecap is going to pop out and fly across the room. It’s paying off though, I feel better each day. My bend is almost at 90 degrees and my extension is great, about 1/2 inch between the table and my knee. The worst part for me is that my quad muscle isn’t coming back very quickly. I only have control over it periodically. I’m having to retrain it to remember how to walk. What a pain. I still need crutches to get around, but I’m relying on them less. I’ll update again soon.
Tom B….I can totally sympathize with you feeling like you will be back at square 1. I was feeling great right before the surgery and almost hopped off the table in the pre-op room. I told the anesthes. that I could live with the slight pain I was feeling. Pre PT helped ALOT!!! It wasn’t fun but it helped. Despite feeling like you’re back at square 1, think of the long term benefits. Think of your daughter and how you don’t want to be limited in your activity so you can have fun with her. You’ll do great!!! I’m glad to hear that Ally is doing well. I struggle mentally with the recovery and I’m 35, so she is doing great.
Kelly…I had the same situation where I bruised the bones around the ACL. It was a discomfort for about 2 weeks, then no problem. It heals on its own. Pre PT helps alot. You’ll find that in no time, with the help of PT, you will feel so great that you won’t want the surgery, but do it anyway. I’m pulling for you. Can’t wait to read about your progress.
Tammy…I loved the shower too!!! It’s funny how we miss the little things. I still have a hard time balancing in the shower. My husband is all too willing to help out. LOL. I have 4 holes too. Well 3 small holes on my knee cap and 1 longer incision below my knee cap. My PT said that some people have 3 and some have 4. Hang in there, you’re doing great.
Renee…Still no weight bearing at all?? That must be really frustrating. It’s funny to me how different each of our dr. and PT’s are. You WalMart story made me laugh. We sort of make a joke out of it now. I’ve realized that every now and then I need a little help. I went to my sons baseball game on Wed. and they brought a golf cart to get me from the gate to the field. I was embarrassed at first, but got over it quickly when I realized how far away the field really was. Keep us posted.
Kelly: I am basically on the same schedule as you. I tore my ACL playing indoor soccer at college on February 20th and will have surgery at the end of the semester (May 12). I have serious knee bruising as well and just began physical therapy this past week. I improved my range of motion from 85 degrees to 115 degrees in one day. I know those last few degrees will be hard but this is the year of pain so I am going to get used to it. I would like to get some opinions on which type of graft to get. I am a freshman in college who played varsity sports throughout high school and I am currently a member of the tennis team and part of the club soccer team. My doctor seems to recommend the patella tendon graft but I am weary of the recovery time for that and never being able to kneel again. Please let me know your thoughts. Thanks!
Stacy, thanks for braving the stairs so we can hear how you’re doing! I guess we should just try to appreciate the motorized assistance with our activities
I’m so envious of your progress in PT, I can’t wait to start. Do you take any pain pills before you go? I’m taking an occasional Tylenol now, but that’s it. I have a lot of shooting pains still, does anyone else?
Just some advice to those coming up, I’m so aggravated about not being able to put weight on my leg, definitely talk to your doctor before surgery what his philosophy is about recovery. I might have picked a different doctor if I’d known he was going to be so conservative. Apparently he had someone tear their new ACL after surgery falling so now he is ultra cautious. I’m just afraid that despite the exercises I’m doing I’ll have a lot of scar tissue build=up.
Glad to hear things are going better for you, Ally. Hang in there!
hi all, its me again i posted a comment a few weeks ago… i’m the one that was watching all the videos and looking at the pics of surgeries….lol well i’ve got a date now march 30th and have leaned towards the allograft but still not 100%… Yikes! i’m really not nervous about the surgery too much i’m just dreading the 6 weeks my doc told me i couldn’t walk for. i’m a active busy girl always on the go! i’m a wait/bartender so i won’t even be able to work for 6 weeks, i did need a vacation but this is far from what i was wanting!lol i’m also nervous about my kids being to rough with me and accidently jumping on it or something they are 3 and 5. well i’m glad that everyone is healing up nicely it gives us all hope.
Hey guys
)
Good to hear from everyone and welcome to the newcomers.
I know just how you guys who are pre-op feel. I had just gotten myself mobile in time for surgery. It seemed a little counterintuitive! However, I really think it will make your recovery so much easier! I am so happy to be post op now.. day 4. Lets see… shower again this morning.. amazing, off the narcotics so far today (it doesn’t help with the bathroom issue, reminds me of childbirth), more mobile on my crutches, and 5 months 26 days till sports!
It does seem daunting at times, but stick with the therapy it really did make a difference.
Renee- how funny riding around wally world in a cart. I was thinking of hitting the mall tomorrow with a few friends just for a change of scenery! (My family is skiing this weekend
And Stacy, you be careful butt scooting those stairs.
Have been partial weight bearing with my crutches but it slows me down quite a bit so sometimes I pick up my leg and cheat! Am doing my extension exercises, not much for bending, it feels nasty!
Tried to get on my exercise bike yesterday… right! Not yet.
Anyway, will try to sign on the forum today, couldn’t remember my password in my drugged up state! Happy saturday.
Hi All…. 10 days post and had my first pt yesterday. It was a lot better than I expected. Didn’t really do much. I am 90 degrees flex and fell like I can could go further but docs orders wont allow it until next week. It actually felt good to bend my knee after having it so straight for 9 days. They put an electro thing (forgot what its called) on my thigh to induce muscle flexing. That felt weird but didn’t hurt. Then he massaged the knee gave me a sheet of exercises to do at home this weekend and sent me on my way. 1 hour in and out. Cant really complain, did the full sheet today and seem to be a bit tired from it. I just iced it really well and it feels pretty good now.
Sleeping a little better now but I find if I am on my back too long the leg kinda goes numb. Will ask my doc about it this next week.
Renee…. I so wish I could just run. I haven’t been able to do any of that for a really long time so I am so looking forward to the day I can actually run after my little ones and play tag again! What a blessing that will be.
Bending does feel nasty, Tammy! You can feel all kinds of strange pulling, not pleasant. Really glad to hear the details of how you’re doing. Enjoy the mall, it feels amazing to get out!
Natasha, 90 degrees seems really good! I wish you could play tag too, You know I’m just having fun with you, you are truly inspirational. I was glad to hear about what you did on your first appointment, sounds pretty do-able.
I know how you feel Alisa. My kids are older so I don’t worry about them jumping on me but I have a 90 pound puppy that scares me to death!
Isn’t it funny how much you appreciate things you kind of took for granted before, like how great a shower feels, how nice it is to carry you own coffee to the couch, how wonderful sleeping on your stomach is, ect., etc. I will try not to take these things for granted again.
Time flies even when you’re bored to death. Back to work on Monday (yikes), first doctor appointment on Tuesday and hopefully clearance to weight bear!!
HI all…. I just love reading all your posts and thank you for your responses! I had a breakthrough today…I was able to make a full revolution on the bike and can bend to 115 degrees now!! I’ll be back to normal in a month, just to do it again, but i agree, that getting my quad back pre-op will make post op recovery easier. And for those skiers out there…my doc said, unofficially, he has noticed that there are much more ACL injuries with the shaped skiis. His theory is the extra torque on the knee in turns. Just an interesting tid bit.
Warren- My doctor (at HSS) prefers the allograft, i believe for the quicker recovery time, but I know that the field is fairly split down the middle between patella and allo-. They say that the allograft is a bit weaker because when they freeze the tendon, it loses some of it’s integrity (i read that on a previous post above), but there are doctors that dispute that. There seems to be one test on 64 patients that’s prominent on a google search but the small number of test cases makes me a little cautious on the info. Then they say that the patella is a longer and more painful recovery and could lead to tendonitis in the patella down the road….there are pluses and minuses to both.
Renee- you hit it on the head…the little things in life are such a major deal now! Getting my coffee to the couch was a process. I set up an obstacle course of stools from the coffee machine to the couch and would just move the cup from one stool to the next…and I miss how showering used to be a good part of the day instead of a painful part. Good luck at the doc tomorrow!
Hey guys. Post op day six and lots of new info.
First off, I ditched the pain meds officially on Friday. Have just been using tylenol, arnica and ice.
Today was my post op check. He removed the steri strips and stitches and took 2 x-rays to check on the ACL. All was well. He also trimmed my immobilizer so it almost actually stays up sometimes!
The good part of the day was when he said I could ditch the crutches as long as I use the immobilizer always. The bad part is that I have to have the immobilizer for 4 weeks because of my meniscus repair.
The other sort of bad part is that my rehab will be a bit different because of the meniscus but I still will end rehab in 6 months so it is all good.
So after my Dr. visit I had PT. All was well. I have full extension and 90 degrees of bend. I have some groovy (right) new exercises and they actually put me on the exercise bike but would only let me pedal with one leg. Talk about weird.
So Kelly and all of you, hang in. I am so glad it is over. And for all of you with the stupid brace issues, I am with you.
Tomorrow we will discuss sleep or lack thereof. Good night.
Hello everyone
It’s been a while since I’ve posted but I read your blogs often and glad to see everyone doing well and staying upbeat. I’m 6 weeks post op today, I had ACL, miniscus and decided on the patellar graft. I am extremely thrilled with my decision. I had this same surgery on my other knee 14 years ago and it has never been a problem, so it was an easy decision for me to to have the patellar. To sum it up. After interviewing 3 Dr., when the 3rd one said ” Do you want a 90% knee with half the pain and recovery when using an allograft ora 100% knee with a bit of a longer recovery using your patellar?”, Any questions I might have had were just answered. If I’m going to put myself throught this, of course I want a 100% knee. Today, I am 128 degrees flex. Yesterday, I hit 2 malls and walked for 5 hours.(yes I was tired at the end of the day, but I got to shop!!) Like many of you, I had the crappy post op knee brace that is hot and slips down all the time. I now have a new brace by Breg that weighs @ 1 lb and is much cooler and never slips. It will fit under my dress pants or jeans, so I don’t mind wearing it at all.
Another little tid bit, especially for the ladies. If your worried about scars, use Rawleigh antispetic salve. My Mom reminded me how great this stuff is and she ordered it on line for me. I have used it every day since surgery and my two scars are almost faded to white - Barely pink. Maderma can’t touch this stuff.
Keep at the PT, it gets better before you know it.
Thanks for the tip on the scar stuff, Jenny, I’m getting that ASAP.
Kelly, you made me laugh out loud with your trail of stools. What a great way to cope! Interesting about the skiis, that was what I was using when I tore mine.
Had my first doctor appointment, and YAY! I can weight bear with the brace on only and ditch the crutches as soon as I feel able!! It really felt so good to put my foot on the floor, doesn’t hurt at all. I start PT in a few days. Didn’t hurt when he moved my knee all around, only when he massaged the scars, ouch (apparently I have to start doing that), and cut out the one “dissolvable” stitch that was misnamed, bled a lot. Been getting around fine at work with the crutches, keeping my leg up on the mini-fridge under my desk most of the time. Oh, and slept on my STOMACH for about an hour, pure heaven in spite of the slight pain. Sleeping is still mostly awful though, even waking up if I take an Ambien
Hope everybody is doing well. Talk to you soon.
Hey Renee and everyone! Congrats on your first dr. visit! It does feel great to touch down I got the same news on Monday, the only tough part for me was that my leg simply didn’t want to ditch my crutches! I practiced all day yesterday and am up to 7 steps without crutches! I am also usually using only one on my bad side. Do you still have to use your immobilizer? Man what a pain that is. I have been sleeping without mine so I can roll on my side but then getting up to go to the bathroom I either have to put it on or use crutches. Either way, the sleep part is def. a problem! Have been using tylenol pm when I go to bed and I am getting a bit more sleep but would still call myself a bit dangerous due to lack of sleep!
Does anyone have any other weird pains? I am finding the knee really doesn’t hurt but I have several places on my leg that just throb. My ankle area feels like I have a pulled muscle and my groin and quads are killing me. Have been using a rolling pin on the upper leg, it is pure misery while doing it though it does flatten out the knots!
I have an interesting article on the shaped skis, it is a known fact they do contribute to more acl injuries, I too was on shaped skis. I will try and find it and post for all to see. In Vail they are now instructing their employees on avoiding injuries on shaped skis and have reduced their acl injury rate by a significant figure.
Well off to the shower, cheers all. And to all of you more experienced recovery people, does it get better soon???
Sorry for the second post. If you google shaped skis & acl injuries you will find many articles explaining the mechanism of injury and acl injury prevention when using the new skis.
Tomorrow I’ll be one month post-op. First the good - on Monday the PT said to lose the brace and I have not put it back on since! Next, the not so good - today I had a follow-up appt. with my doc, which didn’t go quite like I’d hoped… He said that my knee was a bit stiffer than he would have liked.
He said he’s confident the increased flexion will come in time, but still scheduled my next follow-up a few weeks sooner than normal. I must admit I was a bit bummed, because I’ve been doing my exercises religiously and was really hoping for a “you’re doing great!!” Maybe it was just one of those “bad days” we’re all supposed to have, because it did feel pretty stiff… It usually does though, unless I’ve just done my exercises (and I had not done them today before the appt). Anyone else feeling the same?
Lidija
Why did you have to wear your brace for a month? I think I have to wear mine that long too and I am very frustrated. I had a meniscus repair in addition to my acl.
Don’t get too discouraged, I don’t know how we are supposed to work on our flexion when we are straight legged most of the time.
How are you walking now without your brace? You will probably loosen up very quickly.
I hear you on the “bad days”- sometimes it isn’t very fun! Chin up!
I’m supposed to wear my brace whenever I walk but take it off whenever I’m sitting down, as you know, that gets a bit tricky when you are up and down, especially at work. It is so hard to work on flexion when you’re strapped into that thing. I am having weird pains too and my upper leg did really hurt where I imagine I got the shot for the nerve block. That is a lot better though, if it’s the same, Tammy, yours will be too soon. I’m still using two crutches to walk for the most part but at home I’ve used one some. My leg just feels so weak despite the exercises I’ve been doing faithfully, I guess two weeks of not weight bearing takes it’s toll. 7 steps without crutches is awesome Tammy, I will make it my goal to get further along over the weekend.
I definitely have my highs and lows so far, I think we just will until eventually there are more highs than lows. Hang in there Lidija and everybody. This will all be a memory before we know it.
Hello, all. Lots of interesting posts here from a variety of experiences so I thought I would try to get some feedback about my recovery. I had ACL reconstruction with an allograft on 9-23-08 (no meniscus repair). I only had PT sessions for 2 or 3 weeks and then was on my own; several of the exercises were created with home use in mind. Over time I did some research on how to modify the exercises since I had no more appointments but that was really the only change I made. By January I was getting pretty frustrated with the level of apparent weakness in my knee; any time I bent it while standing, it shook like crazy. So went back to PT and have had a different approach the last 6 weeks or so. It seems to be improving somewhat but it’s a bit hard to tell (still a bit shaky). I’ve not been very active at all; I’m afraid to even walk on my treadmill (probably because walking was what tore the ligament in the first place- not kidding). Has anyone has similar experiences with allografts? Could the weakness be due to the lack of sufficient PT exercises? Any thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks in advance!
Lidija:
Try not to get too discouraged yet. I can’t remember just how long I had my brace on but I know it was for at least a month. Once it came off (I planned to burn it until I found out how expensive it was…) the flexion came much more easily. Just be a patient patient and keep up with the PT and (*knock on wood*) you’ll do fine.
Hi Everyone! Yay!!! 2 weeks post-op and feeling great. I’m walking with one crutch when necessary, but I can walk around the house….well if you want to call it walk, more like hobble….without crutches. At the doc. yesterday they removed the stitches, painless!! and he unlocked my brace. I still need to wear the brace, but it can stay in the unlocked position. My knee has buckled a few times, so I just furniture surf around the house in case I need something to hold on to. PT is still grueling, but good news…..yesterday I made it all the way around on the stationary bike!!!. I peddled for 6 minutes. It felt really good. My PT pushes really hard, I’m usually there between 2 and 21/2 hours. I am doing much better than I thought I would be at this point. I have a lot of tingling and pain in my shin. My doc said it is nerve damage from when my nerve was pinched on day 2. It could take up to a year for it to fully go away, but it’s bearable. Other than that, everything is going well. I can’t wait to read all of your updates. Keep your spirits up, the hard part is over.
Amy B, I’m surprised you only did PT for 2 or 3 weeks. I’m 9 weeks post op and still going once a week and probably will for several more weeks. I was doing twice a week for 7 weeks before they moved me to a sports D1 facility for PT because they could work me better so I can try to get back on the basketball court. I’m 36 and tore ACL 1/4/09 and tore both meniscuses (which has slowed the PT pace down as a result) and had surgery 1/16/09. I say all that to say that my physical therapist believes that a lot of PT is just working on re-strengthening the leg muscles and getting your balance back (apparently you lose some balance cells during surgery due to incisions). I’m guessing your leg is shaking b/c you didn’t strenghten leg muscles and now that the knee feels better and you feel like dong more that your core leg muscles (calf to thigh/hip) just aren’t strong enough to allow you to walk comfortably. Its not just the knee/ACL, but the whole leg you have to PT. Anyway hope this helps, I’ll be praying for you and all on here.
Good advice everyone! Sounds like we are all “on track” just hard to remember that sometimes.
JayDale - you had both meniscuses repaired, so did you have to stay in your immobilizer for 3-4 weeks? How long did it take you to start rebuilding strength in your leg?
Renee: I hear you on the brace, taking it off and on is such a pain. I must do it 50 times per day! And I am having weird pains too, one behind my knee and one down by my ankle bone. Who knows, basically it feels like my leg got run over by a bus!
Stacy: How cool you on the bike! Good for you!! I don’t know about my PT yet, sometimes it seems like they have several of us booked at one time and I have never been there more than 1 hour. Will have to keep an eye on that part although how many leg lifts can you do in one hour??
Amy: I don’t understand the PT part. I am supposed to go 3 per week for 8 weeks then 2 times per week for 4 etc. It doesn’t sound like you had very good follow up- poor you. I did see a girl at my PT the other day who was back for remedial PT as she didn’t have a good program in her home state. Lets hope you get back on track soon!! I bet with some good strength training you will feel more stable.
Good to hear from everyone.
Hi All,
Its been 10 weeks now after allograft ACL surgery and i have been running on the tread mill for 2 weeks. I have been facing a little discomfort in my keen since 2 weeks back. I feel like my knee is locking up when I try to bend my leg after straightening my leg completely, some times I hear a pop (like cracking of knuckles). Most of the inflammation on my leg is gone expect a small bump one of the incision’s and i have very good range of motion.
I want to know if other who are at my stage of rehab also feel that lock feeling. Surprisingly tomorow i am meeting my doctor and I haven’t been feeling that lock since two days.
Thanks Amy! Good to hear that the flexion came easier once the brace was off - I was hoping that would be the case, so it’s good to hear that’s how it went for you. This morning my PT got me to 113 degrees flexion, which was only 3 degrees better than last week (darn!). Looks like I’ve definitely got some work to do.
Hello all. Glad to hear everyone is still plugging along.
15days post…Got the stitches out and had second pt yesterday. Also found out that I actually had two meniscus tears instead of just one, along with the complete acl.
Anyhow, pt went well…. went in at 118flex and came out at 120
I was so happy because I had the flu so bad over the weekend and thought I wouldn’t even be able to do 90degrees. Flexing is going great but my strength is so sad. They keep telling me it will probably be at lease a year before I regain full strength again. My injury was pretty old so doc had to cut away lot of my cartilage due to arthritis damage and wear and tear.
I am really bummed because I am still young (31 yrs.) and I just know no matter how well I recover I will always have some problems with this knee from the arthritis. Some nights I just want to cry (like right now). So to all you out there that are unsure if you should have the surgery think about what it will be like “long term” if you don’t.
Good luck to all of you and I look forward to staying connected with you thru this site.
Tammy, I wore the immobilizer for 4 weeks. But at PT I took it off for that.
The most frustrating part with the meniscus repair is that the PT’s have to take it so slow. They aren’t worried so much about ACL as they are about meniscus. They said the meniscus doesn’t have much blood flow to it so it takes much longer to heel. Plus my repair/suture (sp?) was in the middle of meniscus so blood flow is very weak there. I’m dying to jog and break a sweat, but doc won’t release me to run for 3-4 more weeks which would make me about 12-13 weeks post op. Also on the stationary bike they wont’ let me go more than 25-30 minutes at no more than Level 5. I feel like I’m just spinning; can’t break a sweat doing that. They explained the 8-12 week post op period is most critical as ACL studies show it weakens at this period for some unknown regions. So I’m learning self control as taught in 1 Corinthians 9:25.
Thanks for the responses and well wishes! It had seemed like I didn’t have much follow-up from what I’ve read here and elsewhere; makes me wonder how my surgeon’s other patients fare…. Another problem I’ve had lately is pain near the incision site, which is also where the bottom of the sartorius muscle lies. I’m not sure if it’s the muscle or the scar tissue that I didn’t massage for months (didn’t know I was supposed to). Thoughts?
Andy: Running since 8 weeks post-op? Wow. At 6 months post-op I’m still scared to even try! I don’t recall any locking but I started having a lot of popping in my knee after about 4 months. Of course, most of my joints pop and have for years. Hopefully your doctor can determine something despite the locking going away recently.
Natasha: I hear you on the crying thing. I’m only 28 and starting to wonder if some of the weakness in my knee will be permanent. Plus with all of the popping I’m prone to, I know I might also develop arthritis eventually. I used to be a dancer and don’t feel complete without it but apparently my body has other intentions (just typing “I USED to be a dancer” is enough to make me tear up a bit). I guess all we can do is keep pushing ahead and hope for the best!
HI guys, glad to hear that you’re all progressing through the hurdles! I am about 3 weeks PRE-op and am getting my flexion back, but the quad and calf muscles are still very weak. I asked my doctor if I need meniscus repair and he said he’ll see when he gets in there and that the MRI doesn’t give him enough detail. My question to anyone is, did you know you needed meniscus repair beforehand? I am concerned because a month after my surgery I have a wedding that I have to fly to and walk a bit, and if I have meniscus repair I don’t think I will be up to it b/c I hear you about the longer PT time. SO I am trying to figure out whether i should buy the plane tickets or not…..I just can’t believe that an injury that happened in split second is putting out of commission for so many months. I am thankful I have the time to deal with it right now, but it’s just really crazy.
Any thoughts would be appreciated. Just as a reminder, I completely tore my ACL and did a number on my MCL as well…..and the MCL still hurts 5 weeks later….
Keep the faith everyone, you are all so inspiring!
Hi Kelly,
I can really relate to your comments, especially ‘an injury that happened in a split second is putting me out of commission for so many months’. My surgery is scheduled for 4/29. I’m having a hamstring cadaver ACL replacement. I fell in late December and have been hobbling since then with a can, an ace bandage when I go out, and daily pain that worsens as the day progresses. Good luck with everything!
Best,
Marsha
Kelly
I had my lateral meniscus repaired. ( In addition to my ACL.) It did not show up on my MRI but at “pre-hab” I had a pretty good idea something was wrong because as I progressed there were some things I just couldn’t do as it felt like something was in the way. My PT and I had a bet there was a piece of meniscus there. However, I didn’t know they would repair it, I thought they would just clip the rough edge. So at my first post-op. appt I was shocked to learn it had been repaired and that it would change my rehab significantly.
I am now 10 days post op. I have to wear the immobilizer at all times unless I want to use crutches. I cannot bear any weight unless I am in full extension. I can however, takes some steps without crutches, in fact I walk around several minutes at a time each day. I usually use my crutches and “walk” with them then if I need to do something quickly I can just crutch. I have noticed my knee probably would have given way if I had not been in my immobilizer and I am a bit discouraged about that!
I would think 4 weeks after repair you should be able to fly and walk a bit, or you could at least arrange wheel chair transport etc. Some of the literature I was given said full time immobilizer 4 weeks, some said for 3 weeks so I will definately clarify at my next PT appt.
Good luck to you!!
Natasha,
How long after your injury did you wait before you had the surgery? I am intentionally delaying my surgery and in the meantime doing home PT to keep muscle strength and wearing my brace always when I am at Tae Kwon Do (how I got the injury). I anticipate that it will be a year between injury and surgery. I am just trying to keep from doing any more damage in the meantime.
Thanks for any input.
Hello Tess. It was almost two years for me. I did not have any medical insurance during that time. I didn’t even really know what I had done to my knee just that it was bad. I did not wear any brace or do any professional pt. I just did some stuff at home, nursing it in the beginning and then bending and stretching to regain flexibility. It was hard because I kept re-injuring it. With out the guidance of a doc and knowledge of what was really wrong I ended up doing things I shouldn’t have with a torn acl.
Why are you waiting so long to have yours? I’m sure if its at the advice of your doc then you should be fine. Although my doc and therapist said that I really lost a lot of strength because you tend to baby that bad leg with out even realizing it.
Best of luck to you and please keep us posted.
Thanks Marsha and tammy for sharing and for your thoughts! Tammy- you’re right, i’m sure that whatever happens, I can figure out how to deal with it (wheelchair, etc). and i am actually surprised that you are so mobile for just 10 days post op, thanks for the advice, and a speedy recovery to you!
If anything…I think this injury is forcing me to slow down a bit and remember how to have patience..
Kelly
Make sure you work really hard at your pre-hab if you are given the opportunity. I think pre-op strength really helps. You will be amazed at some of the positions you find yourself in with your crutches etc and having a strong good leg really helps!
I think the name of the game for ACL rehab is patience (of which I have little to none) and it is very easy to get discouraged. I have also found the progress is not linear, which is also frustrating. It is so hard to be out of control on this one.
You will be amazed at how you will get around, and it really is endearing to have people hold doors etc. It does force you to take a look at the slower side of things.
Good Luck.
PS When is your surgery again?
I am 54 years old and have been skiing all my life. was at crested butte a month ago in the phoenix bowl with my AT binding skiing downhill and tore my acl. surgery thursday this week with a cadaver tendon. hope I am not making a mistake not going with an autograft. my fear is that i will not be able to ski like i want, I have never had to think about my knee goingout lwhen I ski. anxious howard
I agree with Tammy, getting as strong as possible pre-op is crucial. Being at work all week and having to crutch everywhere was exhausting, I’m pretty strong and my good leg was sore by the end of the week as well as my hands.
I’m 18 days post-op today. Got clearance to weight bear with brace 4 days ago and I am offically not using my crutches to get around as of this weekend (Tammy was my inspiration). It’s very slow going but so freeing to be able to carry things! I actually vacuumed today (Natasha was my inspiration)! I found out that I did have a meniscus tear that is healing so that explains the conservative approach my doc is taking with me, Bari was right. I agree, Kelly and Tammy, patience is key and very difficult. I feel good and postive one minute and the next I want to take my brace and throw it as far as I can and walk off!
Is anyone having trouble with their scars being so tight and painful? I’m having a really hard time massaaging them and they are so tight I feel like it’s interfering with my flexion. I’m tempted to take a Vicodin again (haven’t since around day 5) just so I can massage them really well.
Howard, I’m sorry to hear about your accident, we all feel for you. It’s a hard decision which to go with, I am not sure if I will resume skiing again or not (went with allograft). Good luck with your surgery and keep us posted.
Renee, thanks for the thoughts. not skiing agian is not an option for me. I am already having thoughts that I made the wrong choice as to the allograft but I figure lif I blow it out agian that next time I will go with the hamstring. Logical thinking???? howard
I have certainly heard of people skiing with the allograft so you’ll hopefullybe fine. You could always change your mind before surgery. I think I’d change my decision if I thought there was a decent chance I’d blow it out again. This is no fun. Horses and riding are my first love so I’m not sure I’m willing to lose that again over another ACL tear with the skis. I guess we all have to decide what matters most.
Yes, I’m at day 22 and my scars are really tight and sore to massage. I think they are interfering with my flexion as well - they are what is sore, not my knee. I didn’t know to massage them until Friday at PT, so I’ve been working on them all weekend.
I do feel like I’ve made a ton of progress though. I can bend to 135 degrees now, and I walked for an hour today. I’m able to do about 45-55 minutes on the stationary bike. I’m cleared to ride outdoors next weekend, but don’t think I have enough energy back yet to ride very far. Supposedly, after 2 months I’ll be cleared to walk/jog.
I was REALLY frustrated and depressed last week. I’m normal enough that I’m not completely focused on the surgery, incisions, etc, but now I really see the impact - I can’t do all of the normal things I’m used to doing and it will be a long time before I can. I sometimes feel like I’m in a bad dream - like I can’t quite believe I had surgery. Anyone else feel this way?
Howard,
I’m 45 and tore my ACL skiing as well. I also went with an allograft. My surgeon feels like I’ll be able to resume my normal skiing. I too am fearful that it will ruin the skiing in the future - I’ll be too concerned about tearing it again. Someone posted some links in this blog to articles about moves while skiing that can help you avoid tearing an ACL - the way you get up after falling, initiate turns etc. I found them useful.
I was in an AT binding last year when I tore mine - my ski buried itself in deep, wet cement like snow and the binding didn’t release when I fell forward over my knee. It twisted and popped. I found out later that I’d been shown the wrong set-up for the Dynafit bindings that I use. Expensive mistake! I didn’t realize for a year that I had a torn ACL. I was skiing in bounds this year and was mowed down by an out of control skiier. My knee twistede and popped again - probably just popped out joint and maybe completed the tear…
Good luck with your recovery. We should share results next ski season. I’m 22 days into it and I can tell that my knee is more stable now. That feels good! Now I will just have to learn to trust it.
Howard,
I am 48 and an avid skiier, I log about 60 days per season, including off mountain, backwoods etc. I went allograft and my surgeon said I would be good to go again. He said next ski season will not be as good as new, but the following season will be excellent. I plan to volunteer with the handicap ski program at our mt. next year so I can get out there and do some good without thinking about my knee. They took me out just prior to surgery in one of their sit skis and one of the people tethering me has had both knees done at different times. I think the worry is really all in our heads not in our knees!
RENEE: Good for you walking like a big girl. I am back crutching most of the time. I don’t know if I over did things a bit or if my leg just continues to weaken with this brace. I am getting very frustrated, I can’t wait to see the PT tomorrow to find out what is going on.
BARI & RENEE I get frustrated all the time too. I haven’t actually had a big pity party, I refuse to cry just yet but I would like to throw my crutches, brace etc in the ocean! I don’t think this is one bit fun. And Bari, I have that bad dream feeling all the time. Keep thinking I am going to wake up and it will be just a bad dream.
Hang in there everyone, one more week will be behind us before we know it.
Hi Everyone! It sounds like everyone is on the road to recovery. Just think…. a few weeks ago some of us were ready to cancel. LOL I’m 18 days pot-op today. No crutches!!!!!! I use my brace when I go leave the house, but no brace walking around the house. I walk up and down the stairs pretty easily, but down is definitely more difficult. I feel like my knee is going to buckle. Anyone else feel this way?
Bari…I agree with you completely. It is frustrating because we’re starting to feel better so we want to do more, then BAM…you get put in your place. Our body has a funny way of making us slow down even if we don’t want to. I’m not at the depressed part yet, it’s sort of nice having people hold the door open and be nice all the time.
Renee…way to go, no crutches!!! I’m sure you love it! You’re doing awesome.
Howard…as for the logical thinking…if you’re already anticipating another surgery that makes me think you are not so confident in your decision. This is what my doc told me…all 3 choices are better than what you have now, but…patellar tendon is by far the strongest. It’s what the pro athletes use because it is the most durable. However, a little longer recovery and possible pain when kneeling. Hamstring is usually pretty sturdy in men, not women. He said that women tend to have very thin hamstrings and they usually do not hold up very well. Cadaver is the weakest option, yet it is still a great option. Just becuase it is the weakest of the three doesn’t mean it is weak! So, if you’re looking for durable, it sounds like the patellar tendon is the best bet. Hope that helps. Go with your instincts.
Good luck to everyone who will soon be having surgery. I’m sure this site will be helpful. I know it has gotten me through some tough times and has answered alot of questions.
Just FYI, I struggled with the options of my own tissue vs. allograft and went with the allograft. My surgeon is the team Dr. for the Seattle Sounders soccer team (pro). At least 4 of their players have allografts and are doing fine with them. He didn’t feel there was enough of a difference to make it an issue of whether to use my own tissue vs. cadaver, just my own personal choice on how to proceed (recovery is less painful in the beginning with allograft). I suppose that as the process evovles one day we’ll know definitively which is stronger, but right now it seems that the differences hopefully aren’t enough to worry too much about….perhaps that’s what we need to focus on: our fear. I know for me I’ll have trouble trusting the graft, but like Stacy said, it’s going to be WAY better than not having an ACL at all!
Hi- Tammy- my surgery is April 21, and i go to PT 2X a week and do the exercises at home. My quad is still very weak, and you’re right, the rehab isn’t linear. Last week I got to almost 130 flexion and then over the weekend I developed a pain in the back of my knee, in the upper part extending into the muscle a bit which is stunting my flexion to only 120. PT thinks it’s either part of the torn ACL getting in the way or perhaps a torn meniscus. Anybody else have this pain?
I too chose the allograft because my doctor, who currently serves as team physician for the US Ski team (so says his bio….), recommended it and says that he trusts it. But I have the same doubts as all of you that it is a strong as the patellar. I agree with Bari though, that in time, more light will be shed on the differences. But I take comfort in the fact that my doc said that if he had to get it done (And he is a skier too) he would choose the allograft.
Keep up the good work Kelly.I had issues with my knee as well when I was in pre-hab. The PT used to hold it when I would do squats and it would allow me to get lower. They said it was either my meniscus or part of the acl. Turns out it was both! Funny thing is I still have a weird pain in the back of my knee after my repair and everything was supposedly repaired. I can’t wait to ask about it tomorrow.
I picked the allograft for a few reasons, first the quicker rehab and less pain. It really was only painful for one day post-op. Also, I understood the patella would always have problems if I chose that site. The hamstring is supposedly weak in women and it will leave a residual 20% in strength forever. Everyone at my orthopedic office from physicians to PT’s to AT’s said they would choose allograft which was enough for me.
I guess the bottom line is that everyone needs to make their own decisions for their own personal reasons and once you commit then do the very best you can to get in good shape pre-op. and work as hard as you can post-op.
Best to all.
Glad to know I’m not the only one with scar issues. I agree, Bari, the scars are more painful than the actual knee when I bend it. If I’d known, I would have started working on them earlier. I hope I’m as far along as you at day 22.
Tammy, I hear you. I walked around without crutches all weekend and then today, I can barely do it unless I go very, very, very slow, what’s up with that?! I really think the brace is messing with our progress. Stacy is doing awesome and she is allowed to take it off. Please let us know what your PT says.
I definitley feel like it’s a bad dream, a one second fall turns into ALL of this. Hearing how everyone is doing truly does help and I look forward to hearing from all of you everyday.
Renee - I had one of those “going backwards days” this past Saturday… Friday I was feeling pretty good walking around the office, doing my exercises, and on the bike. Saturday I woke up feeling really stiff and it felt that way all day - even stiffened right back up after a 1/2 hour on the bike! It was to the point where simple walking was difficult for the first few steps if I’d been sitting for more than just a few minutes. It was really frustrating!! I woke up Sunday feeling fine though, with my range of motion/flexibility much improved. So much improved that I was able to walk downstairs normally for the first time instead of one step at a time - yay! But so strange… Anyway, I’m going to ask my PT about it today, but I kind of suspect that the strong storm system (and associated pressure changes) that rolled through my area on Saturday had some effect. Anyone else have weather-related experiences?
Lidija, how far post-op are you now? I never thought about the weather, that makes sense! Is good to hear that you were right back to feeling good though the next day, it will be good to remember that tomorrow is another day and not to get too down. Thanks, Lidija!
Kelly….sounds like you and I did the same thing. Torn ACL and MCL. I’ve been in MCL rehab for 3 weeks now after crutches, brace, and all the other words that make us cringe. AND…..just this weekend developed the same pain in the back of the knee you’re describing. PT says I may have overworked it, but doesn’t think it’s serious. I’m scheduled for April 16th surgery but have to back it up to later in the month.
Howard, I’m with you….wanna ski (GOTTA ski), and allograft should be sufficient. I’m not planning on making any highlight videos, I just want to get back out there. I’m also thinking this coming season, which seems so far away, may be a no-go since surgery is so late. I guess we’re all a little different and we’ll just see how it goes.
Does anybody know of a “test” to see if our knees are actually strong enough to do all of our passions without actually having to do them??
Renee - I’m 4 1/2 weeks post op now. And despite the challenges over the weekend, my flexion increased quite a bit since Thursday! PT was able to get me to 130 flexion and also to full extension! PT also did say that weather could have played a role in my discomfort on Saturday, as the pressure changes can affect swollen/healing tissues. I asked what to do next time that happened and he said to do alternating hot/cold therapy (get in a hot bath for 5 min., ice for 5 min., back in hot bath, ice, etc.).
Hang in there everyone! We were looking at race calendars today to pick out a triathlon for me for late this summer as a goal (I’m thinking super-sprint, PT thinks I could do a sprint). Either way, just to think that’s achievable is great news! We’ll all be back at it soon!
Howard - btw I’m another skier who went with allograft and my doc assured me I’ll be skiing again by the ‘09-’10 season.
Lidija
Sounds like you are doing very very well. Weird how one day of weather can have such a negative effect on the body! Good for you training for a tri! I was shooting for a 5k for September.
How long were you in the big brace? When do you think you turned the corner so to speak? I am only 2 weeks out today and keep trying to remind myself to be patient, hopefully after going to PT today I will get a realistic idea of where I am on the recovery road. I don’t start real PT until next week just once per week for the first two weeks so by the time I get there I have all sorts of questions etc.
Tom- you should be able to ski at 6 months providing your Dr. clears you. It won’t be the type of skiing you may be used to for the first season but you should be able to get back out there. Why are you backing your surgery up?
Renee, will keep you posted today after PT. Hopefully we are on an uphill day. These setbacks are tough.
Tom- how long ago did you have the injury? I am 6 weeks into it, and my MCL is still as tender and painful…although the swelling did go down. My PT just massages the area and then uses this sonogram (i think) wand to massage it as well. I know there are different levels of tears, and I think mine is a 3, but i thought it would be better than it is by this point. and my doc said I should be skiing next season as well!
Tammy-So what did PT say about your progress?
Keep the faith everyone!
Tammy - I was in the brace for 3 1/2 weeks and have just been out of it for a week. I don’t quite feel like I’ve turned any corners yet - but do feel I’m making good overall progress (except for the occasional “off” day). (The turning point I’m waiting for is the first day I make it through with no stiffness/pain.)
o.k. had surgery monday was not expecting this at all…. the pain i had the 1st 2 days were probably worse than childbirth…. did anyone else have extreme calf shin and ankle pain? also i’m starting to feel o.k. if i just lay here leg elevated but if i even get up to use the restroom my foot almost turns purple….
Alisa, have you talked to your doctor about that? I did have pretty good pain in my shin whenever my leg was not elevated, bad enough that I would hurry to get back to a place to elevate. That lasted over a week. It’s much better now (had surgery 3 weeks ago today). Still can’t feel the skin under my knee, down into my shin. I had redness but never purple. You poor thing, I feel for you.
Alisa,
Yes, I had extreme pain in my shin and ankle and horrible looking purple bruising. 4 weeks later my shin is still sore and some of the bruising is still visible. The surgeon and PT therapist explained that all the fluid from your knee drains down the channel by your shin bone, which causes the pain and swelling. I would say that the most pain I felt was from the shin and the incision sites, not in the knee itself.
Bari
thanks bari and renee… i loosened up my bandage and that seemed to help alittle… my foot still turns purple if i dont have my leg elevated. i get to shower tomorrow… yahoo! do you guys know if i cover up the wounds again? if so, with what? good luck everyone!
Alisa,
I found the best way to cover your leg when you take a shower is to wrap with Saran wrap starting at the bottom and working up so that the layers overlap like shingles and shed water. Wrap tape (I used athletic tape, 3-4 wraps) around the top and bottom to form a seal. It was easy and kept my leg dry in the shower.
Best to keep your incisions dry until they heal. If they don’t get oxygen or get wet and mushy, you’ll have a bigger scar. They told me not to put anything on them, no neosporin or anything. Just the surgical tape.
Good luck! The first shower feels really good!
Bari
Oops, I didn’t cover up my leg, I got it wet. My doc didn’t tell me not to. I hope I heal okay. I just re-covered the incisions after the shower with big band-aides and changed them after every shower with fresh ones until I felt like they didn’t need to be covered. I was told not to put anything on them, too.
Enjoy your shower, Alisa!
Alisa
I had crazy ankle pain and still have it sometimes. I told the PT and he worked on it a little, said the tendons and bones weren’t meeting up properly from being immobilized. I also have a nasty pain behind my knee and he said it was a knot of tendons, he worked on it for about 10 minutes on Tuesday and it still hurts today.
For your shower you can use saran wrap or you can also cut pieces of ziplocs and tape them around your incisions or they do see a water barrier at the drugstore. I was allowed to shower after day 3 and then just kept the area dry after the shower.
The purple, it happens, the more you increase your range of motion and start with your exercises it will improve.
Good luck to you. Hope the pain has subsided!
Had my first PT today, it’s about time! Wasn’t too bad but my flexion stinks. Was only at 82
and my goal was to start at 90 which I can do if I hang it off the table but that’s not how they measure. My strength was good and I can touch the table while extending. The worst part was the icing after. Tammy, she didn’t feel that the immobilizer would hurt progress, especially if I did the exercises faithfully. What did your PT say?
oops i thought i was supposed to wash my wounds and then cover them up again… they never told me! yikes…. im feeling alot better today. day 3. renee how long was it before your pt? good luck all!
Renee
PT said that the first 4 weeks are like a holding pattern. Do the exercises, let the meniscus heal and then get to work. My leg size continues to get smaller, and he said it could take up to a year for the legs to catch up in size.
For now they are doing some soft tissue massage on sore spots, giving me new exercises to maintain strength and trying to keep me from going nuts while immobilized.
The real work begins when the brace can come off.
My extension has been really good from the beginning, I do heel props all the time and I do heel slides on the wall to work on flexion which is about 100-110 degrees. They did tell me extention was the most important and the flexion would come over time. Good for you getting full extension!!!
Alisa: So glad you are feeling better. The first 3 days are really the worst. You are on the upswing now!
Hi Everyone. I’ve been reading all of your posts and it sounds like everyone is recovering well. I’m 3 weeks post-op. I returned to work full time teaching first grade last Tuesday, and my knee was huge by the end of the day. I’m suppose to use my brace for support while I’m at work, but I can take it off when I’m at home. I feel unstable when the brace is off, like I won’t be able to catch myself is someone bumps into me. Does anyone else feel this way???? Is anyone using a smaller brace? I’m still going to PT 3 times per week, 2-21/2 hours each time. I dread going. The exercises are good, but I hate when the PT bends my knee. I want to jump off the table. At my last PT, my extension was 1 and my flexion was 129. I still have alot of nerve pain in my shin. I can get up the stairs easily, but down is much harder. I can go one step at a time, but going down is slow and I sometimes feel like my knee will give out. I can’t wait to hear all of your positive stories. Take care.
Hi guys, great thread. Reading other peoples personal stories has been very insightful and helpful. I am 3 days post-op from ACL allograft and repair of both meniscus’. I have started a blog if anyone has any interest. http://reconstructingmyacl.blogspot.com/
Alisa,
My first PT was 3 days after surgery and then twice a week for the first 2 weeks. Now I’m at once a week, soon to be every 2 weeks. Every surgeon seems to have a different approach though. I have not worn a brace and was encouraged after the first PT session to begin pushing myself to get stronger. Today is 4 weeks since the surgery. I can flex to 138 on my own and I feel a lot more stable this week. I’m starting to be able to see a quad muscle when I flex the surgical leg. I have been riding the stationary bike between 40-55 minutes at least 4 times per week (built up - week 2 I only rode a few times and only 30 mintures) and also doing strengthening exercises, walking, and going up and down stairs. Last week I was really depressed and didn’t feel like I was getting anywher. This week is much better. I’m cleared to ride a bike outdoors this weekend and looking forward to it. Hang in there. The first week or so is the worst - you are just getting used to the idea that you had surgery. Plus your body is trying to get better, so you’ll probably feel more tired than normal. Ask you PT and doctor a lot of questions when you see them. I was lucky in that my PT and surgeon have both given me a huge amount of information about the procedure, what to expect, what to expect in rehab, what all the crazy feelings in my leg are, etc… I feel a lot more confident doing the exercises knowing that I’m not damaging the graft even though I feel pain and funny sensations (most of that is around the incision sites). Good luck!
Bari
hey bari thanks for all the info… i’m not set up for pt until this tuesday which will be my 1st pt and my 1st post off visit with the doctor. i’m feeling much better and am able to walk in the brace without crutches. the brace sucks it just doesnt fit right, its so uncomfortable the minute im done walking around i take the damn thing off so my leg can breathe. my doc has not been great about letting me know what to do and what to exoect so i’ve kinda been in the dark this whole time. hopefully my pt will be more helpful and give me more info. i just really dont know what im supposed to be doing. i really appreciate your comments and help………l
Alisa, three weeks to my first PT, thought it would never get here. I’m with you on the brace, I take it off as soon as I sit down and it feels so much better. Glad you’re going to PT soon, will be anxious to hear how it’s going.
Now, tell me everyone, is it possible that my first PT could make me super sore and inflexible for 2 days? I’m worried that I hurt myself because that night, after I cleaned the house which really wiped me out, I kind of fell down on the couch with my foot stuck at an angle by the ottoman. Hurt like crazy and I’m scared I did something. My husband keeps saying it was the PT combined with the fact that I cleaned house that night and was on my leg a ton. Any thoughts?
Tammy, that makes me feel better to hear what your PT says. My leg is definitely getting smaller. You are so much more flexible, I have a lot of work to do there.
Stacy, sounds like you are doing awesome. I am envious of your flexion as well. I feel unstable, even with the brace on. I’ve stood up without my brace (against orders) a bunch and it’s fine as long as I don’t move!
I’m having some of that depressed feeling the last two days with feeling like I’m worse but reading that everyone is going through that helps.
Thanks, all!
Renee, don’t get discouraged. PT can definitely make you sore. The first day I went back to work full time my knee swelled alot. I went to PT right after work and it hurt like !@#?. That night, I couldn’t sleep at all. My leg from my knee down had a constant ache. My PT said it’s from all of the swelling. I keep reminding myself that just because I’m beginning to feel better it doesn’t mean I can do as much as before. Our bodies are still healing and get exhausted much easier than before. I think we’re all doing great. How long is your PT appointments and how many days do you go each week?
????????DOES ANYBODY ELSE’S SHIN/KNEE ITCH???? My leg itches around the steri strips. I want to yank them off. Each time I trim a piece, my leg is red and bumpy in that spot. I think I’m having a reaction to the strips. It’s driving me crazy. I backtracked at school yesterday. I was so tired from going back to work full time…my 1st graders aren’t letting me rest very much…I had to use one crutch when I walked to the other end of the school. My knee gave out on my. I was so frustrated. I haven’t had to use it since, but I’m not walking as far now. Has anyone else experienced their knee giving out?
Hi,
I hurt my left knee skiing in January 08. The French doctor I saw that day told me I had damaged my acl and put me in a 90 degree brace and recommended surgery. When I got back to uk I saw my doctor who said he couldn’t test the knee properly as it was too stiff. He recommended physiotherapy but it being the NHS it took me a good two weeks of pushing to get an appointment. By this stage my knee had seized up completely by being in the brace, which no one had told me to take off. It was a painful uphill battle to get the movement back in it but it was never flexible enough after that for any acl damage to be diagnosed manually.
I finally got an MRI scan after a lot of begging. I was told I had an acl tear, medial ligament damage and a meniscal tear. My consultant said that as I was 43 there wasn’t a lot of point doing acl surgery but that they would operate on the meniscal damage. He referred me back to physiotherapy and said if I strengthened my muscles I would be by fine. Although I was walking by this time I was having real problems getting up stairs and as I have 4 children and a business that involved a lot of lifting, I was finding it very hard to cope. Strangely I didn’t have any of the ‘normal’ symptoms of the knee giving way. It just didn’t feel right.
Six months after the original injury I had arthroscopy to repair the meniscus and although it eased things in my knee it didn’t stop the problems with stairs or lifting. When I went back to see the consultant after a few weeks he said that they had discovered that the acl had been completely torn but that it had reattached itself elsewhere in the knee. He said that this was rare but did happen. In his opinion I would find it stable enough to get by.
I still found it really uncomfortable and difficult to get by normally so I wrote to him begging him to do the operation. I was given another appointment for about 6 weeks time when my consultant happened to be away and i saw another doctor who did a manual test of the knee and said immediately that it was too unstable and I needed an acl reconstruction. At last someone taking me seriously and not judging me because of my age!
I had another 6 months on the NHS waiting list and on March 12th this year finally went in for my surgery -over a year after the original injury!!! My consultant came to see me before I went down to theatre, he told me that he still didn’t think I had an acl problem and that I although I had been pushing for the surgery all along, he still didn’t think I needed it. he was planning to look at the knee again through an arthroscope but didn’t expect to find anything.
Perhaps you can see where I am going here? I was given a general anaesthetic and told I would also have a spinal block when I was under. My hour long surgery ended up being 3 hours long. The consultant said that the minute I was under he could tell from testing the leg, that my acl was completely useless. it turned out that it had completely torn and had then reattached itself to my pcl. There was also an ulcer under my kneecap, I can’t help wondering if I got this because I was walking around on my injured knee so long.
Apparently my consultant said that he had real problems getting the screws to fix into my shin as the bone was very soft. When I asked him about this he just said that he didn’t usually do this operation on people as old as me (I’ve never really thought I was that old before!). He didn’t tell me, but when they took the bandages off to change them I discovered he had opened up the knee and I didn’t just have a couple of small entry holes, but a large 12cm cut down the knee cap. I had a patellar tendon graft and don’t know if this is normal or not, but I suspect not.
I am now 3 and a bit weeks post op and am getting on with my physiotherapy, but i must say things seem to move very slowly on the NHS I’ve had two sessions with the therapist but am having to do the rest myself at home. No braces or icing machines on the NHS! I can manage the exercise bike with the seat high and no resistance, and I seem to be getting on well with straightening and bending but my knee feels so strange, as if it had become detached. Is this normal does anyone know? I have some swelling but the pain has never been too bad so I count myself lucky for that.
I am sorry this has to be the one longest of entries. I’ve never been on a blog before but came across this site and it was so good to hear some other stories. I have to admit I am feeling really let down, although a friend has warned me that it is usual to feel depressed after an anaesthetic. The NHS is great in many ways, after all I haven’t had to pay a penny, but I still feel I shouldn’t have had to wait so long and it would have been nice if the consultant had at least acknowledged that I had been right.
Sorry to bore you all and thanks for the stories.
Pru
Oh my goodness, Pru! You have been through it! I am also 43 and I got a completely different reaction from my doctors. They felt I was too young NOT to do the surgery! I had a complete tear too and it was two months before I had my surgery. I was definitely unstable before the surgery. It sounds like you are progressing well despite your challenges. We are all experiencing moments of let down because it is not an easy process. Hang in there and keep us posted.
Stacy, thank you, that does make me feel better. My knee is a little better today so I think you’re right, it’s the extra strain and demand. I’m going 2x weekly for about 1 1/2 hours. I’m a speech therapist and I really feel for you working with 1st graders all day, you must be exhausted! I do find I tire so much more easily. My shin and incisions are very itchy in spite of the fact that I’m not keeping my scars covered anymore. I stopped doing that about a week ago. The steristrips didn’t make me red or bumpy though, so maybe you are having a reaction. My skin on my shin under my knee is still quite numb but at the same time, super sensitive, weird. Thanks for the encouragement.
Hello everyone! So nice to find this forum! Really helpful. I had an ACL reconstruction (allograft) on April 1 (ACL and lateral meniscal tear on February 28, skiing in Sun Peaks, Canada). So far I am ok. The pain is manageable, but I cannot bend my knee at all. Is this normal? I use crutches, but do not have a brace. Part of my leg still feels pretty numb. I will start PT on Monday. I wish all of you fast recovery and goodluck.
Renee- My knee is useless and hurts sometimes after PT and having a busy day. But, it does seem to get better and I am able to use it more over time. PT right now is only 1x per week, I don’t want to waste my visits until it is time to get to work. I had a crazy week last week too, first time I have cried from frustration! I wasn’t very nice to be around. fortunately the sun is out this weekend and my knee seems to have progressed some so I hear you!!!
Stacy, I couldn’t stand the steri strips anymore so I ripped them off at about 2 weeks. I still have some red marks from some of the other tape they used. I have been using vitamin E cream on the incisions and the tape marks .Alisa I am with you , the brace doesn’t fit right and it is very uncomfortable. I try to take it off when ever I can! I have to use it to walk but I have cheated a few times this weekend and used my crutches and kept my leg in full extension for walking.
I have yet to see my physician since surgery, I saw his PA who was useless and told me nothing. All info. I have received to date has come from the PT thank goodness.
Pru- your story is crazy. I am 48 and age was never even discussed! That is ridiculous! I am happy you have finally gotten surgery, hurry and get to PT though so you don’t damage anything!
Stacy, my knee gave out like 3 times today i think it might be from over doing it. I definately overdid it today maybe its our knees way to remind us to slow down and remind us that it is hurt and we are taking it too far.. I know when i feel better I tend to forget my surgery was only six days ago and i’m already going up and down stairs to do the laundry cleaning house mopping all today so i think my knee gave out on me so much cuz i overdid it. My shin and knee also itch i think thats probably from healing..
Because i was given no instructions from my doc. i took off all bandages and tape after 72 hours. sounds like everyone else is leaving them on longer. oops! I cover my incisions with bandaids but am now worried i took the tape off to soon. Damn doctors….. my instructions said, remove bandages after 72 hours i guess i just figured that meant the tape too, i was all percoceted up! I also didnt know if I could already put neosporin on yet…
PRU i think that age should not matter its how active of a lifestyle you lead. I am sorry that you were given so much grief that stinks.
I wish you all the best this week… i will post and let you know how the doc and pt visit goes this tuesday…
As always thanks for the comments and inspiring words…
Pru….to put it bluntly…it sounds like your doctor is a moron. I’m sorry you had a bad experience and that your doctor made you feel uneasy. 43 is not old!!!! My doctor told me that with a complete acl tear IT IS normal for it to attach itself to the pcl, but one ligament is not sturdy enough to carry out an active lifestyle. You did the right thing by having it reconstructed. It sounds like you and the doc didn’t discuss the type of graft you would have????? (Patellar, hamstring, cadaver) That surprises me to. An incision on your knee for a patellar graft is correct in addition to the arthroscopic holes. You and I had our surgery on the same day. Keep doing your exercises at home. My PT is working hard on the extension, she says it’s the hardest to get back. On Friday, my extension was at 1 and my flexion at 129. Ask your PT to give you measurements. Definitely continue to use ice for swelling. I’m looking forward to hearing your updates. Keep your head up…you’re doing great!!!
Tammy….Thanks for sharing…it makes me feel better. Did your doctor or PT give you the go ahead to use some type of cream/ointment on your incision??? My PT told me no, but it’s driving me crazy. I don’t think using your crutches is cheating. We all need a little help now and then. I find that if I I’ve had a really busy day, my leg (quad) and my knee are sore and tired and if I don’t use one crutch, my knee will give out on me. I think we’re too hard on ourselves. We need to give ourselves more credit for all the things we have accomplished since surgery. Have a great day.
Renee…I’m glad I’m not the only one with weird shin sensations. Sometimes it bothers me more that anything else. It sounds like you’re doing great. I’m hoping to move to 2 days per week for PT. Although, I have noticed that I’m starting to slack on the home exercise part. I need to get my butt in gear!!! I hate the heel slides. Have a great day.
Tammy, I’m going to read your post to my husband, he seems to think I should be all sunshine and happiness! I need him to understand that frustration is part of it. I think all of my loved ones are as tired of this as I am. When will you start going to pt more? I have unlimited visits but at 30 dollars a pop, it adds up.
Stacy, HATE the heel slides and now the wall slides that my PT is having me do. I’m thinking about going to the gym today for the first time since my surgery and doing upper body stuff and my pt exercises. I think just being in my normal routine might make me feel better. We’ll see, after a long day at work, I may not be up for it.
Alisa, I got the same instructions as you and took everything off. The only reason I but bandaides on was because I didn’t want the brace rubbing. I don’t use anything now. My pt put cream on my scars to massage them so I started doing that too. I think once they are closed up it’s fine to use something. My incisions are really looking pretty good despite the fact that I also got them wet after 72 hours.
Laura, yeah, I think not being able to bend is pretty normal, I’m struggling the most with that 3 weeks out.
Good day to everyone. It’s amazing how much better I feel being able to hear from you all!
Just back from PT and I got to ride the bike today for 8 minutes!! Never wanted to stop but they made me. Also got permission to start walking with crutches and NO brace!!! I cancelled my PT appt. for Wed. as it would just be more of the same and am trying to save my visits for when I can really progress.
Stacy I don’t remember asking about using Vitamin E cream but i have used it before on surgical wounds so I did it this time as well. It really seems to help the scar and I use it each time I massage the wounds. Better to do that yourself a little than to have PT do it - it hurts when they do it!
Renee- Frustration is the name of the game. The challenge seems to be staying ahead of it! I think it is hard for family etc. to understand just how much work it is and how frustrating it can be. You have my full permission to be cranky sometimes!
Thanks Renee. I started PT yesterday, but I did not do much. Exension 20, flexion 75 degrees. My biggest problem is edema. I have a very active 8 yrs. old daughter, so spending a lot of time in bed with my leg elevated was out of the question. Because of the accumulation of the fluid, my leg feels completely numb and extremely cold. I think I should call my doctor. Today I did call my mom and shipped my daughter over to her house (I should have done this from the beginning instead of being so heroic). Wish you all goodluck
Thanks, Tammy, someone needed to condone my occasional crankiness! 8 minutes on the bike is awesome! And no brace! What great news! I’m so happy for you!
Laura, 75 degrees is not bad six days out. I’m three weeks out and only at 82! Stinks. You do need to rest. Part of my shin under my knee is still numb and I don’t have a lot of swelling. When I told my doctor he said “you won’t miss it” so I take that to mean the feeling might not come back. I haven’t had any cold feeling.
Went to the gym and it felt nice to back even if I couldn’t do any cardio. I had some trouble getting back off the floor after doing legs lifts and crunches so that was a little embarrassing.
Keep up the good work, all!
Ok older “graduates” question is when you were told you could begin to wean from your brace and crutches, how exactly did you do it and how long did it actually take to be done with both? I just love how they give the blanket suggestions and then leave it for the patient to figure out!! Help please??
Tammy…every doctor and PT is different, but this is what I was told… First my doc unlocked my brace and I walked for about a week with the brace and one crutch. After about a week (around week 3) I ditched the crutch and just used the brace. I’m still sort of in the same dilemma as you, because I’m beginning week 4 today and I still feel like I need to use my brace when I’m at school. The kids run up and hug me or bump into me alot and I feel unsteady. I don’t know if it’s in my head, or if my quad really isn’t strong enough to hold me up yet.
Is there another brace, maybe a smaller one, that I could use for peace of mind? Or….am I just being overcautious? My flexion is 130, not sure of extension, but was 1 about 5 days ago.
Good luck to everyone! Let me know how PT is going. I’m switching to only 2 days per week next week. What is the norm for 4 weeks out? Should I continue going 3 days? I have unlimited visits, but I really just need a break. Between dance competitions for my daughter, baseball tournaments for my son and football practice for my oldest…. I just want one me day with nothing to do.
Have a great day.
Tracy, Kimber, Bari, Amy
Where have you all gone? I am now 20 days out acl and meniscus and it is so confusing! One therapist says to wait 4 weeks to lose the big brace and crutches, one says start weaning now… I have been trying to “wean” leaving off the brace and walking with just crutches but I have been having some crazy pinchy pains and more swelling. Is this just healing pain, is this over doing? I am only doing PT 1x per week for now until we can advance my exercise etc. so I can’t ask them the questions. I don’t go again until next Wed. which is also my 4 week post op check. I imagine the Dr. saying what are you still doing with the crutches etc.. I will then have to bop him with one!
How hard was it to get off the brace and crutches and resume walking???
Help!
What a blog site! I hurt me knee skiing on Feb16 and had allograft ACL reconstruction on March 25. It’s week 2 and I’m off crutches, can walk without a brace @ home only and feel pretty stable. My PT and surgeon absolutely do not want me to turn, pivot nor go outside without a brace. It’s funny how everyone’s doctors do things differently. I have a great PT-he reminds me to always tighten my butt muscles when taking a step. This protects your fresh knee. I hurt especially after therapy (the next day). I did my own therapy on the bike and stretching/srengthening exercise before surgery and felt like
that helped tremendously. Work hard on your PT days, diligently do home exercises and get those quads going. I finished session 4 of my PT yesterday. My knee is straight and my flexion is now @ 131. My left knee is at 145. I do work hard on it, 1.5 hours a day doing all exercises and it does help. Best pain reliever—-ICE, ICE baby.
Tammy- I did not wear my brace after surgery, just for the ride home and that was it. I used both crutches for one week and used one crutch for two weeks after that. Every PT and Dr. has something different to say. But I did fine.
I’m now 13 weeks post op. And I’m doing very well. I have stopped my PT and now released to go to the guy on my own. I can now start light jogging and continue the same exercises that I was doing at PT. My knee still has some pain, still stiff in the mornings, swelling, popping when I walk but it is getting better. I”m about 2 in. from my heel touching my back side when I’m on my stomach, so that is not bad. I’ll work on that some more. I still have days that it just does not want to bend good and that is part of it. The Dr. will see me in 3 months and I hope by then I will have gotten the muscle tone back in my leg. Working on strengthening the muscle is hard because it just feels so week at this point and at this stage the allograft is starting to really reconnect so I have to take it easy. Now I see why that say 8 months before you are back to normal.
Hi Tammy,
Did they stitch up your meniscus or did they just shave it? If they stitched it, that’s when you have to stay off your leg for 3-4 weeks. For the rest of us, many have just had ACL repair, so our recovery may be different. I only had ACL and did not wear a brace except for 3 days after surgery (until my first PT). I’m now at 5 weeks and I have about 138-140 degrees of flexion. I was able to start riding my bike outdoors last weekend and am trying to gradually build up distance. I’m still doing my PT exercises - squats, bosu ball, thera bands, etc to build the supporting strength in all muscle groups, not just the knee. I can walk up and down stairs fine. My knee is still sore, especially around the incision sites. It gets stiff and cranky when I sleep, so have to wake it up in the morning. My knee cap still hangs on scar tissue and catches sometimes while I’m walking. My doctor is going to allow light walk/job by next weekend. It’s worse now that I’m starting to feel more “normal” - I am constantly reminded that I don’t have the stamina, strength, etc that I had before surgery and that I have a to take care not to twist my knee. The graft is heading to the weakest point now (2-3 months out is when it’s at its weakest), so even though I feel more normal, I am NOT. I go to PT once every 2 weeks, but only if I do my exercises at home religiously. If they feel I’m not making progress, they’ll make me come back more often.
Good luck! Call your doctor and PT and ask questions if you have them. You have certainly paid them enough! They should give you any information you need, even if you don’t have an appointment (mine do!).
Bari
Bari, Tracy
WOW! You guys give me hope. Can’t wait for the day that I can sit down on the ground with both legs bent under so I can reach my pots and pans easier. Ugh! I didn’t know there’s a weakest point-good to know. My PT cautions me to avoid any sports for at least 12 weeks. I have been told to wear my brace outside until 6 months post for safety. Thank goodness for Donjoy-that Bledsoe was so heavy. Going back to work on Thursday for 8 hours. That would be my 3 week mark post-op. A little hesitant but I have to try.
Suz
Good to see everyone getting better! Tracy: I am having the same issues. I saw my Dr for my 4 month check up and he said not to expect my quads to come back any time soon. My ligament is strong and I have full extension and 133 degrees flexion. There are days when my knee doesn’t want to bend. Gonna try running on it tomorrow.
Thanks guys. Sounds like everyone has their own little issues.
Bari, they stitched my meniscus. Today is actually the 4 week mark so I am hoping to be given the go ahead to start using it. I have been partial weight bearing with crutches, I just don’t feel like I can actually walk without them. I do feel the quads have gotten stronger from even the partial wgt. bearing I just wish I knew what it would take to really get them going so I can start rehab in full.
Tracy: Are you back doing most of the activities you want with the exception of sports? I just look forward to walking around, digging in the garden etc. anything without crutches. I never imagined how long this recovery would be.
Good luck with work Suz, I don’t dare try that yet, I need both arms and legs for that deal.
Enjoy the sun today.
Haven’t checked in for a bit. Hope everyone is doing well. I just finished my 5th pt session and am at 110 degrees flexion. It’s getting better slowly but surely. I started going all the way around on the bike last time but they will only let me do it for 10 minutes. I am now allowed to go braceless in the house only (but I cheat and take it off in the office too). It hasn’t buckled in about a week so I feel like it’s getting stronger. Still don’t sleep through the night, is anyone else still dealing with that? I wake up every time I turn and my back hurts when I wake up. Spirits are up, though, as long as I’m progressing.
Take care everyone.
Renee,
Ah, the constant discomfort at night. I wake up 3 times a night from either pain from my heel (from sleeping on my back), pain on my knee (if I sleep on my left side) and pain on my right hip (if I sleep on my right side). The last time I had a full night’s sleep was when I was on Vicodin which I stopped taking on the 5th day post-op. Sometimes taking ibuprofen before bed helps. My knee doesn’t buckle at all-did you tell your surgeon that? The itching around the knee has started though-I’m taking that as a sign of healing. My PT reminded me the other day how far I’ve come along since surgery—he’s right. Good thoughts and continued healing to everyone. Keep up all the hard work and stay safe.
Suz- now 3 weeks post-op and counting…
Hi Everyone. I haven’t checked in for awhile, but it sounds like everyone is recovering well. I’m now 5 weeks post-op. 137 flexion and 1/2 extension. I am now going to PT twice per week, 2 hours each time. I’m doing alot of quad strengthening, it’s not coming back so quickly. I’m with you Renee, sometimes I feel like my knee will buckle. I’ve been back at work for 3 weeks teaching first grade. My doc. wants me to continue my brace only at work. Since my quad strength isn’t great, he’s afraid one of the kdis will knock me over or I will trip over a chair, etc…I need to wear it at work until the 6 week mark! I’m counting down!!!!! I have alot of itching around my scars as welll. I’m putting vitamin e on my scars and massaging them each day. I must not do it right because it is way more uncomfortable when the PT rubs them. I haven’t really had much knee pain, but my hamstring on the outside part of my knee is always tight and causes me the most pain. Does anyone else have pain here? I always feel like that is what keeps me from progressing. Confession time….I have started slacking on my at home exercises. I need to get my butt in gear. I’m wishing everyone a speedy reovery. Keep up the hard work and positive attitude.
I am two weeks out now, I also have trouble sleeping at night. the only time i can get some sleep is if i take my oxycodone. I am now getting this heel pain don;t understand it. my OS has me on crutches for four weeks, It is a drag!! Thought i was progreesing well until yesterday, started doing my flexion exercises at home and began having more pain in the back of my knee, don;t know if this is normal or not, maybe over doing it? have an appointment with OS monday. would like to get back to work soon good luck to everyone howard
Hey guys!
Big week for me. I am officially 4.5 weeks out. PT last Wed. and got permission to ditch the brace (officially but I had ditched it several days earlier). Also got permission to get off the crutches. Didn’t dare initially but worked very hard on it on Thursday and was off all day Fri. and Sat. Find I have one good day then one tough day but overall progress is good. Am ahead on my flexion and extension is full. Rode the bike for 20 minutes it felt great. Saw the Dr. for the first time, he still has a long list of things I can’t do..think I will just stop asking him!
One piece of wisdom he did give me was to look at the progress on a weekly basis vs. daily otherwise it is discouraging. I do find each week is positive progress, just wish it would go faster.
Sleep is still not great. Did find it helps to put a small pillow under my knee at night and move it when I turn.
Dr. also told me to use Mederma on my scars. Anyone with any experience with this? I do continue to massage them all the time, which I find really helps. If I wait for PT to do it it really hurts!
Keep up the good work everyone. Still cant wait to throw the brace and crutches in the ocean. Don’t dare just yet, worried about bad karma!
had my second post op visit today and the good news is that i can wean myself off the crutches. still having numbess below my knee and down my shin. Also when I flex my knee the first couplef times when I start my daily flexion exercises ,I fell a grab or like something is getting plucked in the front of my knee. It is disturbing and uncomfortable. Has anyone else had these sensations ??? howard
HI Howard,
yes, I think we’ve probably all felt similar sensations. The numbness is because they cut through some nerves that supply that area below your knee. I think it will come back. I’m 6 weeks out and still feel it, but not as much The grabbing sensation is probably due to scar tissue around the incisions in the front of your knee. When I first started flexing exercises, it felt like my kneecap was going to fly off my knee. Knowing that’s what it was, I just kept pushing through the discomfort. I talk to my PT a lot about what is causing the different sensations. As long as I know I’m not damaging the graft (and unless you twist it, you’re probably not going to hurt it), I feel free to push through the pain. I still feel like my knee cap is hanging on scar tissue if I sit for too long in one position, then get up to walk. Massage is really good. Also with your leg straight and loose, move your kneecap around to stretch the tissue - push it down toward your shin and around in a sweeping motion.
Good luck!
Bari
Bari,thanks for responding and sharing your thoughts. It is very reassuring to hear that others have had similar sensations. this blog site has certainly helped me be more comfortable with my situation and has inspired me to continue to have a postive outlook.!! thanks howard
Hey all! I’m just short of 8 weeks post-op now. Flexion is 136 and extension is full. I’m regularly riding the bike (at least a 1/2 hr. per day, more when possible) and have even started upping the resistance level. Walking generally feels pretty good (my gait is mostly back to normal) and going down the stairs is becoming mostly pain-free (depends on the day and how much we pushed at PT). PT started incorporating a bosu ball (steps ups onto elevated bosu) and hamstring exercise ball curls into my routine - tough, but great exercises! Only some minor swelling left right beneath the largest incision. Feeling pretty good overall!
Tammy - I feel like I’ve finally reached that turning point!
Lidija:
Good for you! I am so happy to hear that things are normalizing (if you want to call it that) at 8 weeks.
I will be 8 weeks in the middle of May and can’t wait to get back to some activities.
I have been riding the bike at PT and started walking without my crutches on Saturday. My gait is good in the morning and then gets worse as the day goes on and I get tired. I limp pretty bad in the evening and I am sure I will hear about it from PT tomorrow.
The Dr. is still keeping me pretty restricted though he did say I could walk as much as I want, probably knew i would tire easily and not tolerate too much.
Please keep me updated on your progress and again YIPPEE for you!
Hi all, haven’t blogged in a while but I still read your entries. Glad to see that everyone is doing so well!
SO, today is Day 0 for me….had my allograft this morning, and am just getting my senses back, now that I am back at home. I am thrilled to report that the only major reconstruction was my ACL. There was a small piece of meniscus that ripped off, but the remaining part was structurally fine and didn’t need mending. My MCL is still healing 2 months out, and he said it was a really bad strectch but that heals on its own.
I woke up and the epidural hadn’t worn off yet, which was a very very strange and uncomfortable feeling. I hated not being able to move my feet! I was pretty drugged up and am having trouble with my stomach now, but finally am able to keep some noodles down so I can take my pain meds.
My doctor seems pretty conservative though, i have an ace bandage and huge immobilizer, and he said I need to keep BOTH of them on in the shower until I see him in 1.5 weeks….has anyone else had to do this? He told me to put a bag over the whole thing so as not to get it wet.
Anyway I am so relieved that the surgery is over and I am on the road to recovery.
Thanks to all who keep writing!
Kelly
Hey Kelly
Congrats on your post op status- finally- you have waited a long time!
Be careful in the next few days, it can be a bit rough when the epidural wears off. Just take your pain meds as they directed for a few days and all will be well.
Great news about your meniscus, if you had had it repaired it would delay your rehab by about 4 weeks.
Some physicians recommend keeping everything on for 3 days, some for 3 weeks, the interesting thing about this blog is you see so many variations on post op protocol. If he said keep it on, just wrap everything in a trash bag while you shower. I took my brace off to get in the shower and then put it back on, couldn’t get the darn thing into the shower.
Please keep us posted on your recovery and welcome to the “other side”!
Great to read about where everybody is! So much progress being made! I’m so pleased for everyone. Glad to see that Howard and Kelly are both repaired and officially on re-hab instead of pre-hab. Congratulations! My doctor is super conservative too but that is not necessarily a bad thing, though it can really feel like it sometimes. Just follow the advice of your doctor and be careful about getting too caught up in comparisons. My PT told me yesterday on my 6th visit that I was a week ahead of where he would expect me to be, which greatly surprised me since I’m so behind everyone else (I have full extension, 116 flexion, and my pt said good quad control and strength). The great thing about this website is that it keeps you pro-active in your recovery and keeps you pushing yourself a little. And of course, reminds you you’re not alone
Keep up the good work everyone!
Hello everyone! I am glad you all made progress. Me too! And I am so happy about that! There’s been three weeks since my surgery, and my next PT appt. is on May 5. Last Thursday (2weeks after surgery): extension 5, flexion 115. My PT thinks that the exercises I do at home on my own are working, so he could not see any reason for continuing the sessions. He will just check on me every other week or so. My goal: 0 to 125 by May 5. Hope to make it! The only thing that is hard to do at home is flexing by having someone pushing your leg in. (Does anybody else do that? - my PT thinks is crucial). My husband does not do it because he thinks is hurting me too much. By myself, I stop at the first sign of pain.
Kelly - my doctor asked me to remove the huge immobilizer next day after the surgery, and put as much weight as tolerated right from the beginning. There are a lot of differences regarding the post-op protocol! Important is to be motivated and ready for pain when the epidural wears off. And be able to sleep on your back for couple of weeks (which I do hate - therefore did not have a lot of sleep first week after the surgery).
Well - goodluck to everyone.
Laura- yes the sleeping thing is difficult, I need the oxycodone to fall asleep and have to wear my immobilizer, but I have figured out that if i turn slightly to the side of my operated leg and swing my good leg over, I can get some sleep on the edge of my side and give my back a rest. Also, pre-op I was doing heel slides at home and using a towel on the bottom of my flexed foot to bring my leg to me. I hold it at the point of intolerable pain for 10 seconds and then do it again. That seemed to work.
Well 2 days out and I can finally eat again. I was sick the first 24 hours from all the drugs they gave me. Pain isn’t too bad when I am lying down, but when I stand up and the blood starts rushing down, it feels like someone is slicing into my shin! Tonight I am going to figure out how to shower with the brace, and can’t wait to feel clean. Next Friday I get the stitches out and start PT again. Oh and I also looked at my scars and I think I have 6 holes…seems like a lot to me. BUt they look small ( i still have the sutures strips over them)
Good luck to everyone and keep the progress going!!!!
Tammy and Renee- thanks for the comments! It is nice to be past surgery and I am sticking with my doc’s advice. Just can’t wait to go from the immobilizer to the brace that i can bend in. Life is so much easier when I at least have one hand free!
Hi everyone. Hope everyone is having a great day! Got on the bike today and started pedaling. felt a click in my knee cap during ever rotation. Has any else had this experience.? could it be due to the swelling or maybe the graft? kind of a freaky sensation howard
Howard, my knee clicks and pops often. Pt says it’s normal! Good for you being on the bike!
I just got back from a 50 mile bike ride and my kneecap feels like it is “grabbing” below. I think I completely overdid it - they told me to ride as much as I want, but I’m scared I’ve pushed too far. ….oh well, I’ll see how it goes. I was also given the o.k. to start to walk/jog but I overdid that one too - my knee has been very sore below the kneecap. Anyone have similar experiences when they started to do more activity? I’m so frustrated at the pace of the recovery. I keep moving forward, then having to take some steps back again!
Renee, thanks for getting back with me. It is good to hear that your pt states that the clicking is normal. I wonder if this is something that will continue. ? Bari, WOW 50 miles. can i ask how far out from surgery you are? howard
Kelly, I remember that terrible pain when you get up. I think it took about 4 days before it went away. Just take your time and wear your immobilizer. I was at PT last week and they were telling me about this girl who fell down the stairs 1.5 weeks post surgery. She didn’t have her immobilizer on. She had to go back to surgery. Hang in there-it does get better.
Bari, take it easy. I do get the same stretching pain right in front of my knee after trying to flex my knee or after being on the bike (spinning bike that is). I worked 2 days and now am off again because I think I overdid it too. My knee is pretty sore and just “feels funny” like I did something wrong. My knee pops once in a while-after a good stretch and also when I do “manuals” with my PT. He said it’s scar tissue.
Lesson I learned this week-it’s gonna take time. I’ve finally accepted it. It’s good to read everyone’s progress because it gives me hope. Have a great week everyone-I love Spring!
Suz-now 1 month post surgery.
Howard,
Feels o.k. after 4 ibuprofen and some ice. Hopefully no damage - my quads hurt worse than my knee on the ride. I have PT on Friday and a 2 month check up with my surgeon the following week, so I’ll see if they scold me.
7 weeks last Friday. Not long when you think about it, but hey, they TOLD me I could ride my bike outdoors and start to walk/jog….
Bari
Hi all,
I am so excited to have found this forum - it gives me great hope for my post-op.
I was hit by a car Feb 15, tore MCl, ACL, and medial meniscus. I had the meniscus repair March 4, and now waiting til July for my ACL reconstruct. I’m not a super-active person, so we’re waiting til a good time for me work- and school-wise. I’m pretty well decided on an allograft, because I just feel like why should I take a perfectly well-working part of my body out and put it somewhere else? Reading the posts here really helped me confirm that decision. As I said, I’m not a super-active person, but I have a physical job, so a quicker recovery time would be really important to me.
While I have y’all on the line, as it were… has anyone found a good solution to the fact that the neoprene brace is just horridly hot when it’s hot out? I’ve got a stocking sleeve, but it’s not great.
-Sylvia (almost 28 yrs old, pre-op)
Hello everyone…so glad to find this site. I am in the process of deciding between a hamstring autograft and an allograft. I am a 27 year old professional dancer and dance teacher, so my doc suggested the hamstring because of my age, but I am having a hard time deciding which make the most sense. I will have the summer to recover from the surgery before going back to teaching full time, but am worried about my loss of flexibility and strength that might occur from using my hamstring. The doc seems to think that the allograft is not the best idea because of my high level of activity and the chance of allograft rupture. I could use any info that you might have on either, the pros and cons, and your opinions as to which is the way to go. I have surgery scheduled for June 17th…so I am contemplating which one to do
Thanks
Bari, I will be 4 weeks post op this thursday, hope that I can be as actice as you when I hit 7 weeks. today was a strange day in that my swelling is much better but now I am having pain in my shin bone and i still get this plunking or grabbing sensation around my knee cap. Ocassionally I will also get a sharp pain in the inner knee that I haven;t felt before. I can;t imagine doing anything that would have damaged my graft. just can;t figure it out. I will wait and see howard
Welcome to the clud, Sylvia and Trina! I’m sorry you’re having to join us. Trina have you considered the patellar tendon?
Being careful is extremely important whatever stage you’re in. I went for the first time since surgery to feed my horse last Thursday (my husband’s been doing it). I got out of my SUV, didn’t look down and fell into a really big dip in the ground made by trucks from the rain. I like hyper-extended my knee and it hurt. I luckily had my knee brace on because I shudder to think what I would have done if I hadn’t. Only yesterday has it started feeling better where I can bend it again and weight bear without pain. Hopefully I didn’t do anything major, I guess I’ll find out at pt today. Just a very good reminder to watch what you’re doing and don’t get over-confident or careless!!
I’m glad to hear others describe the “grabbing” sensation. I feel that often in the front of my knee when I’m bending it. It’s like it contracts threre against my will and then will only slowly let go as I push it. Very unpleasant.
Suz is right, it’s going to take time. I pray for patience for everyone! We surely need it.
Hi renee… I am trying really hard to keep myslelf active before I go into the surgery… I hear the hardest part is the muscle atrophy. I am leaning towards the hamstring autograft , which kind did you have? Any one hear have any experiences with the hamstring autograft?
I have the allograft, Trina. I haven’t heard a lot about hamstring, it seems most pick either allograft or patellar tendon. It’s my understanding the hamstring in woman is not strong but I have no real knowledge about it. It’s a tough decision, I wrestled with what to do too. You are smart to work hard prior to surgery, I really think it’s helped with my strength afterward but even still my bad thigh is now smaller than my good one.
Hi Trina,
I worked really hard to strenghten my quad before surgery and I think it helped. Like Renee though, immediately after surgery my quad was GONE. It looked like a bird leg. At 7.5 weeks, I’ve already recovered a lot of muscle though.
To all:
I fell down the stairs last night! My surgery leg bent all the way to my butt and it HURT! It’s sore and a swollen today. I’m hoping I haven’t done any major damage to the graft (I don’t think I twisted it and I didn’t feel a pop). Too busy to get to the Dr. today. Anyone else have something like this happen? I’m 7 weeks past surgery.
Bari
Welcome Trina and Sylvia! My one piece of advice is to get the bad leg as strong as you can before surgery. I had 2 months pre-op and am now 7 days post op, and I worked hard at PT to get my quad back before surgery. I know it is making a difference now with my speed of recovery and strength in my leg. as for the allograft/tendon choice- It’s really a personal decision, but I haven’t heard much about the hamstring either, my doc said it’s weaker in woman also so it was the last choice for me. I had fairly active and had the allograft.
So, I am about 50% weight bearing but still in an immobilizer and after those stories, I will surely keep it on. Bari- i hope all is ok!
I am still having that horrible shin pain but other than that, the idle pain has subsided. I go on friday to get my stitches removed and start PT! Can’t wait!
Hello all, lots of action here in the past few days.
I am currently 6 weeks post op ACL and meniscus repair. Decided on the allograft for healing purposes and because I didn’t want to damage any of my undamaged body parts. Had 3 weeks of pre-hab and would agree, the harder you work in prehab and the stronger you are the quicker the recovery.
Had to wear an immobilizer for 4 weeks due to the meniscus repair, took it off at about 3.5 weeks, continued to use crutches until 4 weeks and then stopped using them just before my 5 week appt with PT. Am currently walking with a slight limp, have full extension and about 125 of flexion. Ride the bike at PT as well as using weight machines, and doing multiple exercises including squats and lunges.
Am hoping to ride my bike outside in the next few weeks and my Dr. tells me I will be able to run a 5k this fall.
Diligence and patience are key though both are very hard at times. Progress seems so slow at times and frustration is very common. The key seems to be to look at progress on a weekly basis rather than a daily basis. Expect some slow days and some tough days but each week usually results in forward progress.
Bari, hope everything is ok, sounds like you need to chill a little, would hate to see you have to go back in for repair! Kelly Renee & Howard, you are all doing great, keep up the good work.
Take care all!
Very glad that I found this site! I’m currently 12 days post-op from my ACL revision…and 17 years and change from the first repair. I’ve forgotten a lot in that time….lots of little things that I’m hoping others can share their experiences and let me know if my recovery is “normal”. My biggest issues deal with swelling and discomfort levels- what is to be expected this early? I feel a lot of tightness in my knee and a general feeling of clicking or shifting when I walk. Was this a normal experience for anyone else? How long did it last? When did the swelling finally subside. I’m at a loss because I really can’t compare this go-around with 17 years ago. I was in bed for two days, on crutches for 4 weeks and then on one for an additional 2 weeks, and in a brace for 8 weeks. This time, out of the brace after my first post-op visit. I was weight-bearing at about 24 hours. Lost the crutches after Day 5…just no comparison. The standard of care has changed som much in 17 years- and for the better! 7 years ago I had a lot of quad atrophy. This time, it’s minimal.
Another question…do any of you remember the surgical knee being hot to the touch? I seem to remember there being told years ago that one of the down sides to the allograft was an increased or maybe prolonged time of swelling due to foreign tissue being introduced.
Any comments are greatly appreciated! Good luck and continued success to all those recovering and if anyone has questions regarding upcoming ACL repair, fire them my way!
Kyle - I’m 8 1/2 weeks post-op and my knee is still hot to the touch. I saw my regular doc just last week for an annual check-up and she said that was due to the swelling. Even though my knee doesn’t look swollen any more, there is definitely still some inflammation under the largest incision and that is where I can feel the heat.
Note: My normal doc mentioned that I should be eating a high-protein diet while healing - 50 grams of protein per day. I hadn’t heard that before (wish I would have known sooner!), so thought I’d share…
Thanks for the reply Lidija! I just got back from my rehab at the gym and noticed the post. I appreciate the info and it makes me feel like I’m having a “normal” recovery. I also have some discomfort…like a pulling sensation around the largest incision (the one on the tibia). Did you or do you have that as well? If so, has it gone away yet.
I’ll take your and your doctor’s advice about the protein! Time to raid the almond butter jar!
Hi everyone! Just saw my surgeon today for my 5 week check. Minimal swelling today. If I use my ice machine 1-2 hours a day, it really takes the swelling down and I can flex my knee better. My knee feels better than it did pre-op. He’s allowing me to take off my brace outside if I know I won’t potentially twist my knee or trip. I’m going to keep wearing it till 12 weeks post outside just to protect my allograft. My knee feels very solid and I just took 400mg of Ibu today so far.
Bari-so sorry to hear about your fall. Hopefully everything turns out fine.
Hi to Trina and Sylvia. Hope you find kinship in this website as I have. I also had the allograft. Agree with Tammy about the autograft. My surgeon won’t even do patellar tendon transfers anymore. Also he won’t use hamstring autografts on women above 32 years of age because of the resulting weakness post-op. It’s a hard decision-I asked a lot of people and surgeons I work with.
So glad to hear of your progress Tammy! WAy to go! Renee, hope your knee is fine. Well, going back to work tomorrow for 8 hours. Great news-my OS said I can go back in the pool (no breaststroke of course) This is my best week yet. Good thoughts to everyone. Happy healing!
Suz-5 weeks postop
Hi Kyle. I also have a 2.5 inch incision at my tibia. Have 6 incisions total but that one is the worst. My OS today told me that swelling will come and go for 2 more months. Dont’ know of any discussions related to increased or prolonged swelling due to allografts. They all have their pros and cons (allo, patellar transf, hamstring auto). My PT always checks my knee for warmth before and after sessions. It’s swelling for sure. As long as I don’t see any drainage from my incisions, I’m happy. Take it easy.
Suz
Suz, I appreciate the reply. Sounds like you are doing great! It looks like I’m going to benefit greatly from those ahead of me. I’m already getting such valuable info! Did you ever have a feeling of your knee twisting or not tracking right during the earlier stages of your recovery? That’s probably the weirdest thing for me right now. It’s not a feeling as though it’s going to give out but there’s an ever-so-slight feeling that it just might lock on me sometimes as I shift my weight from that knee and bend it to pull forward for another step (hope that sounds right). Rational thought tells me it’s just due to the swelling but I can’t help but think “What if the tibial fixation has come loose or it has lost the tension it is supposed to have”? I’m a long way (80+ miles) from my surgical/rehab center so I’m going it alone with PT. I can do the exercises but the biggest issue is when I have questions like those above. Like I posted earlier, this is my second go at ACL reconstruction (I guess it’s called a revision when you do it a second time) but I opted for the allograft yet again and this time it’s an anatomical placement (last time it went more behind and high into the femur rather than into the lateral interior) so it’s supposed to be sooooo much better once it heals. Anyway, thanks for your earlier response and I hope to hear from you and others again soon.
Wishing you continued success.
-Kyle
Kyle,
I know exactly what you are describing. I will be 7 weeks post-op tomorrow, allograft surgery. I have the same locking feeling as you. I talked to my PT and my doc and both said it was normal. Mostly caused from swelling, a little from tracking. I just push through it and it usually goes away. My quad strength has been the most difficult to regain. My flexion is 140 and extension is 0. My ROM is doing great, but at times I feel like my knee will give out on me. I think it may be psychological. I still have pain in my shin and I HATE when my PT uses the “sucking” thing to move my scars around. It hurts!!!!! Make sure you massage your scars and do your exercises at home. Good luck to you. I’m glad to hear that everyone is doing so well. Bari….I hope you are doing okay. You worry me. You are so aggressive, I’m afraid you are really going to get hurt. Good news….last week at PT, I was lying on my stomach and the PT got my heel to touch my behind. It was really uncomfortable, but I did it. I tried to jog, didn’t work. PT yelled at me. I won’t try again until I get the green light. Talk to you soon.
Thanks Stacy. Your comments make me feel a lot better. I’m officially 2 weeks today and I’ve been back at work all week. Stairs are still slow but I’m occasionally leading with the surgical leg. My walk is more slow than anything else with a varying limp depending on lots of different things I guess.
The psychological issue is definitely a part of it- fear of doing something and screwing up the repair. I remember that it took me a long time after my first surgery to actually go out and get lost in the event- running , basketball, etc….actually forget about guarding my acl. As I progress through this recovery, lots of little things I had forgotten from the first time 17 years ago are coming back. I can tell you that so far (and from other posts above) the entire rehab and recovery issue has progressed dramatically.
Thanks for everyone’s concern and kind thoughts! My surgeon says my graft is solid as a rock and didn’t scold me at all for the activity level (like I thought he would). He just says use my knee as a guide - if it’s sore after I “walk/jog” then I’m doing too much and back off a day or so. I seem to have tweaked it a bit from the sudden jerking move (unfortunately, unlike Stacy I can’t touch my heel to my behind yet!). No limit on the bike riding either, just use my judgement (hmmm….they think I have GOOD judgement?). Just absolutely no climbing or anything that will torque it.
great to hear everyone doing so well! I’m 8 weeks tommorow and the diffcult few weeks after surgery feel like a distant memory now. Hang it there you guys who just had the surgery!
Bari
Glad to hear all is well, Bari! I’m good too. Tammy, Stacy, Suz, you are all doing so well! Welcome Kyle! I’m 7 weeks post-op and I’m still wearing my brace outside. I don’t wear it inside but don’t feel comfortable (or have permission to) go without outside. I’m riding the bike further, doing lots of different exercises at pt and overall feel better every week (Tammy’s right, can’t judge day to day). However, I’m still no where near my butt with my leg!! Stacy, they call the sucking thing the “snake bite kit” at my pt and it is AWFUL! I massage my scars all the time but nothing compares to that! I did have a pulling sensation for quite a few weeks on my tibial scar but that’s much better now.
Keep up the good work all!
Ok here we go, week 6.5 and basically PT stinks. How is it you can go from being ahead one week to behind the next?? Full extension and about 125 flexion which I now learn is behind and my foot should be touching my butt! And about the creepy little limp I have because my knee goes snap crackle and pop when I walk! Does anyone else have a limp? Seriously, I have only been off crutches for 10 days and I was in an immobilizer until 2 weeks ago, what the heck?
Ok, so I am sorry but I had to unload somewhere.
Hope you all had a better week maybe the lesson here is don’t go to PT on fridays, they are tough!
Well I am 10 days post op now just got my stitches removed and got permission to ditch the immobilizer! I am in my pre-op brace and back on a cane. I start PT on Monday. My doctor said that he wants me to go withtout the brace and cane two weeks from now and not baby the leg, but I feel so much more comfortable with the brace on. We’ll see how I feel then, I am sure it won’t hurt if i wear the brace outside for longer. So i walked freely today for the first time and at one point me knee sort of slid back and locked. I am hoping it’s just because I lost alot of quad strength in the past 10 days (Eventhough I did the home exercises…) and I hope I didn’t hurt anything. I am so paranoid about damaging the allograft b/c it feels like it should take longer for it to set and be strong.
Bari- so glad you’re ok!
And wishing all continued progress!
Anita 10 days post op- allograft
Tammy and Kelly- just saw your posts. Here goes….Tammy seems to be the veteran at 6.5 weeks. I’m at 2 weeks, 1 day (second time around) and Kelly is five days behind me. You two have so much in common with me and what I’ve been experiencing lately. I have the Rice Crispie knee (snap,crackle, and pop). My leg gets tired, swells a little, and tightens up further. I finally made the 90 mile trip to PT to ask some questions and get some new exercises today and supposedly, everything is OK and completely normal. I didn’t specifically remember this stuff as my first ACL repair was 17 years ago and soooo different. They told me that much of the issue has to deal with the remaining swelling (makes sense, right?) and probably some muscles overcompensating for others that have atrophied (makes sense too as I can definitely see it- not nearly as much as last time around though). Some muscles have maintained strength while others have definitely suffered. But I’m paranoid about the allograft too. I missed a step at 8 days post op and had a terrible feeling that I had done something wrong. The PT folks today assured me that I would have known if the fixation had broken. I see my Doc in another 10 days so I’m not going to be completely satisfied until he looks at it again and gives me the OK.
Tammy, I still walk with a limp especially toward the end of the day. That is apparently due to the swelling and muscle issue noted above- or so I’ve been reassured. NOTE: I did a new round of exercises today to start working more on quads and hamstrings (some variations of squats) and I could literally feel the fluid shift from one place to another. I’m pretty sure that it’s causing my knee cap to track weird sometimes as well as the weird pull and twist I sometimes sense in my knee as I walk or exercise. You know the docs really did some tramatic stuff to our knees in order to fix them- hyper extension, hyper flexing, portals and instruments moved in and out, etc. I’m starting to remember some of that same stuff from my first surgery and from my personal experience. The swelling goes away so gradually that you just don’t remember when it actually disappeared completely. It goes down so quickly at first but then seems to go so slow for the last bit. I’d recommend staying on the Ibuprofen and ice with lots of water to keep it flushed through your system. Right now I think we’re all fighting the same things: swelling, atrophy, bone healing/revascularization, and most importantly, the psychological effects of the procedure and the hypersensitivity that comes with it. Every little pop or sign of discomfort makes we immediately think “What’s gone wrong?” Then I have to convince myself that it’s ok. This forum helps a lot- especially when I hear I’m not the only one having these issues.
Take care and keep me posted on your thoughts and progress!
-Kyle in Anacortes, WA
Tammy,
Hang in there. I’ve had really frustrating weeks as well (this is one of them) where I feel I’m going backwards instead of forward. My kneecap catches and pops all of the time. I limp not becuase of pain but becuase of the weird sensation of the kneecap not tracking correctly and the “fear” of pain.
Even though they told met o.k. to “walk/jog”, I didn’t follow the instructions (15 minutes with mostly walking) and have been doing about 30-35 with more running. I’m now REALLY sore. PT yesteday says the ends of the bones where the screws are placed are softer than the middle of the bone (for shock absorption) and that when we start running, we jar the screw. I’m backing off now. Just cycling and waiting for the soreness to go away again. My range of mobility is not as good as last week, likely because of some swelling. Very frustrating experience. 8 weeks for me, yesterday.
Bari - Seattle, WA (Kyle - sounds like you have to come all the way down here to see the doc!)
Hey Bari,
So you are limping too?? Yesterday was sooo frustrating. They made me feel like I was the only pt. on the face of the earth limping and that it was all in my head and that I somehow liked it! I wanted to cry!
I also have a funky feeling inside, it feels like a big snap needs to happen it build and builds and then it snaps and I can walk fine. They must have had 5 PT’s consulting and commenting on my walking all with try this try that, throw your hips into it etc. All that got me was sore all over today, my back, hips etc!
The other part was the flexion part, I was way ahead last week, now I am behind? I think they forget I also had a meniscus repair and I was totally immobilized until just 2 weeks ago.
Anyway, I will practice my walking all weekend and then go back on Tuesday hopefully with a new attitude and after some rest improved mobility and with the grace of God, no limp.
Take care of you, and feel free to unload on me anytime you want, I know how you feel!! Tammy
Bari,
I do travel to Seattle for the doc but it’s been well worth it so far. I just rehab mostly on my own at the gym. That’s part of the frustration with the clicks and pops and worries…but this site sure helps there. As most people probably feel, hearing others are having the same issues makes me realize that my concerns aren’t special. Especially good to read others write about having the same stuff but now it’s better. It is often frustrating and I remember that part from my first go with it. But I can also say that at about the 6-7 month mark you remember that there were tough times but the specifics kinds of fade away. I’m ready for that!
It’s awesome that you’ve been cleared to run at 8 weeks! Probably a good idea to not go real heavy all at once…be sure to ease back into the jogging. It’s tough.
Good luck!
-Kyle
Tammy,
My PT guys mentioned yesterday that I was still walking with a limp…not too derogatory but I felt like I had failed to do what the teacher wanted….but at the appt. I was 2 weeks so I didn’t feel too bad about it.
Wanted to write back and let you know that your description of the knee needing to pop is exactly what I feel. Some steps are fine…others crack and pop….and others feel really tight like it should pop but doens’t. Who knows. Ibuprofen, exercise, and ice….the circle of rehab.
-Kyle
Kyle
There is a very good website I often refer to for rehab it is titled ACL Reconstruction Rehabilitation Protocol by Peter J Millett, MD Steadman Hawkins Clinic, Vail Colorado.
I downloaded the whole booklet. It gives expectations week by week as well as very specific exercises and instructions for the exercises.
Their protocol is very well known (even to us here in the East) and might be very helpful for you since you are trying to rehab independently. Good luck.
Hi Kyle and all,
Glad to hear you’re fine Bari. I saw my OS on Wed and he said to expect the clicking on my knee. I thought he was joking until this morning at work. Click-click-click first thing this morning then it went away. He said this is normal until my quads get much stronger. I have the same problem about my knee cap not tracking. My PT said this is due to my tight muscles on the lateral side of my knee. You can tell by pressing really hard on your outer thigh muscle-it hurts! He loosens it and the tracking magically goes away. He makes me do this exercise with a styrofoam cylinder. It helps tremendously to loosen that muscle so it can work properly and keeps your knee cap in the right spot. I’ve also used a rolling pin on my thigh muscles and it really hurts until you loosen it. My PT recommends that I massage my thigh muscles daily and of course the incisions so the collagen will align properly. It’s helped me quite a bit. I sure hope this helps. So I was on my feet for 10 hours today! I can’t believe it’s really starting to feel better!
Suz-@ 5 1/2 weeks!
So I forgot to comment about “the limp”. How can you not? I start my day without it then as my swelling gets worse, my knee feels heavier and heavier. Hence, I look like a pirate with a wooden stump at the end of the day. I almost have to exaggerate the lift when I take a step so it looks right. Does it feel right? No. Hey, we all try our best.
Suz- the soon to be ex-gimp, hopefully
I was at a restaurant tonight and as I walked to my table I passed an older lady who looks at me and says “Did you just have surgery?” I immediately thought “Darn, I thought I was doing ok but the limp must be much worse than I sensed it was.” She then asked if it was my knee and I responded “Yes”. So she asks what I had done, when, and where. I told her about my ACL and that it was just over two weeks ago and she gasped, her mouth literally fell open, and we wound up talking for ten minutes as the rest of her party headed out to the car. I thought I had it done a long time ago but this lady had it done 30 years ago by the pioneer of the procedure…a Dr. Slocum in Eugene, OR. Very interesting talk and she made me feel better. Just thought I’d share.
Several of you have written about specific exercises you are doing that seem to help. PLease share them with me. I’ve got about 17 exercises I do every day and would like to hear if we’re doing the same stuff and find out if there’s something one of us is doing that could be beneficial to the others.
Suz, Tammy, Bari, Kelly, Renee, and Stacy- keep up the posts and the good rehab! I hope to see a post from all of you again soon.
-Kyle
I have a limp too, I start out good and then as the day wears on it gets worse. I find I actually have to think about walking normally and then sometimes even when I feel like I’m not limping, my husband says I am slightly. Also, if I’ve been to PT, I sometimes wake up with more stiffness and limp.
Had new exercises added last week, Kyle. They looped a stretch band around both ankles and I go sideways, legs bent the whole way up and back a bunch. Also added a row of cones that I have to walk over with my bad leg. At first I kept knocking them over and now I don’t. The last new one was to do squats with the big exercise ball on my back against a wall. She said the important thing with that one was to have my legs forward enough that my knees weren’t going over my toes. Anyway, hope that adds some new ones for you.
The hardest thing for me is when I lay on my stomach with the rope on my foot and have to pull my leg towards my behind. My quad is so unbelievably tight, it absolutely kills me. Does anyone have any ideas how to make this better? Any other ways to work on this? I feel like I will never get my foot to my rear and it is maddening!
Limp is still there but weird in that the more I exercise, the better it is. As soon as I stop within 30 minutes I’m limping around. I can feel the fluid move around to different parts of my knee during some exercises….not a comfortable feeling.
I haven’t heard of the looped stretch band…maybe that will be something added when I go back at my one month mark. Last Friday they did add a couple of resistance exercises. I’m doing some squats on the reclined machine at the gym…no more than 100 pounds but was told to focus on full extension (goes against what you’re taught for those machines- you never want to lock your knees out with heavy weight).
They also gave me a nifty exercise that I dubbed the “Bowling step”. I get a 10 lbs weight; hold it opposite my surgical leg; take a step forward with the “bad” leg and swing the weight like I’m going to throw a bowling ball (but not too forceful); plant the foot while swinging forward with the weight; stop the momentum with the “bad” leg. It’s a deceleration exercise.
Another one is a stationary lunge/squat. Place the good leg on a surface behind you (like a bench) about 12-18″ high. Set the “bad” leg forward like a lunge and squatup and down. After a couple of those, we started throwing a ball. The ball does several things: forces you to squat as you receive it; forces you to extend as you deliver it back; and, takes your mind off of the knee while you do it.
I think the trickiest thing with those exercises is making sure you have yourself set up properly- no pivoting allowed, leg not cocked out or in a weird position that could wind up hurting you.
Several others but I might be boring some folks.
I’m going to ask about the stretch bands and cones when I go back in 10 days.
How often are you doing rehab exercises? I’m doing something every day of the week for a couple of hours? Some are too strenuous to do every day so I mix in others and avoid certain combinations of exercises.
-Kyle
Kyle,
Your rehab exercises sound exactly like the ones I’ve been doing. I go to Va. Mason Sports Medicine (for surgery and PT). Early on (weeks 1-3), I was pretty much doing them every day, so some degree. I really wanted to get the strength and flexilbility back so that they would clear me to ride the bike outdoors at one month. I also rode the stationary bike from week 2, usually every other day, and building up the time and resistance until I was cycling for at least 45-55 minutes at a fast pace with varying resistance. Now I’m afraid I slack off a bit on the strength and stability exercises when I ride my bike that day. I’m going to try to be more disciplined this week.
In addition to the ones you are doing, I incorporated a bosu ball with a lot of them. There’s one where you get in the plank position with your feet on the bosu ball, then bend your leg out to the side and forward. Works on your obliques and other stabilizing muscles, as well as your surgical leg. I also do one where I do squats on the ball holding a weight above my head. Another you stand on the ball and step down to the side (sort of a one legged squat on the ball). You can also just step up and down on and off the ball (like steps, but works your stabilizing muscles more). The ball cost a lot ($100), but there’s a smaller cheaper size ($50) that would work just as well. I’m glad I made the investment, and I’m motivated to use it since I spent so much!
Bari
Hello. My name is Adam and I am 38 years old. I saw this site and have been reading all of the great responses. I am trying to decide which Acl reconstruction procedure to use and could use some advise. On 3/16, I fell backward and landed wrong trying to pop a wheelie on my beach cruiser (stupid I know). It turns out my acl is torn completely and my meniscus is damaged as well. I have surgery scheduled for 5/19. My doctor who is performing the surgery is wanting me to go with the patellar tendon procedure. I am wondering if he is telling me to use the the patellar over the allograft procedure because maybe he has just always done them that way. I am pretty active and enjoy wakeboarding a lot. I want to be able to get some wakeboarding in this year if possible and have been reading that the allograft is a faster heal. Also, does the patellar procedure have more scarring? Any response is appreciated.
Adam, what I was told is that some people feel that there is a higher failure rate with a cadaver tendon. however, I talked to many surgeons who disagreed with that thought but will agreed that you have to let it heal longer to get it to take. From what my orthopedic friend told me, is that there is a higher chance of anterior knee pain using the patella. I am 54 years old and went with the cadaver. I am a very aggressive skier and feel comfortable that I we be able to ski again similar to how I skied before my injury. My surgeon was very particular about the cadaver tendon that he chose ,male and under 30, usung an anterior tibilias tendon of good size. Also he doesn;t use tendons that are radiated to kill the HIV and Hep c virus, because the radiation weakens the tendon. the chances of getting a disease from the tendon is 1 in 1,000,000. so I accepted that risk.. i think the most important factors are surgical technique( you need someone who does allot of them) and good rehab. Hope this helps GOOD LUCK howard
Bari,
I’m at VM as well..my wife works there giving anesthesia from time to time. I just don’t go down for the rehab since I live in Anacortes. I go back on May 12 for my next follow-up. I hope to see you there- maybe buy you a cup of coffee and compare notes.
Adam, this is my second go at my right acl. I AM NOT A DOCTOR but I researched the crap out of the various procedures. My first one lasted 17 years (cadaver graft from middle 1/3 of patella) and I have no complaints. It was such a good experience overall that I chose it for the second go (except achilles tendon this time) even though I had to wait longer for it (it took five weeks to get it in).
Of course there are the additional risks and they are relatively minor (unless you happen to be the guy that gets the “bad” one). The draw backs are generally that it takes longer to get the swelling down completely and your body does have to accept it and revascularize it. It has been dead, chem-washed, frozen, thawed to OR temp, etc.. I guess you could reject it too but unlikely after all of the stuff it’s been through to steralize. The middle 1/3 of the patella has long been considered the “gold standard” and you’ll see it written in lots of literature that way but honestly, I don’t know why…maybe it’s just the older literature. It is strong- it has two bone plugs (good for fixation), and it comes from you! Bad thing is called donor site morbidity (also seen with hamstring). Your patella tendon will hurt for a long time. It will be hard to impossible to kneel for a long time. You may have tendonitis.
Ahhh, long story short as I could go on for a long time. I chose the graft because I figured that if I had to have something to stabilize my knee and I had the option of it coming from something other than me, it sounded like a better deal. I really talked to the doc about it for the second go- picked his brain until he was probably tired of me since I had a hard time deciding on cadaver vs. hamstring (patella was never considered by me) . Ultimately he said he thought I was a great candidate for another cadaver graft so voila.
BOTTOM LINE- make your best decision and don’t regret it. Ask your doc why he prefers one over the other. Ask him/her pointed questions. Ask him whether he prefers it because it’s what he’s used to (so he’s probably better at it) or whether he really thinks it’s the best option. If so, specifically why? If he has an opinion, he should be able to share it. Remember, you the one who has to live with it.
-Kyle
Adam,
I am 45, female and very active (ski backcountry, climb, run, bike etc). I debated for quite a while about which way to go. I was concerned by the information on the web that says the cadaver is weaker and has more problems, but after talking to my surgeon, I felt comfortable enough to go with the allograft. The surgeon I chose (I talked to 2 surgeons) specializes in this type of surgery and has been performing it for years. I ended up going with the under 50 graft as opposed to under 30, since the wait was a lot shorter and I wanted to get the surgery over with ASAP and start the recovery process. The surgeon reassured me that the difference is minimal. I’m at 8 weeks now. I still get some swelling after activity, but less as the weeks go by. I’ve been cycling outdoors since 4 weeks and have been cleared to begin a walk/jog program (at 6 weeks - usually takes 8 weeks or longer). I’ve decided to self limit on that one since I overdid it the first week and had a REALLY sore knee as a result. I’m going to start again at the end of this week. No climbing for at least 6 months. Hoping to ski this fall, but I think I’ll probably be afraid of tearing it again the first season…we’ll see. As Kyle said, make the best informed decision that you can, then don’t second guess yourself! Good luck!
Bari
Thank you for your responses Howard, Kyle, and Bari! I agree, I need to talk to my doctor about this. I read a little bit more about this on the internet, and there seem to be good arguments for both. And yes, Kyle the “gold standard” description I keep seeing seemed to have me leaning toward the patella autograph. But then, I spoke with two of my good friends who have gone with the allograft and they are happy. They think I would just be subjecting myself to more pain with the autograph. Now I have even more anxiety about this! I want it to be strong, but dont want the extra pain/recovery if I can help it. I’ll leave a message for the doctor to call me since I dont have a pre-op appt until the 15th. Also, I am reading that people have done p/t prior to surgery… I wonder why my doctor didnt tell me to do this. My poor leg is a stick now.
Adam,
I hope we helped…it’s not an easy decision. There’s so much out there to read and a lot of it contradicts other things. The good news is all of them work! It’s just a matter of finding the one that works for you. Also important is your doc’s proficiency. If he prefers one method, he probably does more in that manner and he probably does them better with better results.
As for PT prior to surgery, I think it is very important. The more fit you are going in, the better off you’ll be when it comes time to fire those muscles again (I don’t think there’s any disagreement with that in the literature) but some people are hurt too bad to rehab prior…maybe you were one of them. A lot of the battle right after surgery deals with muscle memory. My advice/expectations to you from my experience- You will be sore and many of those muscles will not want to work. Muscle memory helps out a lot! Calf comes back the quickest I think (at least control of it). Your quads will probably be sore- for me it wasn’t so much the muscle but a tendon/ligament down the outside of my femur was painful. I can still massage the area and feel some discomfort, The inside of my thigh and my hip joint hurt a few days after I started walking. I think this was also due to the way I was carrying myself- limping and compensating.
Again, I’m not a doctor so I’d recommend asking one about your pre-surgery rehab. I don’t think it’s too late- if allowed to do them based on your situation, you’ll benefit at least some. Ask if you can do quad sets (just tighten your quads- make them fire), calf pumps (extend and flex your ankle), stationary bike, and open kinetic leg chain exercises (there are four of them and they exercise the hip joint and make you tense your leg while doing them). That’s some of the first stuff you’ll be doing after surgery (except the bike) and you can do all of them in the rigid brace while laying in your bed, on the floor, couch, etc.
With a meniscus tear you won’t be weight bearing very quickly (I don’t think) and all of these are zero-impact.
Hope to hear from you again soon.
-Kyle
Bari,
You must have had Dr. M at VM! Sounds like you are doing great. I go back for my one month follow-up a week from today and I’m hoping that they’ll at least recommend increasing the resistance on the stationary bike if I’m not ready for biking outdoors.
I’ve still got some swelling and I can feel the fluid in my knee squish around with exercises. I’m hoping that goes away in the near future. I’ve heard that weeks 3 and 4 are usually pretty good for that. Maybe then the clicking and popping will subside.
Did you have similar issues around week 3-4? When did you notice the biggest improvement?
-Kyle
Adam,
I did a lot of bike riding before surgery to get my quads in shape, but I didn’t have much pain (or meniscus damage). I’d highly recommend the exercises Kyle described both before and right after surgery - especially the quad tightening. If you are used to hard workouts, you’ll be surprised at how east these are! I began tightening my quad the day of surgery and propped my heel on pillows to get my extension back. I wa zoned outs on pain meds, so all my focus was on doing what my PT said to do after surgery. It worked! When I saw them three days after surgery, I had control of my quads and could lift my leg.
Kyle,
Yes I did! I’m really happy with the care there. My PT is a guy there with initials PD. He’s been great! I’ve received so much good information that I’ve been able to push myself through discomfort - otherwise I think I would have been afraid of damaging the graft. He gave me a lot of latitude to use my own judgement about how far to go. I can’t remember when the major swelling went away. I still get some after activity. I think it was around 5-6 weeks. Dr. M. says it will take 6 months or more for the swelling to go away completly. The kneecap on my surgical knee still looks lumpy and some days my knee is still really stiff and sore to bend. I’m probably at 135 - 145 degrees of bend and my non surgical leg is at 155. They don’t seem to worried about it, though. They tell me I’m ahead of schedule. My leg is still smaller, but I see good definition when I flex my quad muscles.
I still get the feeling that my kneecap is hanging up on scar tissue and now I’ve begun to notice definite pops and clicks. I also have a very sore tendon or ligament down the inside of my knee (running down toward the incision). That’s what gets the most sore these days.
Good luck with your one month appt!
Bari
Bari,
Small world. PD and I have been working together along with Holly. I agree with your comments. They seem pretty happy with my progress- much like you. After a little stretching with PD (I’d been afraid to push too much), I was measured at 135 last Friday!
I was fortunate to not have any other injuries than my ACL. I was back running and doing pretty much everything (except cutting) two weeks after the injury. Between the injury and surgery, I ran about 35 miles without difficulty or any swelling. I even played some competitive basketball but couldn’t/wouldn’t plant the right foot to cut. Layups off the right foot were awkward. I lifted hard up until the day before surgery and really went hard at the gym that last day just doing every leg exercise I could think of. I know it has helped or, at least, didn’t hurt!
Knowing that you are/were experiencing the same feelings with the knee is very comforting and assures me that my recovery is normal. I have that kneecap feeling you mention.
I already know that I won’t be running until 3 months….it’s just Dr. B’s protocol. That’s going to be weird. My last ACL repair 17 years ago I was released back to do anything at 4 months!
Hey gang! I’m now 10 weeks post-op and was just cleared to start cycling outside as of this morning - yay! Flexion is 138 and extension is full. Been doing lots of indoor cycling (1/2 hr. to an hour a day, increasing resistance levels) and have also started working out on the elliptical. PT has me doing all kinds of exercises now (incl. dynamic movements) - lunges (front, back, side, and onto a bosu ball), sideways shuffles, high steps onto a bosu, hamstring curls on an exercise ball, walking backwards on an inclined treadmill… all good stuff. Focus of therapy has definitely shifted from range of motion to real strength building and it feels great! Still some occassional minor discomfort near my largest incision and stiffness if I sit in meetings for too long, but nothing that distracts me from daily life or exercises.
Feeling good and looking forward to taking the bike out this weekend!
Lidija - Issaquah, WA (lots of us here from WA, eh?)
Thought I should update after my fussy posts last week. PT on Tuesday at the 7 week mark. Extension full, flexion 138. According to my AT (athletic trainer) I am way ahead of the curve. Am doing bike and elliptical. Leg presses 2 legs 120 lbs and one leg 80-100 lbs. Calf raises on the incline board and squats on the balance board etc. The limp is subsiding, only have it now when I am really tired. Up and downstairs foot over foot, actually picking up speed on that. PT is planning on cutting me back to 1x per week and doing a home program or gym program for me.
He did agree with me that daily exercise is very important. I find the days I use the bike etc are so much better and I stiffen on the in between days. Plan to re-join the gym this week for biking and machines. Hope to be cleared to ride outside in a few weeks.
Guess the moral of the rehab story is take it one week at a time, it is peaks and some valleys but the progress will continue. Best to all.
Lidija and Tammy,
Great news! I’m at three weeks today! It’s nice to hear that it’s going to get better and better.
Thanks for the post….let us know how the biking (and running when it’s time) go.
-Kyle
7.5 week update: biking 35 minutes at a time, elliptical until tired. Adding more balance exercises, additional squats, starting resistance squats up and down the length of the floor. Reduced PT/AT to 1x per week and will now start my own gym program using the exercises they do at PT plus some upper body work of my own.
Continue to push flexibility but told not to worry as the meniscus is still in the healing stage. Occasionally have pinching joint line pain with some movements, again, told it was due to meniscus and to back off when I feel it pinching.
Saw a lady on the next table yesterday who must just be a fresh post-op and two things happened: could really feel for her, she was miserable and realized just how far all of us have come. When you are in the middle of recovery it seems like it is lasting forever but when you finally get out the other side you realize what a miracle it is that your body can recover so quickly.
Word of advice to all the newcomers, take your pre-hab seriously! It will be invaluable on the recovery side. Build strength, get in total body shape, take off the few extra pounds, work on flexibility! You will be glad you did.
Happy weekend everyone.
3.5 weeks today…follow-up one month appointment scheduled for tomorrow. Feeling stronger but still that persistent clicking and shifting in my knee. Wish me luck!
-Kyle
Hi all! I finally hit 6 weeks! Sounds like everyone’s progressing quite well-way to go gang! Finally did my first 12 hour shift last week and I paid for it the next day. I think I may have aggravated the soreness when I worked a day later. I only lasted for 8 hours and it was definitely time to go. Needless to say, I am in high spirits. I think I may have gotten rid of my limp most of the time. They had me doing some controlled jumps on the total gym and running on the trampoline. Exciting stuff. I still have the click on my knee once in a while because my outer quads get tight. It’s the kneecap not tracking properly. Have to really work on loosening it. They also had me working on my hamstrings today-soooo weak there. Anyone have any effective hamstring exercises I can do at home without any fancy gadgets? Keep working hard everyone!
Suz
Kyle, Let us know how it went today!
Suz, Sounds like you are doing great for 6 weeks. I’m at 9 weeks and I still get exhausted (slept for 9.5 hours last night).
I’m doing better than last week. I rode my bike 52 miles on Sunday and felt very strong. No pain or swelling afterward. I did a moderate walk/jog (2 miles) last night and I’m paying for it today. Jogging makes it VERY sore. Still finding it hard to motivate myself to do the indoor exercises after exercising outside. I know I need to do the balancing and lateral moves to strengthen the full compliment of muscles.
Bari
Hi all
8 weeks out and not much change from last week. I am riding the bike inside only for about 30 minutes at a time. Can use the elliptical but really don’t care much for that machine. Have been doing lots and lots of squats with medicine ball and on a balance board. Can use the leg press machine.
Went back to work last week- find the sitting making me very stiff.
We have had some bad weather here and I find that makes my leg stiff as well.
Overall a slow week for progress.
Oh, PT decreased me to 1x per week. They would rather I go for a longer period of time but less frequently.
Bari- I find just stepping very quickly makes my leg hurt for example having to hurry to cross the street. Wore high heels today and it felt awful!
Overall a very “stationary” week.
Bari,
PD confirms that you’re an insane PT’er! Your name came up (well, he described a patient he had that was progressing very well and said I was along the same track) and I immediately said, “Are you referring to Bari?” He was quite surprised and started laughing when I told him the story of our meeting in this blog. Don’t be surprised if he brings it up the next time you see him.
As for my appointment today, everything is just great. The Dr. said he couldn’t be happier and that I was ahead in all areas. They answered all of my questions (many of which had been addressed on this blog) but the doc gave me the “hands-on” explanation and made me feel a lot better.
I’m doing well enough that I can begin some cardio and they were pleased enough with my muscle control and mobility (0 and 141 at 3.5 weeks) that I am “authorized” to greatly increase the resistance. Best of all, I am cleared to ride the bike outdoors as long as I stay away from steep inclines and the off-road trails! I can even clip in instead of digging around for my old pedals and toe cages!
The best advice I heard today….”Let the Calendar be your guide!”
For all—I still have the clicks and uneasy feeling in some of my steps but it was easily explained and considered very normal. It deals with numerous issues that combine to make the problems. Swelling, stitches still dissolving, scar tissue, fluid, muscles out of balance (some remained very strong while others couldn’t help but atrophy due to the beating from surgery) all combine to make the patella not track properly. Good news, they told me that stuff really begins to resolve itself around four weeks and after.
Hi All,
I’ve been reading the posts here for some time now and have learned SO MUCH from all of you! I’m 48, fairly active with skiing, tennis, biking, hiking, etc. I shredded my ACL on March 24 skiing at Copper Mountain. I also have one, maybe two (they can’t really tell from the MRI) meniscus tears and bone marrow has been leaking into my knee joint (ugh!) from my tibia. Surgery is scheduled for June 12.
It was really weird, though, because there was no swelling, only a little pain in the back of my knee, and 2 different docs checked my knee within 2 days of the fall, and both said it was stable and didn’t think anything was wrong. At least until the MRI results came in. Go figure!
My dr wants to do a hamstring graft, but from reading all your posts, now I’ve scheduled an appointment with him to discuss allograft. I am concerned, though, about the wait time. I talked to his scheduling nurse, and she says their grafts are all freeze-dried. I heard this is the best method of preserving them, so I feel better about that part of it. And he does hand-pick his grafts, also a plus. The scheduler said they haven’t had any issues with long wait times, though. I just don’t want to put off surgery waiting for a ‘younger’ graft, even though I would if I had to, just for the longevity issue. I think my main concern is that someone posted that it wasn’t recommended that hamstring grafts be done on women over 35 or so. Weakness in the hamstring afterwards, etc.
The other thing is that there’s been no pre-op PT of any kind. I’m told that getting in the best shape you can beforehand is best, but dr’s staff said if there’s no swelling, no pain, and good range of motion then I don’t need it. Just make sure I don’t do any more damage while trying to get legs stronger. That PT is mainly for ‘newer’ injuries to get pts. ready for surgery. So maybe I don’t ‘need’ it, but I’m certainly going to try to get my legs as strong as possible beforehand.
My main issue is not doing any more damage. I play lots of tennis, 3 or more times a week. I’ve been fitted for a sports brace to wear both before and after surgery, but it hasn’t come in yet. Hopefully this week. I’m just worried about making things worse.
I’m hoping I can be back out on the slopes in Jan or Feb of next year, if this surgery is not too late in the year. Easy runs, of course! I’m thinking the following year will be back to normal. I just want to get back to normal without making things worse.
Anyway, just reading all your posts has given me good vibes about what’s ahead. I know it will be painful, but also worth it in the end.
Deb
Welcome! Your story is so much like mine we could switch out names and nothing would change. Same age, same activities, I also had 2 Dr. visits with a stable leg until the MRI. I ended up having my acl replaced with allograft and my meniscus repaired. If you have your meniscus repaired it will set your rehab. back 2 weeks but it is worth it to save the meniscus in the long run.
My Dr. and PT told me a hamstring graft would reduce my hamstring strength by 20% minimum and I didn’t want to risk that at my age. I have had a remarkable recovery from my allograft. I had no wait time what so ever and if I had it to do again I would again choose the allograft.
Please feel free to shoot any questions this way. Good luck with your surgery.
Tammy
Hi all, good to hear how everyone is doing. Welcome to the club, Deb, this blog has been a huge help to me, too.
I was FINALLY told I can go without my brace last Thursday and I’m amazed at how much better my knee is not being restricted in that thing. I’m biking for 45 minutes, doing lunges, squats, leg press and a lot of other exercises. Went to New Orleans to pick my daughter up from college, went up and down stairs loading the car with her stuff, went to a museum, walked for about 3 hours, up and down stairs and felt surprisingly good! Limp is pretty much gone unless I really over do it.
I can’t believe how far we’ve all come, at times it seemed like I would never be able to do this stuff again. There is light at the end of the tunnel.
Oh, and Deb, I did have lots of swelling and pain after my initial injury (skiing in New Mexico) and I did not do formal pre-hab. I did my own with my doctor’s blessing. As I was able, I started with biking, then worked up to using the stair climber and just worked really hard to get as much strength as possible. I think it makes a big difference.
Kyle,
That’s really funny! Glad to hear you are doing so well! I’ll see Paul next Thursday. I like their approach. They seem to be less conservative than some of the other PT’s I’m reading about.
Have fun bikinng. It is supposed to be a nice weekend!
Bari
Hi guys,
I just found this website when I was researching different graft types for surgery, and I am so glad I did! I just tore my ACL on April 28th playing flag football. I got a MRI last week which confirmed the tear, but I got really lucky and didn’t have MCL or meniscus damage. I see the MD tommorrow to discuss surgery options and to set a date.
I’ve been reading over everyone’s stories and it’s been very encouraging. Everybody is very upbeat and seems to be doing really well with rehab. I have the incredible fortune of being a physical therapist, so I have a pretty good idea of what to do at this satge. I’ve been doing lots of pre-hab to get me ready to go under the knife and feel mentally ready to start this process…
I look forward to meeting and interacting with you guys!
Jeff
Welcome, Jeff! That’s awesome that you’re a pt. We’ll be able to pick your brain! This blog helped me decide to go with the allograft. Will look forward to hearing from you on your progress and decisions.
Renee>>> thanks for the welcome!
Saw the MD today… I’m going to have an allograft too… surgery scheduled for 6/4/09… so now its more and more pre-hab!
Hi Jeff,
I’m going in on 6/12. I talked briefly after a tennis match to a PT who recommended against hamstring b/c of less support to tibia. Also, can I specify what type of allograft I get? I know my doc hand picks his, but I hear freeze-dried is best. Can I ask for a younger donor? I don’t know much about this yet, so any help you can provide would be appreciated.
What type of prehab are you doing? I’m thinking lots of biking or stepping, but don’t know about anything else I should be doing.
Thanks!!
Deb
Why didn’t I find this site BEFORE I had my surgery??? I did research but apparently not intensive enough!
So I will be back soon to learn more and follow all your stories…and get my encouragment from you guys!! THANKS!
Just had ACL surgery (hamstring) and medial + lateral meniscectomy last Monday. I decided autograft over allograft because even though chances are really slim I didn’t want to go through this again up to a year from now - in case I should reject the cadaver piece. I have a 3 1/2 yr and an 11mths old -
It turns out that I have been living with my torn ACL for quite some time , but it started having somehow a negative effect on my meniscus - which in turn led to pain -> MRI and here I am . No more meniscus but a brandnew ACL!!!
It is so helpful to read all the PT info as I am really anxious getting back moving. I kickbox (5-6/week), cardio, biking, ultimate frisbee…and running after the kids …
I had arthroscopy 20yrs ago in the same knee. All I remember vividly is that the quad “melts” soooo fast!
I started doing some flexion motions @ home and am @ 80/90. Extension is not complete yet. I have my first post-op appmt with my surgeon coming Tuesday.
After what I read so far I guess I will be stuck w/ my brace for a few mow days - and I agree it is surgeon’s preference.
Must admit that the pain once at home was worse than giving birth and Percocet was a “very good friend”. I am reducing the dosage already.
My husband just served Dinner
Quick question - did any of you with an autograft (hamstring) experience like a Muscle nod in the inner thigh? It feels like after a ton of exercise where the muscle screams for a deep tissue massage and you want to just streeeetch.
I was wondering if this is just my hamstring reacting to the fact that it got cut off a little??? I keep massaging it for the past 2 hrs and it seems to loosen up a little.
Thanks. Micky
Micky: I did not find this blog till after the surgery too, and like you, I used the hamstring ligament. I am coming up on 6 months post-op now and my knee is very strong. I do mixed martial art with Krav Maga and I am just now able to hit the heavy bag without being totally worried about my knee. They frown on doing any muai tai kick because the rotation on your knee so I am doing other kicks and its holding up well. I did have some hamstring pain, but now I get “adhesions” at the hamstring/calf area. I dont feel that my hamstring is too weak, tho you can tell my quads and hamstring muscles have gotten smaller. If I had known more information about the allograft, I might have considered it. But what is done is done and the surgery went really well.
Kimber, thanks for your reply. Good to know that at 6mths post-op you’re kickin’ butt again! Yeah I guess my heavy bag hitting will have to wait a while. The good thing is some of my Sanshou (not Muy Tai) Sifus have undergone the same surgery so they can help me work my leg/knee to be able to do roundhouses again soon.
Hmmm- I have heard about adhesions before. I think there are some very specific massage therapies to help with that.
I will see what my Doc will say when I see him on TUE.
Would love to continue hearing about your progress.
Hi Deb,
I”m doing lots of quad sets and straight leg lifts in all planes (on my back, on my side, on my stomach). I’ve also been doing some stationary biking. Stretching is VERY important. You need to have full extension and as much flexion (bending) as you can. MY knee is pretty swollen so I can only get it to 110 degrees or so….
Allografts are usually taken from a donor’s posterior tibialis (back of shin/ankle) area. They are screened for diseases and such. After they are removed from the donor, they are frozen, bio-clensed, and sterilized (per my MD). I had gone to my MD appt wanting an autograft, but after hearing how well they allografts are screened, I”ve decided to go that route and minimize my soft tissue damage… I figure I’ll be in enough discomfort!
Good luck on your surgery!!!!
Hello Everyone. Its surgery day for me and i go under the knife in about 3 hours. I keep reading these responses… its kinda funny because it does give some kind of support. I ended up speaking to my doctor yesterday. He was on vacation and I wasnt able to contact him. So, he still felt it was in my best interest to go with the Patella autograft, so thats what I am going with. On a side note i did go wakeboarding a few times this weekend since it was 107 degrees on Saturday in Sacramento, and surprisingly I didnt experience too much pain. I almost considered pushing back the surgery until after summer and brought it up to my doctor. He looked at me like I was crazy and said he would advise against it for fear of more damage. Oh well, my summer is going to suck. I am happy to hear about everyones progress and THANKS AGAIN FOR THE RESPONSES!
Adam,
Good luck to you…by now you’re out and on the road to recovery! This website has been a great help to me. I recommend that you go back to some of the earlier posts from folks just after post-op and use it to manage your expectations. I’m still doing it and 1- I’ve already been through it once; and 2- I’m currently at 4.5 weeks.
I still have days that I feel like I was better before surgery (I continued to run and play basketball until the day prior to surgery) but, I come on line to this forum, reread some info, and feel a lot better about where I am.
I still walk with a limp from time to time (but less often). I still feel a catch every now and then. I still have swelling that comes and goes but I am pushing it harder and harder nearly every day.
Bari, haven’t seen a post from you in a while. Hope all is well. Tell Paul and Holly “hello” from me when you go back to PT on Thursday.
I’m off to the gym!
-Kyle
Adam(
hope all went well.I guess right now and for the next few days you’ll be in quite some discomfort.By day 5 I started finally to feel better.Today I’m at day 8 my graft scar is healing fine (bigger than expected though) and the incisions are looking good as well.Can drop the crutches and start flexion rehab - finally. Started getting antsy.
Take it easy for the next few days and good recovery.
- Micky
Hi All!
Frustrated this week. By now I see you have good weeks and bad weeks. Every time I try to do my walk/jog I end up with a really sore knee (sore below the knee cap - hurts to put weight on it). I did 5 minutes jog/3 minutes walk, then more walking for total of 30 minutes and about 2.75 miles. I’m paying for it today. I see my PT tomorrow night, so will see what he says. I keep hoping it will go away, but every time I jog, I get a painful knee. It’s been this way for at least 3 weeks now. I backed off the first week, but the last 2 I’ve averaged about 3 times per week. Anyone else have this when they started jogging again?
Biking is going o.k. - riding to work 2-3 times per week with a total of about 25 miles each of those days, then trying for longer rides on the weekends. Also doing bosu ball exercises and theraband sidesteps.
I’m tired of “rehab”. I want to be well!
Bari
Hey Bari
I was just looking back to see where you are now. I think we are roughly the same time out, I am 9 weeks.
Sorry you are having a frustrating week! I have had them. I think when we start to feel better it gets frustrating to get a set back. I have been very sore and stiff this week after having a fantastic week last week! But, I reminded myself today that just 3 weeks ago I had barely gotten rid of my crutches and could barely limp for 10 minutes at a time. Now I am back to my 10,000 steps per day, riding the stationary bike and on the elliptical. I am also doing lunges, squats, balance board etc and not very long ago I never thought I would walk again.
I also had a meniscus repair which slowed me down more than you and I still haven’t been cleared to ride my bike outside or to run/jump but that will be coming soon I hope.
Hang in there!! When you get frustrated, think of where you came from. I remember your earliest posts just days post op! What a wild trip huh?
Hey Bari & Tammy,
so good to read your exchange so I can mentally prepare for what lies ahead of me. And it reminds me to keep things in perspective.
I seem to have a not so good day as well. Trying to ditch the crutches - yeah right! That didn’t work at all! So I am walking with crutches again but put weight on my injured leg.
Turns out I have 2 huge hematomas one behind the knee (initially the Doc thought it was a blood clot so slight panic mode then) and the other on my hamstring. They are super hard and hurt like crazy. Did any of you have this???
Like I said earlier your exchange helps me to keep things in perspective - only day 9 Post-op.No jogging here anytime soon.
Bari>>> what kind of graft did you have???
I jogged for 25 minutes tonight. Even though it was slow and ploddy, it felt good just to be outside. I figure I’d better soak it up over the next 2 weeks since I won’t be running all summer….
Hope everyone has a good day tommorrow!
HI Jeff!
I had an allograft. Ironically, the pain is right where the patella tendon is. I went with allograft to avoid any pain in that region. My doctor gave me the o.k. to jog at 6 weeks (I’m at 10 this friday). He’s definitely not as conservative as a lot of the others I’ve read about. I’m questioning whether I’m actually ready….guess I’ll find out from my PT tomorrow.
Tammy and Micky - thanks for the commiseration. Tammy is right - we have come a long way since surgery. It’s at least a 6 month recovery process so I guess we just have to be patient. At least I can ride a bike as much as I want and stay reasonably fit- it would be much different to be stuck in a cast for a long time. And I was lucky not to have a meniscus tear and be stuck on crutches for a few weeks.
All weeks are not like this! Last week was really good!
Bari
Jeff, Great news…and yes, get it the hard exercise and cardio while you can. You will not care to run for several weeks. But it is such a great feeling the first time you go out for a run and do not have pain or swelling! That’s what I look forward to.
I’ll be 5 weeks post op tomorrow and I know I’m not ready to run but the atrophy has stopped and the strength and stability is coming back. The outer quad shows the most atrophy but still not too bad…maybe a inch smaller than the other (but I hesitate to measure).
Bari, sorry to hear about your week. I bet PD will ease your concerns tomorrow. Please let us know what he says…I’ve already admitted that I’m modeling my expectations after your experiences. According to PD, we’re progressing similarly so it’s nice to understand what you’re going through and it helps remind me of my first ACL recovery years ago. Don’t worry the jogging gets better- think of where you were 9 weeks ago. I remember my first runs after the ACL in 1992 (if you can call them that!) were torture. Between the desire to run and make it all better to the mental aspect of worrying if I was pushing it too hard too fast (and all of the other mental issues like thinking about exactly how I’m going to place that foot down- where am I stepping, etc.)…it just wears you out!
I’ll bet you that when you go out and run in 4 weeks you’ll have nothing more than some muscle fatigue at the end (but maybe not even that with your level of biking).
Good luck and let us know how the PT appt goes!
-Kyle
PT went O.K. The kneecap pain after running is possibly from not stretching enough. He gave me stretches for my quads, IT band, hamstrings, etc. I’ll try to do more of them and see how it goes. I’m going to try to go for a short run tomorrow.
Also mentioned that bike riding and running isn’t enough. I HAVE to do more of my PT exercises like squats, lunges, bosu ball balancing, etc. He DID like the amount of biking I’m doing. My quad muscles look really good!
Now I just have to get disciplined and not keep putting the exericses off until “tomorrow”….
Overall, at 10 weeks I’m still way ahead of where many people are, so that lifted my spirits a bit.
I do seem to have Kyle to compete with now…can’t let him get ahead of me!
Bari
Bari,
Glad to hear all is well. NO competition…I just hope I’m doing as well as you in another 5 weeks! Frustrating at times…I feel like I’ve hit a plateau. The muscles continue to get stronger (the exercises are easier and easier) but the swelling and click/clack popping continue. I wish that part would get better. Some steps feel good and others make me stop in my tracks. I guess it’s still due to the inflammation and and muscles not being in balance. I don’t know but it’s something I’ll definitely be asking about on the 2nd of June when I go in again.
-Kyle
Kyle,
I had lot’s of swelling and catching at 5 weeks. I still have some swelling. Doc says it will swell for at least 6 months. The fat pads under my knee, where the two small incisions are, have scar tissue and I think my knee cap was catching on that when I was at your stage. I massage it a lot and push my kneecap down and around that area to loosen things up. I know what you mean about stopping in your tracks - it’s a funny feeling but nothing is wrong with the graft, just the way the knee cap is tracking.
Mine has now started popping/clacking - in the past it only felt like a “catch”. I’m really sore today, so taking it easy, but planning to do the exercises and stretching for a while at least.
It is VERY frustrating. Some weeks are good and I get excited about the progress I’m making. Other weeks, like this one, I get depressed about how LONG it is taking and I HATE to be where I am right now. All of my friends are out this weekend climbing or spring skiing in this gorgeous weather. It’s killing me.
Hang in there. I know we’ll all get through this and look back on it with humor. We should have an ACL reunion next year. I’m already planning a “Gimpy Knee Club” climb with 3 other women who’ve been through ACL surgery in recent years.
Bari
Bari,
I appreciate the info. I took it easy today as well. Hard workout yesterday and quite a few events with work and celebrating a change of command here at Whidbey Island. Your third paragraph sums up my feelings too (even though I’m at 5 weeks). The lack of a predictable steady progress is tough. I’ll be at 6 weeks next Thursday and 6 weeks away from my earliest start of the running program.
I’m dying for harder cardio and longer workouts…just can’t get where I want to be for fitness and gym time without thinking that I’m going to overstress the knee and pay for it later. I have started spinning on my road bike in the garage so that’s starting to help.
Anyway…I’m hanging in there like you suggest!
The reunion sounds like a great idea…maybe Ranier or Baker next June? I was supposed to climb Baker next month with some friends but I’m tabling that one for now.
-Kyle
Good Morning all!
10 week update. Just back from a long weekend. Did a 10 mile bike ride on a river path, mostly downhill but oh to be outside and moving again.
Played a little golf - 9 holes only on a short course. PT said not to use anything higher than a pitching wedge. Actually did use up to my 7 iron and all was well. Several miles of walking all 3 days.
The only thing that feels different at this point is I don’t feel as steady on uneven ground such as walking in the woods.
Knee feels fantastic, actually I am having more problems with my hip on the opposite side than the knee. PT spent most of my last session working to loosen up the hip. Anyone else with other body part problems?
Will continue to keep track of everyone. Kyle, give it a little time, 10 weeks is pretty awesome!
Good for you, Tammy! 10 weeks was awesome for me too (I’m at 11 tomorrow) and then this morning, I woke up with swelling and pain and am limping again! ARG!! I rode my bike for about 15 miles yesterday and (I’m embarrassed to say this part) wore high heels all morning. I think maybe the combination did me in. I was feeling so awesome last week, spent five days walking all over Chicago and even worked with my horse a bunch and felt great. The roller coaster continues…
I am way behind all of you - just week 2 +1day.Gives me an idea what to look out for… Does anyone remember how long it took you do get more than a 90 degree flexion? I can get a little more than 90 if I do it really slowly and take my time in between flexes. If I do it carefully I am almost totally extended ( my knee is still really swollen and I have a HUGE hematoma from mid-calf to mid-thigh)- so I cannot put it down completely.
I just have the feeling it goes sooo slowly. But I am able to do some quad exercises (just leg-lifting)
When did you all start stationary biking??? Thanks, Micky
Hi Micky,
I was at 125 degrees at a week and a half and on the stationary bike after the first week. But everyone has a different recovery rate. I’m sure your hematoma is affecting your range of motion. I do remember that I worked really hard to get the flexibility back, and pushed through the painful end of it.
My PT was very good at giving me information. As long as I knew the pain and discomfort didn’t mean anything was wrong with the graft, I was mentally able to push myself further.
Good luck! Keep working at it. The first few weeks are the hardest.
Bari
Micky
I tried to respond last night but the site was down.
As for your flexion, if you have significant swelling and a hematoma you will not be able to have much flexion. Over time as this reduces, the flexion will come. I remember getting to 90 degrees was a lot of work and then it just comes over time. I worked very hard sliding down the wall and back up every day.
As for the extension, I was almost full from the start but my PT had advised me to “never put anything under your knee-ever” and I followed his advice. I used a rolled towel under my ankle at all times even in bed sleeping and never put anything under that knee. If you are in a brace remove it when sitting and do heel props as often as you can.
As for the bike, I rode it with one leg at 2 weeks. I had a meniscus repair and had to wear my immobilizer for 4 weeks and was on crutches for 5-6 weeks so they wouldn’t let me bend it to ride until 5 weeks. That comes back fast as well. The first time I had all I could do to ride 7 minutes now I ride 30-35 mins. before beginning PT. (Outside about 10 miles now).
As Bari told you every case is different. Listen to your PT, they will get you through. Learn the difference between joint line pain and discomfort, work hard and be willing to push through when necessary. It will be worth the effort!!
Micky,
and I can’t get down about what I’m doing. Judge yourself only against yourself. As long as you are moving forward and you are pushing yourself, you are doing well and should feel good about it.
Excellent advice from Tammy and Bari. I do want to caution you and anyone else just starting out to be very, very careful about comparing yourself to others on this blog. As was said, everyone’s injury is different and everyone’s recovery will be different. My husband threatened to hide my computer because I kept saying, “well others on the blog can do this already and that already” and I was getting down about my progress. I finally accepted the fact that some people are just more hard core (Bari) (and that’s a compliment
Good luck!
I echo Renee’s comments - your doctor and PT should be the last word and guide to your recovery as they know your condition and your injury. It’s good to use this blog to know what to expect and to get support, but not for a recovery plan. Only your PT can do that.
I agree that as long as you are pushing yourself even a little bit, you are making progress. It will come in stages - one week you’ll make a lot of headway and the next feel like you are getting nowhere. I can tell from reading other people’s experiences we all share the same feelings of frustration. Bottom line though, you are your best guide. Don’t do anything that you feel uncomfortable with or question, just because you read it on this blog.
Bari
Hi All,
I had my consult with my doc yesterday to talk about auto vs allograft. I’m still 2 weeks out from surgery, and had to get his opinion about so much that I’ve read here and other places online. He was not aware of some of the clinical trials I had seen online, so I’m not sure if that means anything or not. However, he said the outcome is the same. He recommends the hamstring graft, as he has had some rejection issues with allo in the past. But, he’s only had 2 ACL failures in the last 5 years. He needs a bit of advance notice if I want allo though.
I just don’t want to make the joint weaker by ‘robbing from Peter to pay Paul’ in the tendon department. I just doesn’t seem logical to damage your own body more by doing the hamstring graft. My opinion is that if the hamstring is weaker, even by only 10 or 15%, then that’s going to put more strain on the graft. That make the whole joint weaker.
Any opinions?
Thanks!
Bari, Renee and Tammy
Thank you so much for your replies. You are right on all points and I will take it at MY rhythm - even though it seems quite slow. I guess the double (ACl & Meniscus) doesn’t help to accelerate things. Indeed my Doc told me not to do much (if any)muscle strengthening unless I have more flexion/extension. I think I need to find the fine line between discomfort=pain and pushing too hard=damaging something.Soon I will be able to do water rehab - that should help to increase the flexion/extension.
Thanks again for your very helpful advice.
Micky
Hey all,
I haven’t been on here in awhile, but its great to hear a lot of you are healing and recovering well. Everyone, whether you heal slow or fast, will be back in top condition someday. I just had my 6 month follow up and the doctor gave me the go ahead to do what ever I want. I have been playing basketball, golfing, disc golf, hiking, biking with no problems. So, while you may feel behind early on, and I know because I was there, you will be back doing what you have always done eventually, whether it be 6 months or one year. Work hard and listen to your PT..
Deb, I had the allograft and feel the same way you do. It has worked out great for me, with much less recovery time. I guess I’ll have to see how it is holding up in a few years, but I just haven’t seen enough case studies to really say which one is better. Just my thoughts.
Cheers
Hanson
Hi all,
It’s been a while-things are going very well. I’m right at 9 weeks now and only taking Tylenol or Motrin before therapies. I’m back to work full time 12 hour shifts. Doing lateral jumps on the bosu ball, lunges and jumps on the total gym. My knee feels very strong and stable. I’m still trying to strengthen my hamstrings which I’ve found is very hard to do. My quads are about 70% back. On that note, Deb I feel for you. I actually went to another ortho surgeon to get a second opinion. The first one dissed autografts entirely. He wanted to do a patellar tendon. (according to my PT, no one does those anymore). The second surgeon does only autografts and hamstring allografts but will not do hamstrings on women over 35. He was the one who performed my ACL reconstruction. Third surgeon (I work with)will not do hamstrings on women at all. He’s a peds ortho doc. My personal experience post-op, my hamstring is weak and I still struggle to strengthen it, and I had an allograft. Two days before my surgery I almost changed my mind about the allograft and talked to my surgeon’s nurse at length. AFter speaking to her, I was reassured that I have a competent surgeon. Find a way to reassure yourself-I recall someone saying a lot of it is the surgeon’s preference. I certainly wouldn’t use a surgeon who is uncomfortable in performing a procedure. I found my surgeon from a list of the best doctor’s in the city that I live in. You have time-good luck.
Suzanne
Hello, its good to read how well everyone is doing. For an update and info to future readers, It will be two weeks tomorrow from when I had my surgery. I had the torn acl with meniscus damage and I did the Patellar autograft surgery. From day one, I have been taking Vicodin to relieve the pain, and I have had peculiar side effects. The first 5 days were very painful, especially day two and three. Sleep was near impossible on those days and the Vicodin was giving me really crazy dreams. My whole body was incredibly itchy and I was only able to eat one meal a day and have managed to lose roughly 10 lbs. Only one b.m. in the first week also- small and pellet like. My appetite has increased dramatically in the past 3 days and am able to sleep decently since the last 4 days. I have my first post op visit tomorrow and I feel guilty. I wish I had done more of what my doctor asked, and am not claiming to be a good example at all. He told me I would be on crutches for 6 weeks due to the meniscus tear, but I started walking on it 3 days ago- albeit quite slowly. I let pain be the judge, and with the brace on, I feel very little pain unless i happen to trip or stumble. I was also told not to change the bandages on my knee, but after a week I couldnt stand it anymore and so I went to Target and got some supplies. I removed the dressing and it was quite gross. The bandage was completely crusty from the dried blood and there was some white, cheesy like substance on it where it was on my main incision. My thigh had a large bruise from the back of the knee to below my butt… I dont even know why. There are two small scabs above my knee on my thigh, a 3 inch long scab on my knee where they harvested my patellar tendon and one more below the knee. There is some numbness on the right side of the incision. I assume tomorrow I will have my stitches removed. I have been scrubbing the knee with alcohol and changing the dressing once daily and it looks to be healing well. There is still swelling in the knee, but not too bad. My range of motion is a little over 90 degrees, although I must admit that I have been lazy and havent done many stretches in the past week. I remembered my appt is tomorrow, so I have been doing a lot of stretches today. I hope to begin P.T. soon so I can return to normal. Overall, I will say I expected worse and am happy that the pain is a lot less than I feared and is healing faster than I thought. It also helped to have a cocktail now and again for pain management. I hope this helps anyone out there.
Wow! I wish I had found this blog month’s ago! Awesome! I think I’ve finally read through this whole thing and am ready to put in my 2 cents worth–besides, you need some Midwest representation!
At 41, I blew out my left ACL Valentine’s Day weekend on Mt. Bohemia at the northern tip of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. After 3 winters of full time work, grad school and family responsibilities I wasn’t in the world’s best shape to be out skiing that day–but come on, I had barely used my new (last season) parabolic skis and it was a nice day. I caught ice on the first run, fell and, needless to say, didn’t make it down the rest of way on my own after hearing the good old ‘pop’. However, after I hyper-extended the knee, I didn’t feel much pain–it just kept giving out which was one of the freakiest feelings. I didn’t go to the emergency room because I was able to get around and saw my primary care physician two days after the fall, had an MRI 5 days after confirming the ACL tear. Because I’m in a HMO here in Chicago, I went with my primary care physician’s recommendation and saw the ortho surgeon he recommended 2 weeks after the accident. He gave me the option of not having reconstruction–if I wanted to give up skiing aggressively, change my golf stance, forget about rollarblading, etc. and lead a lesser active life–and I decided that with the full life I plan to continue to have, I needed to have surgery. I needed to do pre-PT (absolutely necessary!!!!!) and had patella-autograph surgery March 30th. I didn’t have much choice in the matter–my doc was highly recommended as well as a member of my HMO and that is the method he works with. No discussion. I can’t believe I am now 9 weeks post-op!
I’ve been intrigued by how so many of you have had such positive, active recoveries! I have to admit I’m jealous because it seems that I am having such a slower recovery than many of you. But as a number of you have said, we have to compare ourselves to ourselves. My challenge came during surgery: there were issues with the size of the screws, the area of my bones and danger of fracture and/or dislodging of the graph and so I ended up being put in an immobilizer (horrible thing but I was told I could have been in a cast) for 6-8 weeks while things healed. Thankfully it was only 6 weeks, but it still put me behind in my recovery, mainly with my extension–since I wasn’t immobilized straight-legged.
I had the surgery on a Monday, first follow-up on Thursday and first PT on Friday with the goal of “modified” rehab, whatever that is. I opted to follow my OS and PA’s directions quite literally so kept the immobilizer on except for PT and taking a shower–which I was able to do after Thursday’s follow-up. I went back to work after 2 weeks of recovery as a history teacher in one of Chicago’s troubled high schools and have never felt so vulnerable in all of my life–but I made it the whole week on my immobilizer and crutches without being knocked over. I can not believe some of you were back to work managing 10 hour days in hospitals–you are my idols!
Some thoughts at large in regards to Month One…I will second guess ever living again in a home or working in a school with lots of stairs and no usable elevator…Much of this situation seems to be about character building and gaining empathy. I had never been in a wheel chair before going to the Brookfield Zoo during wk. 2 and it sure gave me a different perspective on things…I’ve been surprised at who has been helpful–and how downright rude people can be towards others with handicaps…And I don’t think I could have done recovery without my PTs–they rock!!!!!
Now my question–if any of you are still reading: does anyone know anyone who is part of that 15% statistic that had problems with scar tissue or whatever and had to have additional surgery?
Thanks for creating a forum where I feel I can unload some of this pent-up baggage–sorry this post was so long.
Cheers,
JoAnn–9 weeks out
JoAnn- I haven’t heard much about the 15% you mention. I do know that the problems with scar tissue tend to be with those folks that can’t get to the extension and flex levels in a certain amount of time. Remember to that some people scar differently than others (I’m thinking of keloids that you see on some folks) but maybe that doesn’t apply to internal scarring.
Quick update from my appointment today…good news! I’m two days shy of seven weeks and all is progressing better than expected (whatever that means- maybe they had lower expectations) but so far I’m generally happy with the outcome. Still some swelling after heavy workouts, still some stiffness in the morning or after a long day, and still some general shifting and popping from time to time due to pockets of swelling, scar tissue, and “unbalanced” muscles causing uncoordinated movements in the joint.
New exercises and stuff is really starting to cross the barrier and into the realm of good, effective cardio coupled with strengthening drills. I won’t run for another month and I’m not supposed to bike outdoors unless it’s on a relatively flat surface and I’m supposed to go with high rpm so no bearing down on the hard gears and I have to stay in the saddle. I can now run in the pool (in the deep end) so we’ll see how that works out. After another two weeks I told I can move to the shallow end. Apparently this is supposed to help with the transition back to jogging which starts in 4 weeks. That’s what I’m most looking forward to. I think that’s when things will really start to come together…at least that’s what I remember from last time. The running provides that new level of freedom and the serious feeling of progress.
Bari, I hope things are well with you. Give us an update when you get the chance.
-Kyle
Hey everyone! I’m just over 3-months post-op and feeling pretty good! Doc and PT have cleared me to start hiking, which is a big thing for me. I’ve already done a few small hikes and will be gradually increasing elevation gain (going for 1000ft this weekend) so that I can be ready for some good trips this summer! I’m also cycling outside and will even start running at PT in the next week or so. I’m definitely pleased with my progress as I’m now back to most of my normal activities to some degree or other - the others will come with time and I’ve sure got enough to keep me busy for now!
For all of you still in the earlier stages of recovery, hang in there and do your homework!!! It WILL get better soon!
Wow this great! the amount of questions I had are becoming fewer and fewer as I read what is disscussed here. Thanks!
I tore My ACL and miniscus in the right knee and have had the miniscus operated on already. they didn’t know my ACL was damaged until they went in to repair the miniscus; wich by the way the doc just seemed to know was damaged without doing any tests. Is that normal? I at least expected an MRI or something before they started cutting? the good news is that I now can heal from the miniscal surgery and strengthen my knee before surgery on the ACL. Im a little dissapointed with the lack of info from the surgeon but thrilled with the amount of info on the net. Im leaning (no pun intended) towards having the cadaver method as I don’t want to weaken anything else (seems like a common concern). I am an electritian and have to be on my knees quite a bit so I’m concerned about the PT OP. Is there any one that has had the PT surgery running into problems with putting weight directly on the knee when kneeling down?
Tahnks again for all the useful info everyone!
Brad
Hi Brad!
I’m a little over 3 months into it with a cadaver graft (allograft) and I’m happy that I went that route. The only problem I’ve had with kneeling is that it is difficult to do before you get your full range of motion back. But, it hasn’t been very painful. I’m not a quite the same flexibility as the non-surgical knee, but very close now. I’m cycling a lot and have begun to ease into running again. Things are progressing well (this week).
Definitely recommend getting your knee as strong as possible before surgery. That will help tremendously with the recovery.
I’m surprised that they didn’t do an MRI before surgery.
good luck!
Bari
Thanks Bari. Im glad to hear your progressing, keep it up!
did you have trouble finding a surgeon to do the allograft?
Im pretty happy with my progress until now, concidering I don’t have an ACL. Yesterday I spent some time at the gym and it felt really good. I was surprised to be able to hop on the bike without too much pain. I also spent some time in the pool wich was fairly good but I was limmited as to what I could do there. Even stairs are becoming a little less intimadating but Im still cautious.
Thanks again for the encouragement and info
Keep Strong!
Brad,
For surgeons, I talked to a lot of friends of friends who’d had ACL replacement surgery to find out which surgeon they used and their experience (I run in an active crowd, but you’ll be amazed when you start asking around. Lots of people have had this surgery) . Then I had to narrow it down to ones covered by my insurance plan. I settled on a surgeon used by a friend. His specialty is knee/ACL repair and he’s been doing it for years. He does allograft and autograft and gave me the pro’s and con’s of each. I chose allograft after lot’s of research and discussion. I didn’t like the sound of the patella graft and my hamstrings are already weak and tight. I was also really squeamish about using my own tissue and the pain associated with the harvest site. I’m 45, so I accepted older tissue (under 50) rather than someone under 30 since the wait was longer. The surgeon hasn’t seen any differences in using the kind I went with. He’s very particular about the type of allograft though. He will only use another ACL. I know some allografts are from Achilles tendons, etc. I really don’t know much about pro’s and con’s of each type of tissue. I think he mentioned that the other type tends to stretch more and that there’s not a bone plug attached, so you have to run it all the way through your bone and attach to a button on the other side. Overall, I would say if you go with allograft, find a surgeon who has experience in using them. Just from listening to other people, it seems every surgeon is slightly different in their approach.
Mine is also fairly aggressive on the recovery side as well. I seemed to be doing more things like running and cycling earlier than other people, and I don’t have a brace. My surgeon and PT said they did their own studies over years and found that wearing a brace isn’t any more beneficial than not wearing one and can actually slow down muscle development.
One other thing I like about my recovery is that my PT is associated with the surgeon (same office), so they can consult each other about my recovery.
Since I’m only 3 months into it, only time will tell how well the graft does. I plan to return to full activity: skiing backcountry, climbing, running, etc. I’m going to be really nervous about the skiing, since that’s how I got the injury.
Bari
Hi All,
Just had my surgery yesterday, and block wore off late this afternoon. Wow! Medication is the BEST! Have been in the motion machine since this morning too. I’m a bit concerned that I used the machine for about 3 hours, then took a nap.
After I woke up, I was incredibly sore. Not sure if it was the CPM or the block wearing off, but I’ve added Advil to my pain killers.
I also have a mild fever, but not sure if that’s a bad thing yet. Anyone have any experience with this? Doc said not to call them unless temp is over 101.
Dr gave me a post-op brace, but said it’s really only necessary if I’m out and about running errands. Not much of a chance of that right now!
The delivery person for the CPM said you can’t really do too much in this machine, and said if I wanted to use it 12 hours a day that would be okay. Does that sound right to you all?
BTW, I LOVE the percoset! Vicodin really upsets my stomach. Hopefully won’t be on it for much longer.
Jeff, did you have your surgery yet? Haven’t seen any blogs from you lately. Would like to compare notes.
Thanks!!
Hi Deb,
Congratulations! You did it! Good to hear your surgery went well. So what did you end up getting? I also had a low grade fever post-op. My fever was gone the next day though. Just take it easy. I agree about Vicodin, that made me very dizzy. I didn’t take the extra oxycodone prescribed either bec I didn’t want to be too sleepy. Ugh. I didn’t go home with a CPM at all. I read somewhere that it didn’t really matter. I have to agree-I never had it post and my knee was almost straight during my first week visit post and my range of motion wasn’t compromised. Do spend some time with a towel propped under your shin to straighten out your leg. Take care of yourself.
I’m finally 11 weeks! Saw my OS last Tues and he ok’d swimming w/o restrictions. Still no running until after 3 full calendar months with slow stops and starts only. Still on the brace until my 6 month check. I’m cool with that-just want it to heal properly. I still have the clicking on my knee though-how long does that last???? Can’t wait to start running on it. Finally at 142 flexion!
Have a safe summer everyone!
Hi everybody,
Been quite busy (2 little monsters and rehab and life don’t leave much free time…) and now I am already at 5 weeks and FINALLY got to see my PT today. She would have preferred more flexion (I have 40 more degrees to go)but due to my huge hematomas I am about 2 weeks behind. At least I get full extension. And I started going to the gym last week. YEAH!!!!It felt soooo good to do something - even if it was just biking. And then some regular workout. It went all so well that I returned the following day - and totally overdid it and could hardly move my knee for almost 2 days. So I just did the regular “wall sliding” exercises and the “leg lift”.
I don’t remember who of you had some popping while exercising - I think it was Bari???? Today my knee started popping as well and the PT didn’t like it too much! It was not painful, but felt weird. Did it go away over time??? The PT did then some weird super painful things with my knee (Vicodin is still a very good friend of mine ;took percocet only for 10 days) but it worked and did increase my flexion in one visit! Amazing! I can walk stairs up with no problems and down with a little more concentration - it feels so good to be able to move more and more like a “normal” person!
A lot plays in my mind though - if I do something I anticipate something painful to happen - but it doesn’t and then I am all surprised that I can actually do that particular exercise.
Does anyone here remember how long it took you for not having pain in the meniscus after surgery if you had both (M & ACL)done at the same time? My ACL seems to be doing extremely well and I have no other issues besides some soreness after too much PT. And icing always helps. But my meniscus keeps acting up.Doc says is normal. Any experiences to share???
Good to hear that most of you are making great progress and that you can start doing some “real” stuff like running and hiking. I am looking forward to getting there soon as well. My PT told me though that my kickboxing will have to wait for a few more months
My couch and icepack are calling me…
Micky
Micky,
Glad to hear that you’re doing better (and working through the hematomas). I have had a lot of clicking and popping in my knee (currently almost 9 weeks postop). It’s starting to get better only in that it’s less frequent. Sometimes it just feels like a slight binding in the knee when walking and other times it produces a loud “pop”. My doc wasn’t concerned and made it seem somewhat normal. It’s not painful although when it makes that sound it feels like it should hurt. The doctor explained that it’s probably due to a combination of several things- swelling, scar tissue, tracking issues as some muscles are stronger than others (and some fire at awkward times as the knee is rebuilding), and finally just normal popping like in our joints. It seemed reasonable to me….and like I said it does appear to be getting better- just not as fast as I’d like.
Bari is about 4 weeks ahead of me. It will be interesting to read whether her popping has improved. Something for all of us to look forward to. Good luck!
-Kyle
Kyle,
thanks for your reply.Yes your explanation makes sense - considering what’s going on inside of our knees! You’re right - listening to the popping sound makes one expect to have some pain going with it - but not so far. After biking yesterday I did some more “wall sliding” exercises and the popping was less prominent. So maybe I just need to warm up before I do certain exercises. Will try this PM if my theory first biking then bending is right.
Yes - I guess nothing with knee injuries happens as fast as we wish!!! But you’re already over 2 months out - only 4 to go…
Good Luck to you as well.
- Micky
My knee is still popping. I notice it more when I’ve done something that might have caused some slight swelling, or for some muscles to be fired more than others. I had kneecap pain associated with running - so severe I thought something was wrong - but the PT gave me some stretching exercises. It has helped and also helps with the popping.
I stretch my quads, hip flexors, hamstrings and IT band. It seems to help get the kneecap tracking correctly again, as does the exercise where I step sideways with a Thera band tied around my calves.
The popping also reminds me that obviously all of my muscles are not back where they need to be (even though I’m slacking on the PT exercises because I feel more “normal” now…..).
Bari
Bari,
so the warming-up & stretching part seems to relieve some of the “popping”. I will see later this PM if it applies to my very own “popping” as well.
My PT just wants me to get back to my full range of motion before I start focusing on the muscle building. So I am supposed to focus only on a few exercises - no sideways or real strengthening movements yet.
Ouuh - don’t feel too “normal” and let your PT slide. I did it 20 years ago (young and thinking “what the heck - I can walk so I am back to normal.) after my 1st arthroscopy and paid the price a few years later. My knee kept buckling under me during the slightest exercise or long walks - I don’t even mention the issues wearing high heels for a long period of time.It’s only 5/6 years back when I started kickboxing that I finally re-gained my full muscle strength and motion. And now I have to start all over again…ironic!
Good Luck and Hang in there!!!!
Micky
Hi All,
Day 6 since surgery. Went with the allograft. Menicus repairs did not impair weight bearing, so trying to get a bit of weight on it over the last couple of days. Swelling has been awful! Had major swelling below the knee, all the way to ankle. Has taken several days to get that under control, but now doing better.
Ice machine is my best friend! It’s amazing how soothing that is! I have to let it go at the end of the week, though. Doing the CPM machine too. Doc wants me at 120 degrees flex by next Tuesday. I think I’ll make it - I’m at 112 right now. And at 0 on extension too! Hurts like a mother but I can get it straight!
Haven’t head yet when I start PT. I’m assuming I’ll need to have some more weight on it before that starts, but still waiting to find out. Any advice on that would be appreciated. Should I load up on meds before?
Anyway, it’s nice knowing I have all your experience to help me along the way! Thanks and take care!
Deb
Deb,
Congrats on doing so well! I wouldn’t “load” up on meds prior…just my opinion but I really like to know what hurts and more importantly not feel so comfortable with the pain meds that I overdue something. I quit the Percocet completely within four days post op and I don’t think I ever too the full prescribed dosage. I did stay on the Ibuprofen and drank plenty of water to help flush my system.
I’ve heard great things about that ice machine and wish I had received one…funny how insurance simply won’t cover some things.
As for the swelling- just give it time…and by time I mean months. A huge portion of it will go down rather quickly (especially with the Ibuprofen and easy exercise) but other parts will seem to take forever and roller coaster back and h as you exercise and increase activity. I’m keeping a swelling chart and if you want, I’ll share the big improvements so you and others have a rough idea of what to expect.
-Kyle
I’m gonna have to join the popping club. Pop=pop every morning as I start walking the hallways at work. Doesn’t seem to happen as bad while at home. I don’t know, maybe since I’ve started wearing my danskos again???
If you are still interested in buying your own ice machine. I had to return my ice machine because the cost of renting one is crazy, buying is about $300. I bought mine at Mendelson Liquidation Outlet. Website is meci.com. The item is called an OPTI ICE unit. It comes with everything and I paid $75 for it. Well worth it considering I use it every single day 1-2 hours a day. I think it’s an older model but it works well. The first unit I received stopped working because I left it plugged all day and I get a lot of power surges. They sent me a replacement no problem and didn’t charge me anything. Hope that helps.
Good luck on your Pt Deb.
Suz
I had my surgery six months ago and I still have popping. In fact, if I move my knee while my hand is on my knee cap, I can feel creaking. I was told this is normal so I am not worried. I am back to doing Krav Maga but I am limited. I did some round house kicks yesterday and now my knee is sore. The part that hurts the worse is the area where my calf muscle meets the underside of my knee (probably due to the allograft.) Anyone else have this problem?
Good to hear that I am not the only one with “popping sounds”. I don’t “pop” when just regular walking but mostly during PT. Figured out that the “popping” is a little less if I bike first for 30 min and do my more focused exercises after. Everything seems to be “warmed up” and ready to bend.
I agree with Kyle not to take any pain medication beforehand so that I can feel the pain and where I have to work it harder - but …on the other hand I am quite happy that I still have Vicodin at home for the after PT pain.
Do you all have major soreness after PT as well …and swelling..??
On the good news side - I am almost completely limp-free while walking “normally” (and before PT).
Oh Kimber I envy you -back to Krav Maga!!! Congrats! Must have been weird the first time you went- I bet. I do most of my PT @ my Kickboxing/Kung Fu studio…and seeing everyone punching and kicking makes me want to get up and join in, but…! Not for another 2-3 months probably. But my Sifus are trying to put together a routine for me just to work my punches.
Ya’ll enjoy the great weather outside
Micky
Hello Everybody,
I tore my left ACL in 1990 and had a patella-bone graft at the age of 21 on that knee. I did it on a nasty spill off my horse. Well, after 19 years of good luck, I tore my right ACL on May 28. Back in the olden days, there was no choice of surgeries. My orthopedic surgeon is the same one who did my left surgery. He is also a team surgeon for the Colts football team, I.U. and Purdue basketball and football teams, as well as a local semi pro soccer team. My surgeon recommends I NOT have the Patella graft, but has left the decision between the hamstring graft and the donor allo graft up to me. I am still very athletic and am leaning toward the hamstring graft. But, I can’t make up my mind.
Anybody out there who has had either a patella - bone graft or hamstring graft AND an allo-graft who is athletic(skiing, volleyball, soccer, football, equestrian sports, martial arts) who can talk to me?
I had little pain initially with my first surgery. Took no pain meds after 3 days in the hospital. Had 90 degree flexion in knee the day after surgery. Got full range of motion back within one week. I have a high pain threshold. However, I am older now, and I couldn’t kneel on my left knee for about 12 years after surgery. I have no arthritis in that knee and not alot of pain - only when it’s really cold.
I would really love to hear from someone who’s had both kinds of grafts and is very active.
Thanks, Katherine
Additionally,
I am not worried about disease transmission. I am slightly worried about hamstring instability. I ride competitively, and hamstrings are important! I am also worried about re-injuring the allo - graft, as it the studies show it is a weaker graft than either the patella or hamstring graft.
Thanks,
Katherine
Katherine,
Sorry to hear about your injury. We have a similar history. I tore my right ACL playing football at UNC in 1993 and had an allograft repair (cutting edge at the time). For the next 16 years I was OK too. I’m an active duty Marine and I’ve put a lot of mileage on my knees without difficulty. I tore my right ACL again this last January.
I opted for another allograft for the 2nd go as well (surgery was in mid-April). I had little to no issues with the first and didn’t want to take away from good (even though it’s getting older) ligaments to repair the damage when allografts were available. I do not regret my decision. I’m just over two months and I’ve been able to kneel down on my right leg for almost a month without difficulty. There is no donor site morbidity to deal with! I think there are enough issues to deal with…I didn’t want any extras.
I was worried about the patella tendon regrowth- the pain associated with it and future possibilities of tendonitis. But it is supposedly the “gold standard”- my doc didn’t necessarily agree with that due to new fastening techniques and rehab protocols.
I didn’t want the hamstring used because I think they are very important to the rehab process and having that tissue removed delays the rehab. I knew (from previous experience) that I’d have enough issues with muscle loss and the rebuilding process that I didn’t want to put myself at a further disadvantage if I could help it.
I think I’ve read that many docs recommend that women don’t use the hamstring but as a guy, I’m sure I didn’t pay too much attention to those articles. I know opinions vary but it may be worth some additional research on your part.
Hope this helps….I think you’ll find this website very useful in the future as you recover from surgery. There were lots of things I had forgotten about the rehab and other people being willing to share their experiences has been very beneficial.
Best of luck,
-Kyle
Katherine,
What a bummer to go through the same thing twice…
I am 40 yrs old and my surgeon recommended allo-graft, but I chose autograft (hamstring) because I am worried about rejection (can happen up to 12 mths later). I just don’t want to be “up & running” only to undergo the same thing twice in 1 year… I also have 2 young children who are still missing their very active Mom.(I am an avid Kickboxer,play ultimate Frisbee, kid-chaser, hiking, biking…)
My surgeon strongly advised against patella graft as I am not a teenager anymore in a professional athletic environment and the potential knee complications.
I would recommend going with the allo-graft as in general it comes from a younger body than your own and you do not have to recover from your hamstring loss. I am 6 weeks post-op and unfortunately still don’t have full range of motion (you can read the reason way in earlier posts - don’t want to repeat it all here) WRT flexion. Extension is OK.
My Surgeon told me that I might lose up to 15% strength in my hamstring, but with a very good rehab I could most likely regain most of the strength by using different muscle groups. So for me it’s to early to give you a definite feedback on the strength question. Friends who’ve undergone the allograft are doing just fine - maybe not as athletic as you are, but …!
Obviously my muscles “melted” after the OP but it seems to recover really fast.
If you decide to go with the autograft I would make sure to have good trainers and/or PTs so that they can help you recover fast(er) and teach you exercises to strengthen the “left-over” hamstring and surrounding muscles.
Being older makes recovery definitely a little harder & longer as your body just doesn’t bounce back as easily.
Hope it helped a little…and Good Luck with whatever you decide.
Micky
Quick question WRT weird soreness/stiffness- has this happen to you as well? If yes when can I expect it to stop?
Days when I am out & about a lot and I walk a lot and stand a lot - after a while the back of my knee seems to tighten up. It almost feels like a muscle cramp. . If I ice it it feels a little better but if I cannot ice it - it gets stiffer and stiffer and I limp almost as hard as a few days after surgery.
In the course of rehab will this disappear of will I forever suffer from back knee tightness????
Thanks,
Micky
Hi Katherine,
I had allograft replacement on June 11, so still trying to just keep my balance on crutches, but did lots of research before. I can offer these thoughts:
First, I was advised that women near or over 40 should not have the hamstring graft, as it leads to quad muscle dominance, which has been implicated in ACL graft failure. Next, taking the hamstring only makes the joint weaker overall, as the hamstring assists the ACL in keeping the tibia in place, plus the extra pain and effort of recovering from taking the hamstring graft as well.
Patellar grafts are generally only recommended for young people and professional athletes under 30.
Lastly, and this was incredibly important to me, no matter what type of graft you use, the actual graft tissue dies within 2 weeks and the body must remodel around the tissue to revascularize and rebuild tissue. So, why make your knee weaker with your own tissue that’s going to die anyway? And tissue rejection is rare, since there are no blood products involved. Recoveray is also faster, because there is no other graft surgery to recover from.
I also researched allograft resources, and found that freeze-dried grafts are the strongest and offer little difference in strength on a long term basis. The company that my doctor uses is AlloSource. This company has never had any disease transmission with any graft it has supplied in company history. Also, the allograft type is important, as there are several to choose from. There is a patellar graft, a hamstring graft, an achilles graft, and gracillus graft. The achilles is the strongest, but most docs only use it for a followup surgery where a new wider tunnel must be drilled. Most docs will go with the patellar or gracillus graft.
Hope this helps!
Deb
Hi Katherine!
Deb summed up the research that led to my decision to use an allograft. I am a VERY active 45 year old woman (rock and ice climbing, big mountains, backcountry skiing, running, cycling and I used to ride (jumping/dressage)). I went with the allograft for the reasons Deb mentioned. I felt like my hamstring is already tight and weak and I was really hesitant about slicing a piece from it to use in my knee. I had surgery on March 6 and am almost 4 months into it. I’ve done really well. I’m pretty much pain free right now and cycling 3-4 times per week (average 30-50 miles each trip) and also beginning to run again. I ran 2.5 miles without a rest on Saturday, then walked and ran stairs. No pain afterward. Range of motion is really good and my knee feels very strong. I have a 4 month checkin with surgeon/PT next week.
I can’t give you any sage advice about how well the allograft does years later, but Kyle mentioned he had one in 93 and had no trouble for 16 years. I can only hope for the same…. I have friends who have had both allograft and autograft and they are all doing well several years into it and still very active.
I think for me, the important thing will be to continue to do the strengthening exercises for all of the supporting muscles so that one group doesn’t become dominant again. I’d had knee pain before the accident and been to PT. They’d told me I had over developed quads and under developed hams and other muscles used for lateral movements, which led to misalignment. I feel much better now that I have a more balanced exercise regime. I hope that will help support my knee when I start skiing again this winter. Only time will tell, though….
good luck with your decision.
Bari
Hi Everyone!
Just had my first post-op dr visit. 12 days out. Got both good and bad news, of course! First I’m not at full extension as I thought. The PCM machine said I was, but doc wasn’t happy with his tests, so I guess I have my work cut out for me over the next couple of weeks. But, the good news is that my menicus wasn’t damaged as much as the MRI showed, so less there to rehab! Yea!!
My main problem now is getting enough weight on that knee to get around better. I read through some of the past posts and several of you were walking around at 2 weeks. I know we shouldn’t compare, but still think I should be farther along than I am. I’m having trouble getting my balance on that leg, so don’t want to go tumbling down if I don’t have to. I’m sure it will be better in a week or so. PT also starts this week, so I’m sure I’ll get more instruction on that then.
Anyway, glad to hear of everyone else’s progress. Maybe I’ll be back on the slopes by February or March of next year! Thanks also for your encouragement through all this — it really helps keep me positive!
Take care!
Hi all,
Micky, thanks for the tip on ‘warming’ up to reduce the popping. Come to think of it, the only time it really does it is when I have to get up at 5 am to get ready for work. I just don’t have time to stretch it prior to getting out of bed. May have to try it Thursday.
Don’t be so hard on yourself Deb. I had to build my strength up to fully bear weight on my knee after the first week. I wore my heavy Bledsoe and increased the flexion by 15 degrees every day or every other day. I kept one crutch while I was walking until I felt stable enough. It took me another week to get rid of that crutch. My PT didn’t let me wear my Donjoy until the 3rd week or so. It think even closer to a month. It just takes time. You’ll get there. Have you tried the rolled towel behind your shin yet? I didn’t have a cpm post-op. All I used was that towel whenever I was sitting or laying. Hope this helps.
I am officially 3 calendar months post-op. Minimal to no swelling. Finally!
Suz
Micky, I did have the soreness/stiffness on my knee, hamstrings and calves. My PT had me use a rolling pin to ‘massage’ the knot. It hurt but it worked. But then again you used your hamstring and I didn’t. What did your PT say?
The soreness/stiffness is almost gone. Even after being on my feet for 12 solid hours, it’s minimal now.
Suz
Deb,
I also thought that I “should” be doing this or that within a specific timeframe comparing to what I read on this blog - but …it’s true that everyone is healing and recovering differently.
WRT not being able to bear weight on your leg - it might be just psychologically. It was for me.After my first post-op appmt (6days after OP) the doc told me I could dump the crutches that I should just walk. I thought he was crazy. No way I could do it. And then I figured that he’s in the business for life and should know what he’s talking about - so first I started with just 1 crutch at home a few steps at a time…and -Oh wonder - could fully bear weight on my leg. And the next day I was able to walk - hmm “walk” is maybe pushing it. I was limping around without any crutches.
And after that I would only use crutches when outside with lots of people. And now (6weeks) I walk without a limp. Just try it while holding on to something and you may be surprised -.
Hope this helps,
Micky
Suzanne,
thanks for your reply on my stiffness or soreness issue. I will “submit” this problem to my PT. Maybe she can give me some tricks to deal with it if it happens outside. When I am at home the rolling pin sounds like a good idea and I will try it when it happens the next time.
But good to hear that it will disappear over time.
Thx,
Micky
Hi everybody,
I’ve enjoyed looking at this forum while I’m going crazy in my house! 12 days post op from acl reconstruction with hamstring graft and a “trim” of 50% of my meniscus. Three days before my fortieth birhday I tore a big wedge of my meniscus and then discovered that I haven’t had an ACL for 24 years (due to injury playing lacrosse in high school). That whole time I’ve been an avid rock climber, runner, hiker, snowboarder, cross country ski, etc, etc…with only a few minor tweaks, until now.
Anyway, surgeon seems to think I’m doing well - have 110% of flexion and can almost hyperextend the reconstructed knee. Now I’m worried because my hamstring is barely firing. No one, including my PT, seems worried, but I can’t bend my leg behind me at all! Anyone having or had similar problems?
After reading things posted here about hamstring grafts, I’m even more concerned…although of course it is too late to take it back now!
Also, walking with crutches, but no brace, is super intimidating!
Thanks,
Stephanie
Hi everyone
I tore my ACL and MCL on june 6th 2009 at a karate tournament, during a fighting match. Before the the tournement I was trying to do the runners stretch and was unable to full stretch the left side. I guess I should have known that something was wrong. I was able to see the doctor that monday the 8th and get an MRI on that wednesday. It was pure agony waiting for the doctor to call me with the results, I got them on the folling tuesday. He told me that my ACL was completely torn and I had a grade 1-2 mcl tear, which was expected on the day I saw him. My doctor sugessted getting PT for 2-3 weeks and we would discuss surgery after I got some ROM and decreased the swelling. Well I started PT last friday and Had 69 degree flex in the knee. On monday after doing the exercises given to me for the weekend I as up to 99 degree. I have been working for a week now and finally I feel a little better and have 115 degrees in the knee now, however my calf is really sore has any one experieced that. I hope to have surgery july 17th after I take my children on vacation to disney world. Any suggestions for a nerveous lady. I should be well prepared I work as a corculating nurse in the Operating room.
sorry about all the typo’s I have been typing all day at work, as they let me come in with restrictions. I wish I could be working at my second job in labor and delivery but I can’t chance falling down with one of the newborns.
hi everyone hpe your recovery is going well
Hey, Shawna! Sorry to hear about your injury. I understand you being nervous, I certainly was, but you’ll be okay. I’m 15 weeks post op and it’s going very well. Fell down the stairs the other day (interesting how many of us have done that) and didn’t do any damage. My knee is feeling good and pretty stable and I’m finally able to break a good sweat at the gym (feels so good!)
Hang in there, this is a great place to put your fears to rest. You are not alone!
Stephanie, it’s very intimidating for awhile without the brace, I had to wear mine for 6 weeks and I was completely paranoid without it. It gets better and your confidence will slowly increase.
Good luck, everyone and happy healing.
Shawna, I can tell you that the first week is the worst so far. I’m at 15 days now and pain is greatly reduced and I can get around pretty well with one crutch, even though it is a pretty intimidationg!. Seems like every day I feel a bit better and I rode for 20 minutes on the stationary bike today, granted slowly with no resistance. Good luck!
Shawna, soooooo sorry to hear about your injury. More power to you for proceeding with Disney—keep
your brace on—don’t further injure your meniscus. You’ll be fine it just takes time. Have a great time
at Disney. Ice it every chance you get though. From a fellow RN.
Suz
Greetings all. Guess I’ll join the ACL reconstruct party. Had my right knee repaired with allograft on the 25th w/ no femoral nerve block. So far so good. Only took one pain pill today. Hoping I’m through with that. OS said no CPM is necessary as it really doesn’t accomplish much. I do have a cold water therapy machine (set at 43 deg F) which helps tremendously.
I tore my left ACL in ‘02 and chose the allograft with that as well. It has held up very nicely.
Anyone taking any supplements to facilitate bone regrowth where the tunnels were drilled?
Hi Ken,
I took calcium, an amino acid complex plus my usual multivitamin, and B100 complex. Not sure if it helped, but thought I might as well do it. I’m also trying to eat more protein than I usually do. July 6 will be 4 months and my knee almost feels “normal” again. I’m riding my bike a lot (60 miles yesterday) and beginning to run again (up to 3 miles now).
Good luck on your recovery! How did you tear your ACL’s?
Bari
Hi Bari,
1st time: In the military jumping through a window during training. Landed on left foot, buckle, pop.
2nd time: volleyball.
I’m definately increasing my protein intake and reducing carbs. I hope to not gain too much weight.
4 days post op now with no need for pain meds. I’m pretty close to full extension. Placing pillows under the ankle, and not the knee, if key to achieving this.
I tore my ACL mid April (soccer), no other damage and had surgery less than two weeks ago. Hamstring graft. Not much pain at all, reached 90 flexion day two in therapy, and less than 1 degree to full extension. Current hold up is a knot at the base of my quad which is causing quite a bit of pain beyond 103 degree flex. Any ideas, suggestions??
Welcome Ken and Joanie! Great job on your immediately recovery. I’m taking the same vitamins as Bari suggested and making sure I’m hydrated. I remembered swelling more if my fluid intake was low. I was the same way post-op. No CPM and loved my ice machine. Still do.
As for pain 2 weeks post-you kinda expect it because of the swelling. Ice it daily and elevate. It just takes time.
Suz now 3 months post ACL repair
Hello everyone,
I tore my ACL in February playing indoor soccer. I had ACL reconstruction with a hamstring graft May 12 and a Meniscus repair. My ACL rehab hit a snag after I had a hard time achieving full extension and could only flex about 90 degrees. Last week I had a procedure known as a lateral release to remove scar tissue and make the rehab process easier. Has anyone else has this procedure? It has been a week and I am up to 93 degrees and almost full extension but this procedure makes my knee hurt more than it did after the ACL reconstruction. Thanks for the input. Hope everyone else is doing well.
Hey Warren, sorry to hear about your troubles. I did not have a lateral release (just an ACL repair) but my daughter had one done two years ago. Her knee was not tracking properly and she was constantly popping it out. She seemed to be in significantly more pain after the lateral release than I was after the ACL repair. So now with what you’re saying, I guess I need to apologize to her for calling her a wimp! I’m sad to report that it’s popping out again and she is looking a more surgery. She had to quit TaeKwonDo when she was just two belts from her black.
Anyway, just wanted to let you know you were not alone with the pain and her rehabilitation took longer than mine seems to be taking. She had a very hard time achieving full flexion, but she did after much work. Hang in there!
Stephanie, I think you and I had surgery within a couple of days of each other. I finally got on both feet about 5 or 6 days ago - forced myself to do it. Amazingly, I one-crutched for about a day and a half and then ditched it. Even though I was limping like crazy, it was great to be on both feet again. Then . . .
I just had my first PT today. All I can say is “OWW!” My continual issue of not getting my leg straight came to a head! I was 13 degrees from straight when I arrived, and apparently that’s incredibly bad. There was major shoving and pushing at his full weight, and I was there over 2 1/2 hours, but got it to 3 or 4 degrees off by the end of it all. He said I did great, but I can now understand why everyone has talked about the work just starting after surgery is over. I didn’t like it, but I feel better that I can now walk so well! Thanks for the advice, Micky!
He also mentioned that my calves and IT bundle are incredibly tight, and I’m still having issues with the aftermath of crutches on my nerves in my arm. He strongly recommended massage therapy to loosen up those areas and get the blood flowing better. Will probably start that soon.
In any case, I’m enjoying reading about all your stories and learning how to manage my recovery better.
Thanks!
Deb,
Sorry to hear about your struggles!!! I guess I’m very fortunate regarding the straightening! My surgeons instructions were, brace when sleeping or walking, only off when at PT, icing or showering. I was at 8 degrees first PT visit, one hour, and reached 1 degree by the end, 2nd PT was at 1 when I got there, and less than 0 when I left. I do the excersices ALL the time, watching TV, icing, and in bed with the brace on. Flexing is my issue, got to 90 2nd visit, then 103 independently 3rd visit, beyond that…..OUCH! The best excercise was the leg press, from straight to bent felt good, otherwise alternating caused stiffness and a little pain, especially after the straightening with the Therapist doing the stretching, to then switch to the flex stretching, was definitely NOT fun!!!
I wish you the best on your progress!
Deb, Thanks for the encouragement. I’m on the one crutch program now and am taking a few small steps without. I can’t believe that you can forget how to walk! Slowly I’m feeling a little more confident, but I’m a long way from walking normally. Kicking back is pretty hard, I think because my hamstrings are so weak.
I think people have mentioned this before, but passively straightening your leg, with heel on a rolled towel or bolster works really well for extension. I did this ten minutes out of every hour the first week or so after surgery and still do it multiple times a day.
Good news today was 30 minutes on the stationary bike. Felt great to do something normal, even if I was pedaling incredibly slowly.
I had the allograft in late Jan 09 and am running/sprinting without pain. I was walking without a brace 4 days after and was surprised at how solid the knee was. I chose the allograft because I’m 44 yrs old and plan to play it safe from this point on. To compensate for the theoretical weakness of the allograft, I requested a much larger cadaver tendon. The tendon we received was 11.5 mm and had to be cut down to 11 mm because the drill used is only 11 mm. Average tendon size is 8-9 mm. The doctor was very pleased with the results after surgery and during the first 3 months, saying that we were way ahead of schedule. Maybe it helped to have the larger tendon. Recovery and rehab was easy compared to other sports training. Hope this helps someone…
Kevin,
WOW! running after 5 months! That’s awesome! I sure hope to be that successful, I’d love to be back on the field by the next season!
I’d heard that recovery was much easier with a cadaver tendon, but I opted for my own tissue (hamstring) at the suggestion of the surgeon based on his experience with female athletes, and the choice of tendons. Although the rehab has been a bit difficult because of the graft choice, I’m much more comfortable with my own tissue as opposed to someone else’s! Most of my teammates have had this surgery previously, and some had the donor, some hamstring, overall, the donor recipients recovered more quickly, but aren’t at full capacity even more than a year after surgery, but the hamstring recipients had longer success and are at full strength. I am 16 days post surgery, 103 degree flex independently and 0 straight, am able to walk with one crutch (albeit slowly) with a funky gait, still having difficulty bending enough to walk normally. Teaching myself to walk again sure is frustrating! No pain at all even the day after surgery, but SOOOO stiff from therapy! LOVE my ice machine, especially after therapy! Surgeon has me on the sports rehab protocol and so far I’m ahead of schedule. Therapist expects I’ll be off crutches and out of brace a week ahead of schedule, so I’m thrilled. Keep us updated, it sure inpsires me!
Joanie,
I’m developing a knot as well at the base of my quad right where the incision was. PT said keep the ice on it.
Went to therapy today and gained 15 more degrees of flex from 2 days ago. Up to 90 now exactly 1 week post op. Met a guy today who had a 6 inch incision in a S shape along his knee. Could be alot worse for all of us.
Hi Ken,
My PT said ice too, seems to be working well, the tightness is reducing, and I started icing for 20 right before I leave for therapy and that helped a lot, got another 11 degrees more than yesterday! At 114 now, 14 days post op. At 0 for straightening, but having trouble getting any hyper extension right now. Off the brace during the day, no crutches at home, and actually “walked” unassisted for the first time! Felt sooo good to finally move somewhat normally! Very bizarre to have to THINK about HOW to do something that is normally so natural. You are so right about it being worse, I have seen many people at pt with full replacements, and have learned that I really have nothing to complain about. Keep me posted, seems youre about the closest on the path.
wow - quite a few new “members” in the ACL club.
Joanie - like your idea about the icing before going to PT. It’s true it’s always quite stiff right when I start Pt and then after a while it finally loosens up and I get more ROM.
PT explained to me that my stiffness and swelling is due to “overdoing” it. Too much walking and standing as if nothing has happened - and I caught myself running (kinda) 4 times and PT and Doc said I should not do it.Oups!!!
It just - like everyone else - feels so good to get the feeling to do things “normally” again. And to the point that some of you made - to think about the “how-to?’ of something as simple as “walking” and “flexing” your knee. I seem to be getting to the point (almost 8 weeks post-op)where I finally start forgetting from time to time that my knee is still recovering…and I do everything like before. But I do pay the price later when my knee is so swollen that I cannot bring it to full extension and /or flex.
The magic word is ICE. I even started to carry the “fashionable” re-fillable ice pack from walgreens in my purse so when I’m out for Dinner or Lunch I just fill it up and put it on the knee.
I agree with Joanie and Ken - there are way worse knee surgeries out there. Met also 2 people with knee replacement - OUCH!!! I guess I can consider myself “lucky” to have had just my ACL & Menisectomy.
Question to Bari - you said that you increased your protein intake and added other supplements. Did you come up by yourself with it or did your PT or?? recommend it???
I have been wondering for a while if I could add something to my diet to accelerate the healing process.I might just try your method - can’t hurt.
To all of you a fun 4th of July weekend and Good Luck with your recovery,
Micky
MIcky,
I came up with the supplements myself through a book called “Nutritional Healing”. I’m not sure if it helped but can’t hurt to try. I also took glucosamine chondroitin for a few months. For the increase in protein, I don’t really eat enough protein normally, but found my body craving it, so upped my intake of meats (usually I rarely eat meat, only seafood). I think someone else on the blog’s PT told her to eat more protein as well.
I’m at 4 months today and I feel great. I finally have my energy level back. The knee feels “normal” - I can run now without feeling like someone beat my kneecap with a sledgehammer. I have almost full flexibility (been doing a lot of stretching around the running). 2 months to go before I get the hall pass for full activity level, but did get clearance to start some light hiking.
Good luck!
Bari
Well its official I will be having surgery on the left knee on July 17th to reconstruct the ACL . I have chosen the allograft because I want to keep the strong ligaments intact, also with my famiys history of knee problems, I didnt want to risk getting pataller tendonitis which is common when they tak the patellar tendon. My hamstring tendon is the strongest thing I have so I wish to keep those intact as well. I found out theat not only is my ACL and MCL torn but my PCL is frayed as well not sure what else he will find during the arthroscopy. I have been swelling a lot the last couple of days in the back of the knee. Did anyone chose the femoral block for surgery if so how idi you feel and could you handle yourself. Thanks to all of you who commented on my status keep me updated
by the way I have 117 degree flex and 3degree straight after a couple of weeks of PT I hope that hving the physical therapy before surgery helps after surgery.
thats true about the supplements you should be taking them to promote healing, I have a hard time getting enough protien in my diet to as I dont eat a lot of meat. My childhood I was burn out on beef as my mother always got steak from the meatman so I like chicken ,some white fish and turkey
I will be working hard to increase the meat and beans after surgery to get the most protien i can.
Hi Shawna,
Sorry to hear that you have to have surgery. I had a femoral block before surgery and also anesthesia - I didn’t want to be awake during the surgery. When I woke up, I still had some pain in my knee, so was happy that I’d had the block. You can’t put weight on it the first day anyway, but didn’t have any problem using the crutches. The block wears off by the evening or next morning.
Bari
thanks bari for the information, how your recovery going
SHAWNA
I WAS OUT, NO FEMORAL BLOCK, SURGERY TOOK 90 MINUTES, I WAS AWAKE 30 MINUTES AFTER….AND DYING OF THIRST!!!!HAMSTRING GRAFT…I REACHED 1 DEGREE STRAIGHT ON MY SECOND PT VISIT AND 90 DEGREE FLEX, BY THE 3RD VISIT 0 AND 103, 5TH .0 STRAIGHT AND 114 FLEX…AFTER 6TH…OUT OF BRACE DURING THE DAY…(DR REQUIRES SLEEPING WITH IT FOR 4 FULL WEEKS)…..20% WEIGHT THE FIRST WEEK, THEN WEIGHT AS TOLERATED AFTER THAT, I’M ALMOST THREE WEEKS POST OP, AND AM STRUGGLING WITH INCREASING FLEX. I’M 42, AND HAVE BEEN PLAYING SOCCER MY ENTIRE LIFE. FORTUNATELY MY MUSCLES WERE STRONG AND I HAD NO OTHER INJURY, MENISCUS/CARTILAGE - IN TACT, NO OTHER LIGAMENT TEARS, AND ALTHOUGH THE FIRST FEW DAYS WERE TOUGH ON THE HAMSTRING, IT’S COMING BACK VERY QUICKLY AND I’D RATHER HAVE MY OWN TISSUE THAN SOMEONE ELSE’S! I WAS GLAD TO HEAR HIS ADVICE. THE CADAVER THING GAVE ME THE CREEPS…BUT I HEAR THAT RECOVERY IS MUCH QUICKER AND EASIER AND LESS PAINFUL.
MY SURGEON GAVE THE FOLLOWING INFO TO ME: CADAVER: EASIEST TO RECOVER FROM, BUT THEY ARE TREATED, AND HAVE A TENDENCY TO FAIL OVER TIME RISK OF DISEASE. PATELLA - TEND TO STRETCH OVER TIME FOR ATHLETES WHO PLAY A LOT. HAMSTRING BEST OVERALL RESULTS, AND EASIER RECOVERY THAN PATELLA. SINCE HE’S ON STAFF WITH TWO MAJOR LEAGUE SPORTS TEAMS, I FIGURED I’D TAKE HIS ADVICE! AND I LOVE MY ICE MACHINE!!!
TO BE HONEST, A YEAR AGO, I HAD A PARTIAL ACL TEAR IN MY OTHER KNEE, AND ARTHRITIS IDENTIFIED….THE ARTHRITIS WAS MORE PAINFUL THAN THIS! KEEP US POSTED!
JOANIE
Hi Joanine + all others,
Had a pretty good weekend. Having a good ol time doing heal slides and leg lifts. 10 days post op now and swelling is noticeably decreasing with along with an increase in ROM. Going to PT after work tomorrow so I’ll see where I’m at flex wise.
Shawna,
I think you made the wise decision to go allograft given your family history. I had an allograft in ‘02 on my other knee and so far no problems. Be mindful of the extra time it takes to ensure the graft is firmly anchored in. Elevate with plenty of ice and by day 3 post op you will notice a great improvement with the pain. Just repeat to yourself “make it to day 3″ over and over again.
Thanks every one for the advise, I went to the doctor today you all know that I have been doing PT for the last two week, he told me that we will forgo the surgery at this time because it seems to be healing itself. The doctor said that he has only seen this one time and It was a detroit lion who healled on his own and went on to play football if thats what you call it,those losers. but I am considered his grey area and I will cont with therapy to regain all of the flex I can and we will evaluate in 4 weeks. I went from a MRI complete tear to I dont know, but PT also was baffled by the diagnoses after the second week of therapy. So I can go back to work with modifed restrictions and a don joy knee brace which I hope to have before we go to florida this friday. Im waiting for the rep to call me and come out to measure me. I will keep everyone posted, now I have to get pass 117 degreesflexion and 3-6 degrees on extention.
im thinking of giving up karate especially if i dont have the new graft placed its not worth the trouble, i was 1 year away from my black belt
Hi All,
My PT said something very interesting at my last visit and I wanted to pass it along. He told me that no matter what type of graft has been used to replace your ACL, all will be at their weakest at between 3 1/2 and 4 1/2 months out. Just when you think you’re about to be almost normal, that’s when you need to be most careful! Hope this is helpful.
Take care!
Deb
Deb,
Mine says the same. I’m at 4 months and feel more “normal” than I have in a while. Have to remind myself to be careful!
Bari
Bari - thanks for your answer. Started increasing the protein intake, but …I just can’t help it -don’t like meat that much …so Tofu it is.Will see if I can tell a difference. My Kickbxg Sifu also mentioned glucosamine chondroitin - so I guess there is some truth to it!!!
Shawna - very interesting and exciting that you are healing so well…and could escape surgery…for now.Good Luck to you!
I am now at 8 weeks post-op and finally had full ROM a few days ago. I guess it helped to ice the knee before PT - the swelling was definitely holding me back. And it is hard to stop several times a day to ice the knee once I seem to have gotten back into my usual daily rhythm. But now that I have seen that I am at full ROM I will make a point of taking the time to ice.
But the knee is still visibly swollen - will see what the PT says on FRI. At least I can do stairs up and more importantly down like a “normal” person.
It is absolutely painfree …unless I have been “over-doing” it and I’ll start limping again a bit (unconsciously it happens all by itself - too weird).
I will keep in mind the info about the weakness at mth 3 1/2.
I seem to get anxious if I am in crowded areas (concerts in parks, Symphony, sport events- you get the picture) - what if someone bumps into me and makes me trip. Anyone experienced the same thing? I don’t even know if anything could really happen, but…! The mind is one powerful instrument…!
And on another note - has anyone been flying 2 months post-op?? I have a 6hr flight coming up next week and was wondering if anyone could share some tips…
Thanks,
Micky
Micky, I have flown several times and for a long one, I asked the flight attendant for some ice in a barf bag. She was very willing and offered to refill it without my asking (Southwest Airlines). It was water-tight and worked great!
I have a question for all you healing. I am at 138 degrees flexion and my pt says that’s normal and I shouldn’t expect anything further. However, my good knee’s normal flexion is 145 which she says is not typical so I shouldn’t be shooting for that. Has anyone else been told this? What is everyone achieving there? I want my knee to be just like it was before the injury but maybe this is unrealistic?
Any thoughts would be appreciated.
Shawna,
Wow..interesting but good news. Have you considered a 2nd opinion just to be sure?
Renee,
I just hit 102 degrees flex 10 days post op. My goal (and the OS) is 150 which means I’ll be able to touch my heel to my butt. You may want to work with a different PT if possible for a few sessions just to get his or her feel on your progress.
I saw a different PT yesterday (same office). He had me lay on my stomach and really stretched me good. He said he doesn’t want to see a distinct lack of progress or huge strides in flexibilitiy from week to week…just steady increases in flex.
Hello all,
I am having ACL reconstructive surgery on Tuesday. I completely tore my ACL playing rugby and this is my first real injury. I am 21 yrs old. I am also having my meniscus repaired. What should I expect with surgery? I decided to use my own tissue–just feels like the right decision for me. I am nervous and want to do everything right to be back playing sports ASAP.
Thanks!
Welcome Emily!
Relax! I TOTALLY understand where you are at! I’m 42, and this was my first ever injury too. I tore my ACL, but had no other damage. I had my surgery 3 weeks ago, and I too, plan to be back on the field ASAP! In fact, my beach soccer team is at our annual July tournament this weekend and I’m soooo mad, because I was going to play, but got injured TWO days after I booked my hotel and paid my fees!! I was totally freaked out before surgery, so I can relate. What to expect: First of all everyone is different, every surgery is different, so whatever info you get, remember, all or NONE may apply to you. Depending on what graft is being used will direct your PT afterward. Has your doctor discussed/explained all the types? If not, ASK, and if you don’t understand something ASK. If you look throught the posts, you’ll see every surgery/graft/recovery varies from another. I am 3 weeks post op, progressing ahead of schedule with PT, but honestly, my fears were much worse than reality. You’re an athlete and you’re young, you will likely do much better than I! Keep us posted.
Emily, One more thing, make sure YOU are secure with whatever graft is recommended. Cadaver, hamstring, patella all have different risks and different recoveries…
Joanie,
Thanks for the info. It was reassuring! I’m sorry to hear about you missing your sporting event. Luckily ( if you can say so at all) I was injured during my last game. However, I’m still out for the Fall season completely so I’m bummed. I am using my Hamstring tissue. I hear it may be more painful but I feel more comfortable using my own tissue. Also, going under always makes me nervous. I’m sure it will all be fine. The athlete in me will be ready to bounce back in no time. 5 days!
Thanks!
Hi again Emily,
I was injured the last game prior to playoffs of our last season, so I missed the semifinals and finals (which my team won!). My OS recommended the hamstring as well, and I was worried about the pain, but truthfully it really wasn’t that bad, felt like a sore muscle after playing too much, sitting was uncomfortable, and going to the bathroom was difficult, but not as bad as I anticipated. He said the hamstring was the most reliable long term, using my own tissue eliminated the risk of disease, and that the recovery (time and pain) was easier than using the patella. I’ve had friends that used a cadaver, and their recovery was easier and no pain, but long term many have failed due to the treatment of the ligament for disease and the lack of effective rehab. I did the countdown too, so I’m with you on that!!! I had 10 days after school ended to do my “freaking out” and driving my kids nuts, and then they took care of everything for me for the next week or so, including cleaning, cooking, catering to me, and helping me shower. Now I’m able to do everything myself again (wish they’d still do all the cleaning though!) and I get in the pool daily, feels so good to work on the ROM, and it’s easier in the pool I couldn’t take the pain meds because they made me so sick, after I stopped (i took them initially out of fear of feeling pain if I didn’t), I realized I didn’t have any pain, except the soreness of my hamstring, and only took aleve. My ice machine became my best friend!!! One thing I did was started icing right before I left for therapy, it helped tremendously with my progress. I have actually had more pain during the stretching part of therapy than ANY thing else! Keep me posted, I have your surgery date in my calendar so I remember to check up on ya!!! You’re going to be fine!!! Jot me an email and let me know how you’re doing. leiajesnme@aol.com
Hi all,
I am one month post-op today from a hamstring graft and meniscus trim.
Emily, I was super nervous before my surgery too, but it was actually the easiest part! First three days were the worst for me, but then it gets loads easier. Take those pain meds. I haven’t taken anything for the last two weeks or so and don’t really have any pain.
My biggest issue right now is walking. My gait is super funky, esp. the kicking back part,
and I feel nervous without the crutches (don’t have any kind of brace). All other aspects of rehab seem to be on schedule, but I feel like I’ll be on these crutches forever!!! Any tips?
Hi Stephanie!
I hear you about the gait!!! I’ve been using a 3 lb wait while walking for about 5 days now and it’s helped tremendously! I’m religious about doing the PT at home too, facing a wall and bending up with the weight on, then without to see what if any progress there is.
Hopefully others have some additional ideas! I’ll do anything to improve!!! Good luck!
Thanks, JOanie. Impressive that you are doing hamstring curls with weights - I’ve just been lifting my foot! Can’t wait until I can get in the pool because I’ve heard that that helps alot with gait. I still have a few lingering steri-strips and I’m under strict instructions not to pull them off. I’m sure the wounds are closed but they must have cemented those things on.
Also, has anyone done acupunture to help with healing and swelling?
Hi Stephanie!
I hear you about the steristrips! I still have some tagalongs myself! I figure by 4 weeks they’d all be off! The pool is awesome, I have a mesh “chair” I sit in and I’m able to flex much further than I do out of the water, and my gait has improved a lot.
EMILY!!!!!!! HOW ARE YOU DOING?????
Hi all
I read all info posted by you all - great to know.
I had my right ACL reconstructed using my patellar tendon in December 2007 and did all my PT stuff. It got better and I was walking fine except not running well on my feet for about 6 months. I didnt played any sports until last week (July 2009). The top portion of my shin was hurting bad whenever I make sudden stops and turns in the soccer field. Today is the 3rd day after the soccer and it still hurts a bit.
Any hints please…thanks.
Joanie and all,
Thank you for your concern! I had post-operative problems with breathing so they admitted me. I stop breathing in my sleep apparently so I am unable to take narcotics often and have been on tylenol pretty much. I had a nerve block ( he needed to drill my bone, do my complete reconstruction of my ACL and stitch up my meniscus.) I’m using the CPM now and just got back from the hospital so I’m pretty much just going from couch to bathroom and back. Anything I should be doing at this point? Anything to help with pain–my nerve block is starting to wear off and I’m really starting to feel it–they used my hamstring–apparently my grafts were ok not great.
Hope everyone is doing really well!
Emily!
Sorry to hear about your difficulties! The couch to bathroom time is frustrating but will improve each day, just rest and ice, it’ll get better in time.
I had my 4 wk follow up yesterday and I’m officially out of the brace and off the crutches!! I’m soooo happy about the brace thing, sleeping in it was NO fun! My ROM is 0-130, and my gait is improving daily. Doc apparently knows “my type”, he specifically stated the following “walking, talking, eating and breathing, are ok, no dancing, running, or soccer” while looking me straight in the eye with one eyebrow raised and that “do you understand me young lady?” look, which he held until I looked him straight in the eye and “yes, sir, no problem, I’m following directions, because I WILL play beach next year”…
keep in touch!
Hi Emily
I’d say the biggest thing I did after surgery that helped was to prop my heel on a towel frequently to stretch my leg and get full extension. I NEVER propped anything under my knee, only my heel. I also practiced my “quad tightening” from the day of surgery onward, so by the third day when I was cleared to walk, I could control my leg. Good luck!
Bari
Thanks to all of you for your advice! I’ve postponed my surgery TWICE - and at one point was throwing darts labeled “Hamstring” or “Cadaver” at a dart board in my office lounge! It was sort of a joke, but not entirely.
Well, I’m rescheduled for surgery Thursday the 23rd and am going with the Allograft! Definitely not going to change my mind again. Definitely…….. ?
I’m planning to go back to work on Monday the 27th. Hope I am able to get around. My fiance is going to do the best he can to take care of me. However, he works two jobs also - and can’t afford to miss any work. When I had my Patella graft in 1990, I spent 5 days in the hospital. They did ask me if I wanted to go home on the 3rd day, but I asked to stay. I explained to my surgeon that my parents (who were alive then) lived in a 3 story house and since it was right before Christmas, I knew my Mom would be too busy to take care of me. So, they let me stay. I was uncomfortable enough to be happy to stay there, too. Although, the day after sugery, PT had me walk up and down 7 flights of stairs, and I got to plastic wrap my knee and take a shower the second day, too. I do remember my knee felt solid as a rock from the minute I woke up from sugery and that was a good a feeling I had been missing. I am missing it again in my right knee, now, so I am looking forward to that solid feeling again!
Thanks again for all of your advice. I’ll keep you posted on how allograft feels vs. patella…..
Also, Micky, I still have strange pains in my left knee from time to time. Cold, wet weather gives me strange bone aches…… and I’m 18 1/2 years out from surgery and had an excellent recovery.
http://www.acl-repair.com/using-a-cadaver-graft-or-allograft-for-acl-reconstruction
Hi all. This is a great site and full of information I so desperately need. I snapped my knee backwards playing basketball in high school (1978) and was told that my basketball sized swollen knee only had some minor torn ligaments, take some asprin and stay off it for 6 weeks in a straight brace, no pt, no nothing.
June 2, 2009, 31 years later I fall in the rain and received a grade 3 bucket handle medial meniscus tear and complete ACL tear, or so we thought. My surgeon decided to fix the bucket handle tear first as my knee was locked. He noticed while doing the meniscus repair/removal that my ACL was not there anywhere. I have always had trouble with the knee since the initial injury in ‘78, but didn’t imagine that it had disintegrated in the meantime.
Anyway, my surgeon did a “repair” of the meniscus as it occurred in the “red” zone and wants to go back into the knee in 6-8 weeks to see if the “repair” worked and to fix the ACL. I have been using crutches, non-weight bearing on my left leg since Jun 2, 6.5 weeks. The surgeon said if the repair took, great, we’ll just fix the ACL. If the repair did not take, then he will remove the meniscus and then still repair the ACL. Pray for the repair to take, please.
OMGoodness. 6.5 weeks and 3+ more weeks of non-weight bearing to go just to talk to the surgeon again about the ACL surgery, all the time wondering if my meniscus is healing or simply going to be removed after all of this. argh. My upper arms are getting huge on top of it!
So I’ve been walking around for 31 years supposedly without an ACL in my left leg. Does anyone know if I really need to have the ACL repaired/replaced? I stopped playing sports years ago because of the unstable knee and lower back issues, but that doesn’t mean I don’t crave playing volleyball or basketball anymore. I do a lot of garden and lawn work and work out at the gym mostly now.
I think I have decided on the allograft is for me just because I’ve been down so long I want this to be over with. I have a friend who is very athletic and he had the patellar graft back in Feb 2007. He is still having shin, knee pain which he attributes to the graft site.
Sorry to ramble on, but I have been on the couch all summer and am going stir crazy. As my friend put it, I’m a handicapped prisoner in my own home. I’ve been out of the house 8 times for Physical therapy and twice to the surgeon’s office in the past 6.5 weeks. It is just so hard to get around, always afraid to put weight on the wrong foot, screwing up the “repair” job, waiting around for the ACL surgery.
I won’t even be walking when they do the ACL surgery. Will this hurt my recovery? The surgeon says I can probably start walking immediately after the ACL surgery. But I won’t have walked weight bearing for 8+ weeks.
Any words of wisdom would be appreciated. I promise to make the next post brief! ha
Laurie,
I would check your surgeon’s credentials and then I would find a surgeon who operates on professional football and soccer players with successful outcomes. I had an arthroscopic knee surgery in 1988 that set me back 2 years! I had meniscus damage and removal, and I was weight bearing and had full range of motion the day of the surgery. I did have a lot of pain about 6 weeks after surgery as scar tissue built up. Every body is different and reacts differently - but 8 weeks sounds crazy to me.
Next, I would be doing some strength training on that meniscus repair and be weight bearing with full range of motion (any natural hyper-extension you may have and also bent back as far as you can your other leg.) BEFORE you get ACL surgery. It is important to be able to bend and straighten your knee as soon as possible after surgery (like the day of - they will have you do straight leg raises in the bed and have you sit on the side of the bed and bend your knee. I did 6 months of hard core pt and weight lifting before I had my ACL surgery. I have also been doing PT for about 6 weeks in prep for my right knee ACL surgery.
If you don’t have a full range of motion prior to surgery, you run the risk of having the joint freeze up from scar tissue and requiring more surgery.
Hey Laurie,
Your situation sounds very similar to mine. After recently injuring my knee and having an MRI, I had a bucket handle tear, but also discovered no ACL!! I’m positive that I tore it in high school - 24 years ago.
Since then I’ve been running, hiking, rock climbing all the time, snowboarding - all without an ACL and very few problems. In fact, I didn’t even remember what knee I injured in high school.
Anyway, long story short the consensus was that without part of my meniscus, I really need an ACL and now I have a new one (hamstring graft). I think you’ll have a good outcome by staging the surgeries, even though the waiting is terrible. I actually didn’t have complete range of motion before my surgery, but close enough that my surgeon felt that he could do everything at once. Am currently 5 weeks post-op and I do think that my walking is coming along slowly because of the fact that I wasn’t walking well right before the surgery. Everything else is progressing normally with my extension and flexion (with lots of pt of course!) so hopefully it will all work out.
That said, I hope your repair works. Repair seems way better than removing it and is worth the wait.
Can you work on range of motion now or do you have to wait for the repair to heal? I felt like maybe I didn’t need an ACL either given my long history without one, but I was the only one who thought that…so I figured I’d trust all the surgeons and PTs.
Good luck and try to be patient…I’m working on that one too!
Hi, thanks for the responses. Stephanie seems we are in the same boat. I had 8 sessions of pt and am doing all my exercises at least 3 times a day. I’m up to 100 straight leg lifts (easily) and do all the quad flexes that I can. I’ve always had strong legs so am vigorously pursuing the exercises without overdoing it. I’m at 0 degrees extension (whoo hoo) and around 87 degrees of flexion. My doc wants me to continue everything as is for two more weeks to fulfill the 6 weeks repair rule, then start 60-80 lbs of weight on a bathroom scale until I see him again. Then we’ll discuss the ACL.
Just a note on my 1st post, the reason I’m non-weight bearing for 6 weeks is that the meniscus was repaired and has 4 sutures in it. If I were to put weight on it, it would essentially squish the meniscus in all different directions and it wouldn’t heal (not exactly what would happen but sort of). We are praying it heals and remains intact. I can see how it looked like my doc was crazy because I didn’t explain it fully. Had he removed the meniscus, he would have waited 3-6 months to replace the ACL after the knee was good and healthy. Sorry for the confusion.
This blog is wonderful.
Hi Laurie,
It’s not uncommon to be on crutches for at least 6 weeks with meniscus tears. I just had the ACL reconstruction myself so was able to bear weight right away post-op. The way my surgeon put it, the more unstable your knee is (as in unrepaired ACL over the years) the more damage you are doing on not only your meniscus but your cartilage as well. If you are fit and up to the challenge of PT post ACL repair, I suggest you just get it done and over with.
As for the rest of the newly repaired ACLs, it’ll get better soon. I’m now close to being 4 months post ACL reconstruction and boy do I feel good. I’m so tempted to run on it but my surgeon is very adamant about waiting until 6 calendar months. I did cheat a little and ran on the mini-tramp for 15 mins x3 days and paid for it big time. My knee was super sore and I sort of freaked out thinking I messed it up. After leaving it alone for a couple of days, my knee feels super again. Is this normal? Hey Bari, does you knee ever give you grief after your runs? Anyhoo, PT once a week now. Can’t wait until September. Good luck to all.
Suz
Good morning all… it has been a while though I do follow your posts. I was in Bari’s “class” of ACL and meniscus repairs. Am now 4 months out and feeling very good! I was immobilized in a brace and on crutches for about 6 weeks post op and wanted to throw my crutches and brace in the ocean by the time I was done. After immobilization PT and rehab. became my job and it really didn’t take long to start seeing progress. My surgeon kept my activities very limited, elliptical and exercise bike only with stretching, squats and lunges of every type imaginable.
Just had my 4 month functional test and passed easily. The surgeon has now cleared my to do most things including golf, running, horseback riding, climbing, yoga, and all exercise machines. I am still not cleared for tennis or skiing (until the 6 month mark) and he asked me to wait one month to white water raft.
Most days my knee feels fantastic. Every once in a while it gets a kink but never any swelling or pain. My PT did tell me to ease into all of these activities starting with 2o minute increments over time.
So, to all of you who feel there is no end, there is an end and you will be surprised how quickly time goes by.
Suz- my knee feels funny while running, and then a little creeky after running… just cut it back a little.
Best of luck to all!!
Hi All!
In answer to Suz’s question - yes it does give me problems when running, especially right after I first started at 6 weeks. I had to back off. It would feel like my kneecap had been beat with a sledgehammer. The PT gave me a bunch of stretches, which seemed to get the kneecap tracking properly, and I’ve been able to build up my time and mileage. I did 6 miles on Wednesday, which was too much. My knee has been sore again. 4.5 miles feels comfortable right now.
I’m at about 4.5 months post surgery and realize it is important to keep doing the lunges, squats, etc even though I’m running and cycling so much that I usually feel too “tired” to do my PT exercises. They are important because they build supportive muscles that the other activities do not.
Laurie, my surgeon said that I could have opted not to replace the ACL, but that would have meant limiting my activities. Without an ACL you are much more prone to meniscus and cartilage damage, as well as arthritis. I’d say do it! Maybe you can return to some of the sports you gave up.
But, it’s your own decision. I’d advise talking to your surgeon about all the possibilities as well as maybe getting a second opinion. Definitely from someone who specializes in this kind of sports related injury.
Bari
Tammy,
Thanks for the support! I had a meniscus tear as well and my surgeon is most concerned about getting that healed. I am only 4 days out of surgery and already tired of not being able to do stuff. I am able to put extremely minimal weight on my leg with crutches only. I am using my CPM machine and am up to almost 60 and advised not to go past 90. My pain is manageable. I am most scared of re-injuring. My doctor says the hardest thing with me and other athletes is getting us to take the time to recover. I play rugby and want to be back out there ASAP. At this point I’m still no weight, on crutches, trying to get sleep. Hopefully it does get better soon!
Also, I used my hamstring for a graft–anyone else? Any suggestions for getting that leg back up to par ( or I guess post surgery care)? My doc said a year for full recovery and muscle regain of that. Also, anything at this point I can be doing to protect my meniscus repair–the doc said he did what he could but at this point it’s up to G-d and nature.
Thanks everyone!
Hi all,
It is great to hear how well people are doing at 4 months!! Progress seems slow and frustrating sometimes and it is hard to stay positive, so it is especially nice to hear about good results.
Emily, I had a hamstring graft also. Don’t freak out if it feels super weak for awhile. One week after surgery I couldn’t even lift my heel behind me (like a hamstring curl) but it gets better. The graft site takes a little while to heal (8 weeks??) so I am supposed to be careful about straining it during that time.
Tammy, I was excited to hear that you were cleared to climb after 4 months. That is my main sport so I would love to hear how that goes for you.I’ve been climbing avidly for 17 years without an acl no problem. Of course, now that I have one it seems like I could hurt it doing anything! Strange how the mind works
This forum is amazing! It helps so much to read your comments above. I’m scheduled for ACL surgery next Thursday. I tore my ACL completely, and have a large tear in the medial meniscus. I’ve opted for allograft, being one not able to bear physical pain well. I’m in the nervous stage right now, thinking about post-op pain. Will keep you posted!
Sarah-
I am also having my acl reconstruction surgery next week - actually on Monday, Aug 3.
Like you also having a allograft. Finished PT today and will resume a week or os following surgery. I know what you mean about nerves……
KennyT - you’re having PT? my doc didn’t prescribe that for me. do you have a link to the home exercises i should be doing to prepare for the surgery? i’ll definitely keep you posted on how it goes since mine is a couple of days before yours!
Yea, have had PT for 4 weeks now since my injury. I don’t have a link to the prescribed exercises as I go to a PT clinic. Every week is different and at different levels. They have been working me hard to get my quad’s back and my hamstring back on my right leg before surgery. That has involved a series of various stretches to regain my extension and flexion back. There must be a site to describe this - sorry I don’t know a good one. Some of my exercises have included a type of marching where I extend my knees up during a walk. Also, squats (very tough at first), things like that plus more.
My extension has improved to approximately 1 degree of normal and my flexion has increased to 134 degrees. That being said, without my ACL brace, I have great difficulty walking for any distance however, short.
kt
Well, I’m at 4 weeks post op (allograft) and progress is going well. I’m at full extension and 140 flex. The recumbent bike has been a great tool to improve flex.
I still ice as there is some swelling still, especially at the incision located on my lower thigh.
Back to more leg lifts.
I had my allograft surgery on Thursday and came thru with flying colors. I’m allergic to anethetics and have a lot of trouble with waking up and nauseau. This time, they did good and I woke up right away and I had NO Nauseau!
I’m bearing partial weight on right knee with crutches, have about 120 degree flexion and am about 5 degrees off in extension. I am hoping to get the go ahead to walk with out crutches in PT today. It’s not that I CAN’T walk without crutches, it’s that the Doc doesn’t want me to. Stopped taking pain meds yesterday, except at night and am doing really well!
Hi all;
This site has been awesome for me to read as I have gone through recovery following an autograph (patellar tendon) ACL reconstruction on March 30. Because of the small size of my knee & an extra washer that was used besides my screws for the surgery, I was considered to be at risk for a fracture and had to wear an immobilizer on my leg for six weeks–except when I was taking a shower or in PT. Because of the immobilizer, my recovery has taken a LOT longer than everyone else seems to recover on this site–but I wanted to weigh in tonight, because I am finally excited about my progress at Week 17/Month 4. Since the 4th of July, my PTs and I are noticing considerable progress–and so did my PA on Thursday. I wanted to weigh in to let those of you who have had complications of any sort and haven’t progressed according to plan to hang in there and keep up with your stretches and physical therapy programs. My PTs have been awesome and I could not have done this without them. My goal for the New Year was to end 2009 in better shape than I began; my ACL tear and surgery put me behind initially, but I think I am going to come out of this much stronger and more active. I am starting to believe I will ski again by February 2010, a year after the accident–and I was fearful 2 months ago with the initially slow progress. Keep icing!!!!!!!
I can’t wait until I’m at week 17. Seems like a long way off.
Had my 1 month post op check with the OS today. He did the normal femur/tibia manipulation and
everything is nice and tight. Zero pain which is nice as well. The brace is permanently gone but no running for 10 more weeks. I am working hard on rehab, however, I am truly amazed regarding how I’m progressing.
Range of motion is key. Keep doing your heel slides and work on the bike.
Sarahdippity-
Good luck on your surgery on Thursday. Let me know how you are doing.
thanks
kt
Ken,
Got my heel to my butt! Now I’m going to work on getting it past my butt like my other leg and like this leg used to be.
Thank you for encouraging me to keep going.
Renee,
I have about 10 more degrees to reach your level. How many weeks postop are you?
Thanks all for being an inspiration for me to go ahead with my surgery. I’m 47, tore the ACL completely (no other damage), and had allograft reconstruction 12 days later. My doctor’s great and very aggressive - started me with the CPM at 0-60 deg, increasing 10 deg each day. I was at 90 three days after the surgery but I’ve been resisting pushing to 100 and 110 since I read somewhere that one needs to be conservative with pushing allografts past 90 too quickly. Anyone know what the appropriate flexion should be on the CPM in the first week post op?
Ken, I’m WAY ahead of you in weeks so you are ahead of where I was at your stage! Had my surgery March 11. Knee feels pretty good but my pt was trying to say 138 flexion was “normal”. I appreciated telling me I can do more and I went ahead with it. I have since stopped going pt consistently ($30 a pop was getting old) and am going it alone with occasional pop-ins for progress checks.
Looking forward to that six month mark in Sept. when I will be cleared for everything!
hey everyone, its me again remember i told you guys about three weeks ago that i would not need to have the surgery. Well a lot has happened since then while on vaction with the children in Florida i slip with the good leg on the wet pavement. It hurt a bit but not for long. the other day i was at work sitting in a chair when one of my co workers clipped my foot with his big foot and twisted my knee. It hurt like a bitch and i left work crying. I called the doctors office and was given an appointment for the next morning, when i told him of the two reinjuries and he tested my leg he said it was time to fix this problem. The knee has become unstable again this after 7 week of waiting for the MCL to heal and my muscles to get stronger around the knee. I have a lot of pain now after the second injury and i’m glad to finally get this problem resolved. I will be having the surgery on Aug 7th to fix the ACL, Drain the fluid fron the PCL and see of the meniscus is now torn. He said he doubts he will have to fix the MCL and doesn’t want to, but who knows whats going to happen when he gets in there. I am buying my cold therapy from donjoy and will have it and my defiant brace before the surgery, i will be wearing that brace when ever i get back into karate for at least 6-10 months until i know that knee is totally healed. I have a question how long did you all have to wear the postop donjoy brace? sorry for such a lenthy post. wish me luck
i have a quetsion: Why do orthopedics have different interpret MRI’s different?
I popped my left inward and then popped back into place, i iced it for 7 days+motrin every 4hrs+ always elevated (7dys). Went to get an MRI cause i already had an ACL reconstruction on my right knee before so i knew something was wrong.
First orthopedic told me ACL was torn completely and needed surgery, but second orthopedic said that MRI could be wrong and that i need a few weeks to heal it with light exercise and no operation needed. Both doctors saw the MRI but had different interpretations WHY? So who do i trust? The older doctor that said no operation, or the young one saying that i need the expensive ACL operation?
thank you for any help.
ps: I am 37 in ok shape and play soccer twice a week and want to continue playing, hurting was on the inside part+back part of the knee. Both orthopedic did the pulling and pushing test of the leg also.
Hi All!
7 weeks out now and really starting to enjot myself again! Cleared for just about anything I want to do except twisting activities. Biking, walking, swimming, even running if I feel up to it! There is a large bright light at the end of this tunnel! Woo-hoo!!
Just one question of you veterans who may can offer advice. I remember someone mentioning that you developed a popping or catching in your knee sometime and I’m wondering about that. I have started getting a pretty painful catch just above the kneecap every so often, and I’m not sure if it’s something to worry about. It’s painful to straighten my leg, then it pops, then it’s okay. Is this normal, or should I check with my PT about it?
Thanks again for all your help and support!!
Hi Deb,
I have some of that catching also. Feels like it is on the outside of my knee. I talked to my pt about it and she said that it might be some scar tissue catching and she did some manipulation of my kneecap and scars just yesterday. It didn’t solve it, although I think it might be a little better. Not much to go on, but hopefully others have some suggestions!
Hi guys!
I just had my surgery yesterday. The pain is worse today than it was last night when I came home. Guess because I was pretty drugged up and plus the doc might have given me a few numbing shots right after surgery. I’ve been surviving all night last night and all day today with the ice machine hooked up continuously. Doc’s instructions are to run it for 30 mins, rest 2 hours, then start again. But I’ve had it on 24/7 almost. It helps so much! If you’re not sure if you should get the ice machine, I say YES! You’ll be so glad you did! For pain relief, I have Motrin and Percocet. Been taking 1 or the other around the clock. I try to stay ahead of the pain, but sometimes it catches up unexpectedly before its supposed to. I slept well last night because the Percocet knocked me out. Not sure about tonight. The leg is throbbing more right now.
I was on the sofa all day today with nothing to do but watching TV, so I blogged about the surgery yesterday. If you’re interested in reading more, it’s at http://loveyourknees.wordpress.com/.
Will keep you posted on how things go with the knee tomorrow via the blog!
Sarah
[...] Using a Cadaver’s Graft or Allograft for ACL Reconstruction [...]
Hello, and Peace be upon you all.
I am 21 years of age and have played basketball competitively throughout my life. In August of 2008 I tore the ACL in my left knee. Initially not knowing it was an ACL tear (my first doctor said since nothing was fractured in my bone according to an xray, my knee should be fine in 3 weeks), I went months without even considering surgery. About 3-4 months later I went to an orthopedic with an MRI I had gotten, in which case he “rudely” told me to get surgery. The fashion in which he dealt with the situation made me uncomfortable and I denied the option of surgery, thinking that I would be back on the basketball court by July of this year. July came, and I played basketball and on a play involving lateral-movement, I “tweaked” my knee (or ACL?) really bad and could not bend it for about 2-3 days. The worst part about this was that I could not physically do the motions of sitting in prayer, and prostrating my head to the floor
It has been roughly 11 months since this initial incident and I have another MRI scheduled on the 4th of August (to see if anything else has happened to my knee since the initial injury) and surgery scheduled for August 21st. My NEW orthopedic has proposed the idea of having a surgery involving an allograft cadaver replacement. I am not too sure about this now that I have read the various opinions and experiences posted on this blog. This is because I would ultimately like to play basketball at a competitive level again, God-Willing.
Should I ask for an autograf instead?…..What do you guys think?
-Ali
Sarah,
After 3 days post op your pain level should noticeably decrease. Just make sure you don’t elevate your leg with a pillow directly under your knee. That will hamper getting your knee to full extension. Good luck with rehab.
Ali,
It will take longer to get clearance for b-ball using the allograft.
Ali - Through my research, it seems that autograft is the option for more serious athletes, especially if you’re younger than 40. I think autograft will be the stronger candidate than allograft. You may want to get a 2nd medical opinion on this before going ahead with surgery. Good luck with surgery!
Ken - Thanks for checking in with me! I woke this morning with a throbbing knee. It felt like there’s an alien inside my knee trying to get out! I know too many Ripley Alien movies! I took 2 percocets, and now feeling much better. I was 15 minutes behind schedule with my pain killers and boy! Was that a mistake!
Going on Day 2 after surgery now.
Sarahdippity
ali - its spoke to two docs about the allograft procedure and they told e that the sucess rate is far better with the autograft, and on top of that one doctor told me that if something went wrong with the allograft (like infection, body rejects it, etc) that i would have to get maybe 3 more surgeries to fix it! needless to say at 37 yrs old i will get the autograft soon.
this is from: http://www.genufix.com/acl_inform.htm
In order to avoid so called “donor morbidity”, allografts have been advocated as a potential source of the ACL replacement. A tissue is harvested from a cadaveric donor (a dead person), and is harvested in a sterile fashion to avoid contamination by bacteria, and is then frozen. The donor is screened for historical risk factors for such infectious diseases as hepatitis, syphilis, and AIDS. Furthermore, the donor’s blood and tissues are tested for these diseases. All donor material must test negative.
In order to avoid so called “donor morbidity”, allografts have been advocated as a potential source of the ACL replacement. A tissue is harvested from a cadaveric donor (a dead person), and is harvested in a sterile fashion to avoid contamination by bacteria, and is then frozen. The donor is screened for historical risk factors for such infectious diseases as hepatitis, syphilis, and AIDS. Furthermore, the donor’s blood and tissues are tested for these diseases. All donor material must test negative.
Transfer of the AIDS (HIV) virus from tissue donors to recipients despite negative tests, according to reports by the CDC in Atlanta and by the Red Cross, is an extremely rare phenomenon. Testing has improved substantially, and thousands of allografts have been done safely. AIDS IS CERTAINLY A SMALL BUT THEORETICAL POSSIBILITY, with risk estimates at 1 in 800,000 to 1 in a 1,000.000. Another concern about allograft is the potential for tissue rejection. Unlike the heart, kidneys, and other transplanted tissue, transplanted bone and tendon is froze, thereby eliminating its “antigenicity”, which is the capacity to induce a rejection by the host. Therefore, fresh sterilely harvested and frozen allograft tissue appears to be a safe and effective form of ACL reconstruction, with an acknowledged risk for potential of transmitting infectious disease including: AIDS, hepatitis, syphilis, bacterial infections, and a minimal risk of rejection. Studies to date appear to show allograft tissues are strong and heal in a fashion similar to autografts, but perhaps more slowly and incompletely. They may stretch out more, and may take longer to heal.
hope this helps
will
Sarahdippity
Glad you made it thru your surgery Thursday. Sounds like you are doing as well can be expected.
Mine is coming up Monday - not sure if I am looking forward to getting it over with or not. Are you having to elevate your knee at night? Do you use crutches to get around during the day?
thanks
Ken T.
Sarahdippity thanks for letting us know about your surgery and recovery period, it looks like you are doing as good as expected. Did you get the femoral block, that is an option they do now for knee surgery that would have kept you comfortable for about 8-12 hours. I will be having my surgery on Aug 7th and i’m nervous as hell about the recovery process. It doesn’t help that i’m a nurse in the OR and do knee scopes with ACL reconstruction and meniscus repair on a daily basis. I will be praying for a full recovery for you. I will be buying an ice machine from donjoy to use since the game ready is a $250 rental cost for two weeks only. I got injuried on june 6th and thought that i had by passed the surgery until one of my co workers caught my foot with his and twisted my knee to the side. Its hurting more now then the original injury. I understand what Ali is going through it hurts. I also think i have a bakers cyst on the PCL that is now preventing me from flexing to my 128 degrees due to the reinury of the MCL and twisting of what ever else. good luck guys and i will keep you posted on the progress.
Acl blog
Shawna. Wow a nurse who works around this all the time. I’d love to ask a few questions. I’m 47, don’t do sports anymore, but a lot of gardening and landscaping and work out at the gym. I fell on June 2 resulting in a bucket handle tear of the medial meniscus. June 17, surgeon repaired meniscus as the tear was in the red zone and was a clean tear. He also noted that my ACL was not there, like it had disintegrated, probably from 1978 injury.
4 weeks of PT got me 87 flexion and 0 extension. I continue to do all my PT exercises 2-3 times daily, mostly 3 times.
July 16 surgeon states that he would do the ACL reconstruction and look at the meniscus to see if it had healed, if yest, GREAT, if not, he’d remove it (ugh). He told me to start bending the knee past 90 degrees but not to push it, and on July 30 (6 weeks post-op) start putting 60-80 lbs of weight on bathroom scale.
I have tried for 18 days to bend my knee past 90 degrees and can’t seem to do it, there is so much pain and still some swelling. Should I push it more? I just started putting weight on the leg last week and that seems ok. I meet with the surgeon Thursday to talk about the ACL surgery. I can’t walk, can’t hardly put weight on the leg, and can’t bend past 90 degrees.
Is it normal not to be able to bend the knee past 90 after 7 weeks of repair surgery? or should it really really hurt in doing so?
Which donjoy ice machine are you looking at and do you have a good place to buy it?
Which knee wrap would you recommend?
and lastly, have you ever seen/used the cyrocuff autochill system?
http://www.hat-trick-sports.com/item–Cryo-Cuff-Knee-with-AutoChill-System–CryoCuff_Knee_Chill
thanks for your input and for all that are going through this, good luck.
laurie i think you should be getting more flex then you currently have and you should be able to walk on the leg by now. What is your therapist saying about the flex and extension. Knee surgery adn recovery is no picnic of walk in the park it reguires hard work and dedication. I think you may be exericing to much two to three times a day. You should be icing the knee every day several times a day if you have a lot of swelling. I’m getting the ice machine from a don joy rep who takes care of southern michigan, he came to measure me for a functional brace before we decided to do the surgery. My doctor was impressed with the progress i was making, this before my co worker cought my foot with his and twisted my knee as my foot drug to the side. I know that your tear is different from mine, but at 7 weeks you should be doing better. Please get a second opinion and get the knee fixed right, it could be scar tissue that is hindering you or a baker cyst in the tibia, PCL or somewhere in the bak of the knee. i believe that cryo system has been around for a long time, but i don’t know much about it. I like the game ready system but is ifs too epensive. the donjoy system is $180 to buy and i know i will need the ice macine for quit some time. We are all predisposed to arthtiis and swelling after working out. I wish you much luck in your recovery and diecision to get the ACL done. The people on this site have been great and if you read the post from them you can learn a lot. After a patient has his/her surgery i dont see them anymore, so i am learning from experience and hopefully i can help give insight a little better. I see my co workers in Labor and delivery giving advise to women having babies and they have never been preganant, so i will be able to tell you more when i experience the surgery for myself, which is coming up on friday. I got 128 degrees flex with my PTs help
I’m 12 days post surgery with allograft! Thank you to all of those who talked me into the allograft! This has been a piece of cake. I went back to work on day 4. Quit using crutches on day 4, quit taking pain meds as of day 4, and have resumed yoga as of day 11. I am walking up stairs using ‘bad’ leg first for strength exercise, and am working on gently being able to cross my legs indian style again. I have been going to therapy only one time each week and they are telling me to ‘hold back’ and not stretch out graft. So, I am trying to be very careful not to push it. I am one degree off in extension from my left leg and have regained 140 degrees flexion - which is all my flexion and am able grab my heel and pull it to my buttock like my left leg.
I still have some pain, weakness and swelling, but all is going well. I got my sports brace and am wearing that now to work, and out gardening and such.
I guarantee all of you I will have all my extension back by next Monday, and will continue to stay off the horse and not trip over my dog!
[...] subscribed to The ACL Repair Blog and read this inspiring post from Katherine who is just 4-month post-op and yet is doing so much [...]
Surgery is tomorrow, i’m very excited to be getting this problem fixed, my patella has been killing me, since i got injuried. has anyone experienced that with their ACL tear.
good shawna! let us know how you’re doing post-op!
katherine - would you share how you’re able to recover so fast and so nicely? i love reading your comment and even blogged about it bc its so inspiring!
Shawna, thanks for all the info to my questions, some of your answers were right on the nose. Saw the Dr. today and he agreed that my flexion should be much better and probably is due to scar tissue, so I start pool therapy tomorrow.
Good luck tomorrow and keep us posted on your recovery.
Hello All,
I’m back. I had surgery July 14th and it seemed to have gone well—until it went septic. Since then I’ve been in the hospital for 2 weeks ( just home 2 days ago) and had 2 more washout surgery. I have a PICC line and require IV antiboitics twice a day for 6 weeks. Anyone else go through this??? I’m hoping it doesn’t interfere too much with my knee–which my surgeon says despite all odds, seems to be healing well. I’m in my CPM up to 90, and walking on crutches. I’m supposed to rest according to my med doctors and walk and move according to orthopedics.
Anyone have any experience with this?
Hey everyone, i had my surgery 5 days ago and i’m doing about as good as expected. I have a lot of pain in my thigh at this time and some knee pain. I have pretty good quad control and can but is scared to walk without the crutched, but i did take off the hot donjoy brace, i just couldn’t take the heat. I was suppose to go to therapy today but my PCP didn’t get my referral on time so i will try again tomorrow. I went with the fem block and the cont infusion of rupivacaine through the catether in my groin for two days, and i went to sleep with propafol and i was good to go. I got some good drugs for pain which i try to take the least amount of like night time only and i use the ice machine all the time. My three small scope incicsions look really good and i go in on friday for the stitches to be removed(which I can do myself) but I guess they need to take an x ray to see how everthing is. I tried to flex the knee and can get only 40-50 degrees before the swelling stops me from bending. I have a lot of work ahead of me, but the last time i had PT I did it and fast so I think I will do well, and hopefully have 117 degrees by next week maybe better then that. I will keep you guys posted on my sucess, and I am so glad that I had this done, so I can have my life back.
laurie
I am so glad that the Doctor is working to get you going, what does he plan on doing about the scar tissue? Did he do passive ROM to see if he can break some of the scar tissue up. I hope they don’t have to go back in for your sake, to remove the scar tissue. Good luck and keep me posted on your progress.
Hi Everyone,
Unlike a lot of you, I’m not athletic and unfortunately, I need an ACL replacement,& meniscus repair. Surgery is August 18th. I’m a bit nervous. I torn my meniscus in 2006 and two Saturdays ago, I re-injured it while rushing down the stairs for the train. I stepped the wrong way trying to pass someone going really slow in front of me.
I have to have the allograft as my patella tendon is already weak and my doc fears weakening it further and putting me at risk for further damage and needing full knee replacement later on. I’m 40 and I’m a little concerned about the recovery. As I’m not physically fit, my doc did caution me that my recovery may take longer. I live alone and my sis will come over to help me. I was wondering how long until I can be independent again? I’m taking two weeks off from work.
How long did you need to stay at home? I’m wondering if it’s better to take a 3rd week off or just get right back into it? My doc says well have to see as it happens. I was wondering how bad the first week of PT is?
My doc has a different method then a lot of you describe. He recommends no PT after surgery for about 2 weeks. He said it’s more important to deal with any inflammation then rush to PT. Inflammation causes pain. So get the inflammation down as much as possible. He feels that his patients recover quicker. He recommends this to all the pro and non-pro athletes he treats.
He also gave me a cooling machine and some type of exercise machine and of course a very attractive brace.
I’m really grateful for this site and have enjoyed reading everyone’s post. There’s a lot of great info here.
-Joanne
Dear Joanne,
I disagree with your doctor’s protocol. You really need to get most of your range of motion back with in two weeks. To not do so will delay your recovery. I had my left knee acl done in 1990. I injured it severely enough that I required PT prior to surgery. (Which, by the way, you should also be doing.) I saw a lot of women in PT who had the ACL surgery and were in worse shape than me. I decided to NOT have the ACL surgery, as I was in better shape than these women (some college scholarship athletes) without an ACL. As time went by, my knee got worse and worse. I was at a college party and met some scholarship athletes who were still playing with ACL scars on their legs. I asked who their surgeon was. I got the same name.
So, I went to him, had a very successful ACL surgery, and just had my right knee done (allograft this time) three weeks ago today. I was off crutches in 4 days, back to work in 4 days. I had my full range of motion back within two weeks. I am virtually pain free now. I have some medial-collateral weakness, and do not begin weight training for 10 more days, as my graft is too new.
The point of all this is: your surgeon is the most important aspect to a successful outcome in ACL surgery. You need someone - or a group of doctors, who work on professional athletes. If they can get athletes back to playing professionally in running and cutting type sports, they can get middle aged ladies like myself back up and running.
Katherine
Hi Joanne!
I opted for allograft too for my surgery which took place exactly 2 weeks ago on 7/30. I’ve been working from home ever since. I think to be safe you’d need at least 2 weeks off from work to recover well. If you feel like you need to, a 3rd week home is also helpful and less stressful for you. As to when you can be fully independent, I’m not sure yet since I’m not quite there yet either. Though I’ve improved a lot since the surgery and can now walk around the house on 1 crutch and am able to carry a few things with my free hand!
Your doctor sounds like a very conservative doctor. Having gone through surgery just 2 weeks ago and am in the recovery process, I feel that the sooner you’re able to start PT, the better you will feel. With the swelling, yes it will hurt more when you exercise, but the result will make you very happy because PT makes you much stronger than no PT! And I’m speaking totally from personal experience! I’ve felt so much better ever since I started PT (about 5 days post-op). The first PT session is probably an easy one in which the therapist will show you the exercises you need to do at home.
Hope this helps a bit, Joanne! If you want more info, I’ve been blogging on my ACL surgery and recovery at http://loveyourknees.wordpress.com. It’s therapeutic and I hope will also help others who are going through the same thing as we are.
Let me know if you need anything else. Good luck with the surgery! Once it’s all over, you’ll be so glad you have this done now because it will make you stronger later!
Sarah
-Joanne
Katherine dear,
I’m still in AWE of how fast you’re recovering!! I can’t believe you were off crutches 4 days post-op! That’s amazing!! Keep us posted on how you’re doing please! You’re an inspiration!
Sarah
I’m 3 weeks post surgery TODAY. I am pretty much pain free, and am able to lock my knee in full extension as of yesterday! I have been unable to do that, due to the torn ACL forming a ‘cyclops’ at the base of my knee cap and preventing me from having full range of motion prior to surgery. I did PT before surgery, but was unable to get my leg completely straight.
I have to say that not being able to lock my knee was less obtrusive to my life than my 1988 ACL injury. Then my knee popped out and hurt like #$@@!!%#$*&!!!@#! (Fill in with your own choice words!)
Joanne, I had surgery in 1988 on my left knee that set me back two years - until I get my ACL repaired by someone who knew what they were doing in 1990! That’s why I suggest you research physicians and options in your area. I was 19 and SUPER FIT and athletic then - and had a bad result. Having two surgeries for the price of one REALLY stinks! I learned the hard way!
Good luck to all and happy healing!
Katherine
Joanne, this blog “Yes Knee Can” helped me a lot during my surgery/recovery period. You may find it useful too! The blog author said her friend took of 3 weeks from work for her recovery. You may want to do the same just to be on the safe side?!
http://yeskneecan.com/
Btw, I’m 2 weeks post-op today! Walk with one crutch, and no more brace! I’m so happy about ditching the brace! PT twice a week with my wonderful therapist, and twice a day at home. I love PT. It helps me so much to get my life back, albeit a bit slowly, but still mini-steps forward!
Hey guys I went to PT for the initial visit post op. My therapist said that i was doing well and I have 90 degrees flex and 10 extension today, i hope by next week i will be at 110 dreggre flex and 6 extention on monday when i return. My knee is hurting a lot 7/10 on the scale but i have been making the best of it. ON friday i got for my first post op visit to get the stitches out but all the scope incisions look great. the swelling is problem but i am icing the leg and elevating ost of the time. My quads are firing and i have a little strengh in those and hope to be walking without crutches next week. I got rid of that hot brace the second day post op, when i got the feeling back in my foot, after the fem block. Joann keep working hard doing leg lifts and kneew bends, and leg press downs, and dont forget to ice, but you should have started PT 5-7 days after surgery and going 2-3 times per week for the next 6 weeks min. good luck with everything
Thanks, Katherine. I actually got it wrong. I will be off from work two weeks but going to PT after 1 week. He’s giving me the CPM machine too to exercise.
I’ve been going to PT prior to my knee injury for my shoulder, but have been continuing to go 3x per week until the surgery on the 18th. He wants me to strengthen my knee and quads as much as possible before surgery. I’ve been doing the stationary bike for 15 minutes and I’m back to taking stairs up and down. But I’m being cautious as I still feel some tenderness on the inner side of my knee which is the meniscus.
I totally agree with what you’re saying. I did research my physician and he was a team physician for the PGA, LPGA, AVP, USBL, ABA, NFL, New York City Marathon and Olympics. He still takes care of pro athletes. He also takes care of broadway dancers, ballerinas and other entertainers. A lot of organizations have voted him top doctor…etc. I like that he’s conservative and not surgery happy.
Wow, Katherine, you’re really recovering fast, off crutches after 4 days and back to work too.
Hi Sarah,
Thanks for the website. It is very helpful.
I think I may go for the 3rd week off as my boss is very “funny” about sicks days. So it’s best for me to take a block of time off then need one here and there. It would be less stressful too as I live in Brooklyn, NY and would have to commute on the train for about 45 minutes to Manhattan. My office wasn’t very comfortable for me with just the knee injury. I was able to ice, but I could get my leg elevated to a comfortable height as nothing around me worked (step stool, boxes…etc). I think this way I can concentrate on PT and just work from home.
That’s good that you are able to walk now. My PT told me today, that the hardest part of recovery is being patient and letting your body heal. But I’m scheduled to go back to PT 3x a week after the 1st week of surgery off. My doc is conservative, but also he seems very involved in trying to find solutions and inventions to make patients heal faster.
I was joking with my doc today, as his office is also shared by the PT, that I’m feeling better and maybe I don’t need it. He winked at me and said I’ll see you Tuesday. You’re going to be fine just trust me and follow what I tell you. So I guess that’s it.
Thank you, good luck with your recovery too. I’m more worried about recovery and feeling helpless, then the actual surgery. I’m sure I will be better after it’s all said and done, but it’s just getting to the finish line. Right now it seems it will take forever.
-Joanne
Hi Katherine,
That’s wonderful after 3 weeks to progress so much. What ever you are doing is working! I am working my knee as much as possible, on on the bike 2x per day now.
I had a cousin who had numerous knee surgeries from about 15 - 20 years ago and the technology has advanced so much since then. Her surgeries didn’t end well for her, as she also had Lupus, which affects the joints very severely. Unfortunately for her, the pain was so great even after all surgeries that she opted for amputation of both legs just above the knee about 15 years ago. So even though I don’t have Lupus, the thought of her issues is kind of in my brain and I’m trying not to think of that.
I feel very motivated to get into better shape then I was originally in pre-op. I was talking to my regular doc and told her that this surgery and recovery is probably what will finally get me into shape after all these years. I had lost 40lbs over the last year and a half, but not with much exercise. So it’s like the last hurdle I need to get over to finally reach my goal of being fit.
-Joanne
Hi Sarah,
Congratulations on ditching your brace. Thanks again for this site, http://yeskneecan.com/.
I’ve been to San Fran and know that exact hill the woman had to climb. I think I’m more inclined to take the 3rd week off and not have to stress.
Hi Shawna,
Thank you for the advice. Yep, I’m doing PT 3 per week pre op and the same 1 week post-op. My doc recommended depending on how I do, about 3- 4 months of PT. I think he’s trying to get me fit too. The PT guys I have are great and they are very motivating and he’s making a fitness plan to get all of me in shape. So I have a good support team.
I can do leg lifts. I’m afraid to try the knee bends and leg presses. I still have some tenderness on my inner knee even though I sill ice several times each day. I’ll ask the therapist tomorrow. They were happy I could do the stationary bike.
I bought protein shakes to have the week after surgery. I’m so afraid of gaining any of the 40lbs I lost back. I still have a good 50 lbs to lose.
Good luck with your recovery. You’re doing great.
Hi Joanne!
Don’t worry about PT. The pain is minimal compared to the gain you get after each session. I’m totally serious! I love my PT sessions because I feel stronger because of it! It also helps me heal faster and helps give back to me my normal life. I’m 2 weeks post-op and am feeling great! I’m able to drive now and walk on only 1 crutch. The therapist said by next week, she will try to take away the crutch completely! I’m so excited!
For me the worse part of this entire process was my nervous anticipation of the surgery (not knowing what to expect) and the post-op pain level. Once the surgery is over (you won’t feel a thing during because you will be sleeping), the first few days will be the next hardest because that’s when you’re at your most helpless. The best thing to do then is to take the pain med regularly to keep you feeling comfortable throughout the day/night, and rest and keep your spirit up because 50% of recovery is mental! After about day 4, you will feel much stronger and can get about a bit to begin PT. After that first session of PT, you will start recuperate at a much faster speed! You’ll be amazed at the all the little things you can do after PT that you weren’t able to (or were too afraid to) do before! Mostly in my case it was because I was afraid to push myself thinking I couldn’t handle it. I was wrong!
Until the surgery, don’t worry or think about it too much, Joanne! (Easier said than done, but if you can do that it’ll help so much!) Just get your post-op camping ground station ready! Stock it up with favorite books, magazines, snacks, TV remote control, stereo remote control, phone, etc. Get a good night rest before the day of your surgery, and go in remembering that after that day you will only just get better!
Hope all this makes sense! Happy Friday!
Sarah
Hi Joanne!
Don’t worry about PT. The pain is minimal compared to the gain you get after each session. I’m totally serious! I love my PT sessions because I feel stronger because of it! It also helps me heal faster and helps give back to me my normal life. I’m 2 weeks post-op and am feeling great! I’m able to drive now and walk on only 1 crutch. The therapist said by next week, she will try to take away the crutch completely! I’m so excited!
For me the worse part of this entire process was my nervous anticipation of the surgery (not knowing what to expect) and the post-op pain level. Once the surgery is over (you won’t feel a thing during because you will be sleeping), the first few days will be the next hardest because that’s when you’re at your most helpless. The best thing to do then is to take the pain med regularly to keep you feeling comfortable throughout the day/night, and rest and keep your spirit up because 50% of recovery is mental! After about day 4, you will feel much stronger and can get about a bit to begin PT. After that first session of PT, you will start recuperate at a much faster speed! You’ll be amazed at the all the little things you can do after PT that you weren’t able to (or were too afraid to) do before! Mostly in my case it was because I was afraid to push myself thinking I couldn’t handle it. I was wrong!
Until the surgery, don’t worry or think about it too much, Joanne! (Easier said than done, but if you can do that it’ll help so much!) Just get your post-op camping ground station ready! Stock it up with favorite books, magazines, snacks, TV remote control, stereo remote control, phone, etc. Get a good night rest before the day of your surgery, and go in remembering that after that day you will only just get better!
Hope all this makes sense! Happy Friday!
Sarah
Ok, Joanne. That’s good to know about your Dr. You’ll be fine.
I’ve got two exercises for you that really help - and they are easy and you don’t have to do much of anything - except lie in bed.
1.) Lie on your back in bed with your legs stretched out above you and your feet on the wall. (I wear socks for this. Hate foot prints on the wall LOL). Walk your feet down the wall as far as you can go and work on getting your heels down onto your buttocks and then work on holding up to ten minutes.
2.) Lie on your bed on your stomach with your legs hangin off the bed above the knee. Allow you legs to relax and get knee fully extended. Work up to holding for ten minutes. 1 month after surgery - you can add a weight to the leg you are rehabbing. You can do this one before surgery, too - to make sure you have full range of motion prior to surgery.
Good luck. You’ll be fine.
By the way, I went to the State Fair last night. My brace had to be refitted, so I had no brace and no crutches. Yesterday was 3 weeks to the day post - op. I walked around from 4:30pm til 11:00pm with little kids cutting in front of me - etc. I would like to have the brace on - just in case somebody bumped me. No sense in tempting fate. But, I really wanted to go! No pain and had a great time!
Happy Healing!
Katherine
Katherine - you are WONDER WOMAN!!
Thank you Katherine and Sarah.
You both are my inspiration. I’m very grateful for all your advice, tips and exercises. I was able to do about 20 minutes on the bike and then another 15 on the treadmill today. I’ll let you know how it goes. I wish the surgery was tomorrow, s o I can start being better. Please keep posting on your recoveries too. It’s very helpful and inspiring.
-Joanne
hey everyone
I went to the first PT session and did pretty good, I thought I only had about 40-50 degress flex but find out I had 90 degrees I have been working since the 2 nd day post op with the leg lifts and knee bends. I hope to get to the 100’s by monday the 2nd day PT. I also had my one week post op visit the doctor was glad to see I am doing so well. I found out my entire procedure, because I have been having a lot of pain and I am no baby when it cames to pain I can usually take it. The doctor had to fix my meniscus as well I have a small Medial Meniscus tear he didn’t fix, but the larger Lateral Meniscus tear he did fix, he did the ACl reconstruction with aloograft two anchors and titaniunm button in the tibia that will stay forever. He also did a debridement of the medical condyl (shaving of the bone). I looked at the pictures he gave me and my ACL was a mess all twisted and torn up in the knee. I hope to get my life back soon I only need to get to 130 degrees to match the other side and I think I can do this in the next 4 PT visits, its the strenght that i worry about, that quad is not as strong as I would like it to be. I’m still icing and using at least one crutch when up and around, i ditched the brace on the 3rd day post op it was too hot for me, I do have a functional brace which i will start wearing until I get adequete quad control. JOANNE YOU WILL BE FINE, AND YOU WILL BE GLAD THAT YOU HAD THE SURGERY, WILL BE THINKING AND PRAYING FOR YOU MY SISTER.
Joanne
By the way I was driving on day 4, I have taken my car to the shop and back and forth to therapy and doctors appts. I have four children 11, 9, 9, and 2 and they have been helpful. My 73 year old mother thinks I should not be doing anything, but i need to move around. I was nervous before the surgery even though i knew what to expect i see knee scopes and repairs all of the time. My blood pressure was very high, but I couldn’t worry about that I had taken my medications and they have stuff for BP at the hospital anyway. Take a good book or crossword puzzle with you to the hospital while you wait and a good driver someone thats not going to worry you while you wait. I took my cousin she was great and had me laughing. Get rest before the surgery and write down any questions you may have for the surgeon, he should see you before the surgery. If you need to know like i did ask for a copy of the scope pictures, take them with you to your first visit and ask for them to explain. If the hospital offers a femoral block get it, that will help with the pain for 12 hours, more if you get the continues infusion like i did, i could have been numb for 4 days thats how much ropivicaine i had in the machine. And try to take your surgical staff something good to eat like baked cookies or something, they take really good care of you when they have food. I took everyone a bag of pecan brittle that was to die for.
Thank you so much Shawna! I really appreciate all the good thoughts and prayers. You are also doing awesome with your recovery. You give me a lot of hope.
That’s a good idea about getting pictures. My doc said I would have two screws in me permanently to anchor the new tendon. We actually didn’t discuss the fem block. But I will see him before the surgery.
Yes, I have my ipod ready, crossword puzzles,books, movies…etc. I just need to have the surgery. I just want to get it over with so I can start the recovery. Right now, I’m doing my routine house cleaning and getting all my laundry done. I have to take my dogs to the vet for the annuals tomorrow and I’ll be ready for surgery.
I’ve been doing my exercises, plus, I have a stationary bike at home so I’m doing that too. I wish I had more time in a way to get my legs stronger, cause my quads and inner thighs are mush. But I’m less worried today about the surgery and recovery, than when my doctor first told me. I do believe this will be good in the end.
Hi All,
I’m scheduled to have ACL reconstruction with autograft of hamstring on my left knee this coming wed, aug 19th. I’m feeling extremely anxious about being put under, anyone out there have any suggestions. I have an irrational fear of not waking up!! I know it’s silly, but I can’t help it. I have a history of being somewhat borderline hypertensive(high blood pressure), but never enough to be on medication. I guess i’m worried how that might effect me on the day of surgery, since i’m sure my nerves will make my blood pressure high for sure!! Any suggestions out there on what might help me be more at ease??? Thanks for any and all advice.
Hey everyone,
I’m one month post surgery and my surgeon just gave me 40 degrees of bend on my brace. I’m also down to one crutch instead of two. Does anyone have any suggestions of how to get my leg stronger to walk without any crutch and also when I will know I’m ready to ditch the crutch? Thanks!
Sandals,
I had a spinal (with epidural follow-up if needed…it wasn’t) along with a femoral nerve catheter bock and a sciatic nerve block. No issues with pain and I stayed awake and watched the entire procedure. If interested, ask for someone with nerve block experience when you discuss your anesthesia options at the hospital. -Kyle
Hi Sandals,
I would talk about your concerns and options with your regular doctor, surgeon and anesthesiologist. I think they should be able to calm your fears and as long as they know your medical condition and any medicines or supplements you take, all should be fine. I was told for me most of the anesthesia is local and then they give you something to make you fall asleep. I had anesthesia once before and I had no problems even though I’m diabetic.
My sister had an epidural for child birth. The procedure was fine but she does have some after affects from it. Even though it is 13 years since she had it, she still feels her back aches in that spot where the epidural was placed, when it rains and when she overdoes it (physically). Research your options and definitely talk about it with your doctor.
I’m having surgery the day before you. Good luck. -Joanne
Hi Emily,
I’m just over 8 weeks post now, and I asked the same thing about when to ditch the crutches. Most everyone said you just have to bite the bullet and do it. It’s mostly in your mind that you can’t so you hesitate and don’t go there unless you have to. I made myself get off mine at about 2 1/2 weeks, and have never looked back. It was the best thing I could have done. I didn’t have any meniscus damage, though, and if you do have some, weight bearing may be something to discuss with your PT or doctor. In any case, I’m much better off because I decided I was tired of the crutch. Some people are off theirs in less than a week, so I have to believe it’s a matter of how much swelling you have, and how much patience you’ve lost.
It feels really weird when you first go without it, but it’s worth it in the end. The freedom without the crutch is amazing!
Good luck!!
Sandals
I won’t to wish you much luck and sucess on your surgery, I told the MDA i did not want a endotracheal tube down my throat because every general i have waken up with a sore throat for 4 days. I am also hypertensive since the birth of my first child 12 years ago. It usally undercontrol with the small dose of medicaine i take. But on the day of the surgery it was extremly high from the time i walk in pre-op to my discharge and a few days after surgery. I was talking and joking with the staff and i dont think it was nerves but who knows. I had the fem block and sciatic nerve block and a little propafol to put me to sleep for the procedure, i felt fine after, the block had me so numb i didn’t know i had a leg. I also has the cont catheter in the groin releasing ropivicaine a numbing medication which i has 400 ml it would last you for 4 days if you want. but don’t step on the numb foot or you will fall, i lost my balance 2nd day and fell backwards onto the couch, glad that couch was there, but i didn’t feel a thing and i had on my brace thank God. I hope all of this info helps you but know that it is you and the anesthesia that determines how you will be for the surgery. there goal is to make the procedure safe for you and to keep you pain free for as long as possible. I had awesome Doctors at Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak , MI and my surgeon takes care of the Detroit Lions, red wings and the Detroit Shock, he did an awesome job. I posted my pictures on Face book any of you on FB
Thanks to Shawna, Joanne, and Kyle for all your feedback. My understanding is that the ortho surgeon I’m going to does general anesthesia and a nerve block (not sure what type specifically) for all ACL surgeries. He basically said it would be to my benefit for the purpose of least amount of pain possible. I shopped around before I decided on this surgeon, so I trust he has my best interest in mind. He was the team surgeon for the 1996 US men’s olympic team, as well as for the Houston Rockets during their championship years. Also while I doctor shopped and spoke with as many others about their ACL surgeries, it seems most do or had general anesthesia that I have spoken to.
Joanne, I particularly appreciate the feedback you gave on the cons of an epidural as your sister had. My mother had one during childbirth, and she too has the same problems even over 30 yrs later! It helps to know you’ve been under anesthesia w/no problems in the past even with a pre-existing medical condition. Good luck to you on your surgery as well!!
Sandals that is a good choice the general with the fem nerve block it will help with the pain if you get a sciatic nerve block it will help with the pain in the back of the knee, the fem block does not do that. so good luck my dear you are going to be fine.
Hey everyone the second day at PT and i have 104 degrees flex was able to get on the bike today to warm up, its still very stiff and sore and my therapist was digging into my incisions and messaging them that hurt a lot. I amm trying very hard to get rid of that darn swelling its holding me up with the ROM. Thanks all for the encouragement and thoughts.
Pt told me to ditch the crutches at home and at therapy, but use at least one out in the streets, so that people say away from me and i don’t get tripped up or bumped. they were very surprised that i didn’t have hte brace on the first day i came to therapy. will keep you posted
Shawna,
I always have done that with one crutch. I use it like a Shepherd’s staff to herd rambunctious children away from me!
I did risk going to the State Fair last Thursday w/o crutch or brace. (3 weeks post op to the day.) I don’t have my brace, as it had to be sent back to be re-fitted. I missed the crutch that day, but was more mobile not dragging it around.
Sandals,
Not to scare you, but I am allergic to anesthesia. My first outpatient surgery, I woke up seven days later - and puked for another week or 10 days after that. I was lucky to wake up at all. If you have any sensitivity to pain medicine, or sensitivity to anything that says “may cause drowsiness.” For example, if I were to take an over the counter cold medicine that says ‘may cause drowsiness’. I have 20 minutes to get in bed…..and I’m gonna be there for a while. I always say, “May cause Coma.” I just learned that because I have bad kidneys (which I didn’t know until about age 33) that most of the drugs they give you metabolise in the kidneys. Generally, the medical field will protect the liver over the kidneys. For me, this last surgery, they gave me drugs that metabolised in my liver and I woke up right away and had no nausea either. THAT was wonderful. So, if you get nauseated w/ pain meds - mention that to the anesthesiologist, or sensitivity to anything that causes drowsiness…tell them that, too. The downside is, you will have more pain if you are less stoned……but I hate being stoned!
Good luck, and you’ll be fine.
Thanx for the info Katherine. I have gotten nauseated with Vicodin numerous times in the past, so good to know I should mention this to the anesthesiologist. I too can be sensitive to drowsy inducing meds, but not quite as sensitive as what you described. Nevertheless, I will be sure to mention all this! Thanks again
thanx shawna for the well wishes, i’ll keep you guys posted on my progress post surgery!
Good luck Sandals and to everyone, keep up the excellent progress!
So I found out my surgery is at 7:30 am tomorrow and I have to be there at 5:45AM (what??). That’s means I have to get up at 4am and get a car service in.
It’s such a weird feeling for me to be up and walking now, knowing tomorrow I will be either in pain, some what bed-ridden and hobbling around afterwards. Well, I will post as soon as I’m able to and let you all know how it went.
oh, ps: Sandals:
I never had any issues with vicotin, percset or any other pain relievers, even over-the-counter. I had told the anesthesiologist before the surgery, that I did not want to wake up with the tube in my throat and I didn’t. I woke up within minutes of them bringing me into the recovery room.
Wow, katherine that is extremely scary. Lucky you now have another type of anesthesia to use. It’s very good to know about the different medicines that metabolize in the kidneys vs the liver.
Joanne,
I’ll have u in my thoughts tomorrow….i can relate to the early morning surgery, mine will be 8am on wednesday morning, and i have to be there at 6:30am!! I can totally identify with that feeling of being able to walk around today, knowing you’ll be down the next…..however, try to remember the positive thing is that once you recover, you’ll have full use of your knee again!!! Take care.
Sandals
Good luck with your surgeries Joanne and Sandals! I was really scared before mine also, but turned out to be wasted energy, since that was the easiest part. The nurse even gave me a valium while I was waiting before surgery and that took the edge off
I found the first three days to be the worst in terms of pain but after that it gets much, much better.
I am a little over two months out and finally feel like a normal person - not sports normal, but still pretty good. Rode 20 miles on my bike yesterday, balanced and did squats on a bosu ball today in PT, knee feels stable and muscles are coming back. Had a hamstring graft and still working on strengthening that area.
Hang in there everyone…there is light at the end of the tunnel, even if you feel like your recovery is going slowly, you will get there.
Thanks for those validating and comforting hopeful words, Stephanie!! It’s nice to hear you felt the same way and to hear you’re doing great now!! Sounds like you’re definitely on the road to recovery! Best of luck the rest of the way!!
Sandals
Why is the devil always trying to keep a person down. I had the surgery on Aug 7th and i still have numbness in my left foot i dont know if it is from the blocks or from the knee surgery itself. All i know is that i am suffering from peronal nerve palsy at this time and its getting on my last nerve(no pun intended) I had my 3rd PT visit doing marches forward and backward,calf streches,and stool scoots forward and backward, the total gym and calf raises, I do the other exercises at home leg lifts and knee bends using a towel. I have gain another 5 degrees on the flex and can now feel the back of the table with my knee. so now at 109 degrees the progress is slowly coming. I dont know if the progress is slow because i’m almost 40 years old in SEPT or what but i thought i would feel better then i do by now. I hope you guys a recovering better then i am at this point, i just wish i could feel my foot and the burning at the top of the foot would stop. Help has anyone else experienced this?
to shawna. Hi. I had a meniscal repair back on June 2 and am awaiting to fully recover to have my ACL reconstructed. I too had/have foot and toe numbness, especially just around the big toe nail, painful at first touch, but then it kind of subsides. It was really bad the first month and is just a little tingly, a little numb now. I attributed it to the nasty uncomfortable brace, but I stopped using it after 1 week and the numbness continued. My surgeon was not concerned as I have feeling in the foot. I will ask my primary doctor about it next week.
Stephanie- good to see you are doing so well. If you look back, our situations are similar, but I am still waiting to have the acl and have had quite the time trying to recover from the bucket handle tear meniscus repair, very slow indeed. I am now doing aquatic therapy and it is wonderful. I went from 95 degrees flexion to 118 (with help) in 6 days. Yea. There is hope! Just sitting here, however, I can squeek out about 100. Unfortunately I am still using crutches, one part time. Who knew getting old would be such a pain (at only 48!).
I hope to have the ACL surgery this year as my out of pocket $ is nearing it’s limit. That would be nice.
good luck to all and happy rehabbing
Shawna,
That is horrible. Must be a horrible feeling. I only can tell you that I had a baby tooth filled when I was 5 (one of the ones that stays until your are 12) and the numbing stuff lasted for over a week. It was so horrible. I could not feel my mouth and talked funny. I was in Kindergarten and got lots of fun poked my direction. Later in life, I learned I was allergic to anesthetics - including any of the ‘caine’s’ that were used in dentistry.
I wish you the best of luck and would talk to your surgeon ASAP!
Katherine
Laurie
why did they do the meniscus repair and not the ACL reconstruction on the same day, i went in for a ACL reconstruction and has that and mus\ch more, my meniscus was torn in two areas the medal and lateral the lateral area was the worst and that is what he shaved down, and sont think he did anything with the medal tear which was very small, but i am glad i had everthing done in the knee. I dont know why my foot is tingling and sore to touch it could have been the sciatic block and a reation to that, i was told its not that uncommon to have some numbness in the lower extremity and my doctor thinks it will clear up in a couple more days. I will keep you guys posted on the progress.
I had a meniscus tear and a patella to bone graft repair, as well as tightening of my Medial - collateral ligament and lateral - collateral ligament all at the same time in Dec. of 1990.
I question the decision to do only the meniscus tear as well.
Katherine
hi, the reason he wanted to separate the two surgeries (large meniscus tear repair with stitches, ACL) was when I fell, the bucket handle tear (BHT) meniscus folded over and locked my knee, it would not bend. Then after two weeks of it being locked, (initial dr. visit, mri, followup, schedule surgery) we had to wait until he got into the knee to see if it was repairable (favored) or if it was to be removed ( total meniscectomy). If repaired, it required that I not bear weight on it for 4-6 weeks so that the stitches and meniscus could heal without damaging it. Had he removed the meniscus (or a large portion of it) he would have performed the ACL surgery at the same time as removing the meniscus. The removal of a meniscus is a much simpler procedure and you can walk on it the next day. I’ve been told and have read many articles stating that the ACL needs to bend and stretch and have weight on it near immediately to get good results.
Oh yes, my acl is not there. It was injured in 1978 and the technology was not there to determine what was wrong (rural Iowa). I was told to take some asprin, wear this velcro straight brace and don’t walk on it for 6 weeks. Nothing more. 31 years later…
On one hand meniscus removal - shave - clean up the rough edges:
Pros: short rehab, combined surgery, walk within a week.
Cons: long term outlook poor as the knee is now more susceptable to arthritis, joint pain as the cushion has been removed, need for knee replacement much more common
On the other hand, meniscus repair (stitch the edges back together):
Pros: healthy meniscus, healthy knee, arthritis risk significantly lowered, no tissue removed
Cons: LONG rehab, non weight bearing 4-6 weeks, then 4-6 weeks pt +.
I wanted the removal since it was the easy route, but I prayed for the repair so that my chances of a long term relationship with my knee would be possible.
I have every faith in my surgeon as he has worked with many Houston Rockets and Houston Texans players,and is considered one of the premier surgeons in our area.
Thanks for your comments.
I’m 4 weeks post op today. I’m trying to remember 1990 and if this surgery really has been so much easier than the Patella graft in 1990. I actually had put my lower leg ‘on the backside’ at that time. That is, I was lying on my face in the dirt and my foot/calf from the knee was rotated out and my foot was pointing to the sky.
At that time, I had a Dr. who set me back - prior to getting on the right track - and getting the meniscus repaired and all the ligaments. So, the initial injury was much more traumatic and painful. The injury itself was a lot worse than this right knee injury I did in May. However, I know in 1990, I walked with crutches only for support the day of the surgery, and the second day, they had me go up and down stairs in PT. I definitely had more pain w/ the patella graft, but it was tolerable w/o pain meds most of the time after 3 days.
Anyway, funny how we forget pain and recovery….
I walked my dog today and forgot to wear my brace, which I just got back yesterday, after having it refitted. I walked for two miles just for fun - and because my poor dog hasn’t been walked enough. I didn’t think much about my knee. I did weigh myself today. I’ve lost 6 pounds since July 19 (my surgery was July 23), and I am SURE the weight loss is all muscle. Mostly in my leg. I am still doing yoga with no twisting moves. I’m walking up and down stairs alternating legs like normal people walk. I’m just waiting for the release to begin weight lifting on Aug. 31. Weight-lifting is my favorite exercise. Not fun sport - like horseback riding - but my favorite exercise. I just hope a year from now this cadaver graft is as wonderful as my patella graft was after 1 year. And 15 years. And 19 3/4 years……
I still have a very long way to go. I was trying to get to my phone quickly at work - and I cannot run. Found that out!
[...] copying and pasting below another update from Katherine, taken from The ACL Repair Blog. She’s one of my big inspirations to get this knee back into shape fast! Author: [...]
katherine, that’s awesome that you can walk your dog for 2 miles. again, i’m totally inspired by how strong your recovery is. hope you don’t mind, i’m blogging about it on “love your knees” again.
http://loveyourknees.wordpress.com/2009/08/20/update-from-katherine/
katherine i have been trying to run since i got injuried on june 6, i have been caught in rain storms and everything because i couldn’t get shelter, it is crazy not to be able to run. becareful katherine you don’t want to mess up your great recovery. Has any one had any problems with numbness in the feet after the meniscus repair?
shawna, my heel did feel a bit numb right after the surgery. rather it had a dull ache. it went away after a few days. i told my doctor about it but he didn’t seem concerned. hope you feel better soon!
sarah
sarah i just went on your site , the burns on your legs may be from the bovie pad, it has a lot of adhesive in it and your could be allergic,bovie pad is a pad that is uses to divert the electrical current from traveling through out the body, it is a cautery pencil used to burn the skin or tissue to keep from bleeding. another thought if it was the operative leg it could have been the dressing or some kind of tape burn, it looked like a blister so i thinking an allergy to tape or something in the dressing. Let me know what the doctor says about that. cover the blister if it burst and put so bacitracin ointment or neosporin on it to keep form getting infected after a couple of days let it heal to the air remove the bandaid.Shawna
Bike wreck–yikes! Put foot down. Knee went one way, body went the other. Completely torn ACL. Partially damaged MCL and LCL (healed on their own). Minor to moderate medial and lateral meniscus shredding. Wreck May 15. Surgery June 30. Sooo…
I’m at 7.5 weeks post op, seeing my PT once a week, and have been back at work for three weeks. Had a hamstring graft and medial and lateral meniscus minor to moderate trimming (not repair since they were shredded). Harvest site is a little sore (they said it would be). Knee is still somewhat swollen internally even though you can barely see it externally, a little painful once in awhile, a bit gimpy walk sometimes (especially at work), but other than the above I think it’s getting better day by day. I can go down stairs one after the other now… carefully. Up stairs was no problem from about 2 weeks. Still using ice 2-3 times a day and sometimes at work.
I’ve hit a bit of a plateau. I was expecting it, but I’d progressed so quickly at first that I’d hoped it would continue. I haven’t stopped progressing. Just a bit slower now.
Here is a question. Well, first an explanation and then a question… I’m sitting at work 8 hours a day, 4 days a week, up and move around once every couple of hours. I have my leg up on a stool and wiggle my foot around quite often. Not the most comfortable position so I put my foot down, put it back up, down, up… you get the picture. By the end of the day my ankle and foot are pretty swollen. Not sure quite what to do about it other than elevate and ice at night. Any suggestions? Anyone else having this problem? I told my PT about it and she said as long as it was going down overnight it should be OK. I don’t go back to my OS for another couple of weeks.
Thanks for any input. I just came to this forum from another blog and am really getting a lot of benefit from reading everyone’s stories and all the help we get from one another. Good to be here!
Diana
Hi everyone,
Had surgery and it’s been rough. it’s my 3rd day post op and I’m finally feeling a little better. I had the fem block and general anesthesia. When I woke up after surgery I was in a lot of pain. I think they should have also given me the syiatic block, as the back of my knee hurt and so did my ankle. Dr said surgery was more extensive than he first thought. I had a lot more damage to knee cap and cartilage. Surgery took 2 1/2 hours as opposed to 1.
They had to given me so many pain killers after surgery, they were surprised how well I tolerated them. No nausea. When I went home that same day, Dr wanted me to use the CPM machine since I had the fem block. I got up to 106 and then next day was 42, yesterday was 70. I’m working on getting higher today. The Aleive with vicodin have been helping alot. I find it hard to walk with crutches or “sticks” as my nephew calls them. I have no upper body strength.
I have my first post op visit on Monday. My doctor wants me to rest this week, but use CPM at least 6 hours a day. Last night I slept with it on and didn’t feel as sore or stiff this morning. I can’t wait to be independent again.
Shawna, your’re doing well. Don’t lose faith. I feel a little tingliness too. It probably is from the block.
Good luck everyone as we recover. I’m very grateful for this blog.
-Joanne
joannne
i am so glad that your surgery went well, its very tough at first and we all can have a textbook recovery, the point of this site is to share information, but know that everyone will react differently to there recovery. Yes you should have problably had the sciatic nerve block it takes care of the back of the knee, something the femoral block doesn’t. Has for pain pill i am still taking mine and i don’t consider myself a that bad with pain but this hurts worst then the 9lb 3oz delivery i had 12 years ago. i hope you cont to do well and keep with the contiuned passive motion machine as it will help keep it loose. I sometimes use heat on my knee to help with muscle tightness and swelling. My PT is trying to kill me, the stretches that is the only thing i can not tolerate in PT. she added some more exercises today so i was glad about that. I hurts like a bitch when i try to go up and down the stairs going up is better then down though so she added step ups in PT today maybe it will get better. I am about to put the shower chair to rest as i can get in and out of my high ass tub the tub comes up to my knee now i can get in and out with out scooting onto the chair and out of the chair. the tub is so deep and i wish i had never seen that jet tub in the first place.
can i ask you guys are your co workers or friends as supportive as you thought they would be as you recover. I have a bout a handful of true friends that know how hard it is for me to get around, who have been there for me. I am very disappointed with the Dojo how they handled me getting hurt at the tourniment, no card visit or anything. I am also diappointed with my co workers they suck i worked for 5 weeks doing whatever i could to help out and keep working, and i didn’t get one card from them after i went in for the surgery. This people are healthcare professionals how can they treat their own employee or co worker like that. It makes me sick to the stomach ,me someone who is not a slacker at work very productive and hardly ever calls in, when i got hurt initally i was made to take the two weeks off, but begged to go back. Tell me what you thing about that? Am i just complaining because i miss working. i feel sad
Hi Shawna,
Yes, I agree this recovery so far is a bitch and not being able to take care of myself is just hard. I’m so not used to it. I only have pain meds thru Monday. I hope he gives me more as mornings are rough. I’m afraid of my first PT sessions as I’m sure they are going to hurt. But I want to be independent again and normal so I will do what they say. I too have a high tub. I don’t have a shower chair either. I think I may need one.
I know what you mean about co-workers. They should send a card or maybe when you return do something. My boss and co-workers wanted me to call after surgery and let them know I’m okay. For me, I find sometimes they may be a little too intrusive. I left a message when I knew they weren’t there, cause I know they would have asked me a million questions and I wasn’t in the mood at that point. My coworker and boss keep comparing me to someone they know who had it and are like judging why do you need 2 weeks when so and so was back to work in a week…etc. It’s like everyone is different. I’m not an athlete. They are.
Don’t stress ’bout you’re co-workers. Like you said, you know who you’re friends are. I just wouldn’t go out of you’re way for them. Ppl just don’t get what it’s like to not have mobility. We take it for granted. Don’t be sad, you need to concentrate on you. Work will always be there.
keep strong.
-Joanne
Hi everyone,
I wanted to ask how do I get up and down stairs with crutches and a locked brace? My first post op appt is Monday. I’m wondering also when I’m back at work in 2 or 3 Mondays from now, how to navigate the bus. It’s 3 steep steps. I think I can make it up. but how do I go down with out falling?
Thanks,
Joanne
ok joann i dont know what your surgeon has told you about the brace and if you need to keep it on until you see him. Most doc have you wear the brace until you have good quad control. I told you i took mines off after the third day post op. I couldn’t come to my house for the first days because i was so numb i couldn’t get up the stairs, i had to sit down and scoot up the stairs at my cousins house and scoot into her kitchen she helped me get into the shower chair and i got up on crutches from there. i still have trouble going up and down the stairs normally, i do the one leg thing down with the crutch first and then the bad leg ( operative leg) and then the good leg, repeat i don’t alternate yet i doing that in PT now and i tried the bottom step and it hurt like crazy telling me i wasn’t ready for that. to go up the steps up with the good leg and drag the bad after that always use the crutches. ok so you are 4 days post op all the numbness should be gone, while in the bed start doing the straight leg raises to strenghthen the quad and the try to bend the knee up and back down that is called heel slides. Look at your instructions does it say can take brace off when you had good quad control if so try it in your room only or near a chair and get up with the crutches, if not keep that brace on and stay away from the stairs, please have someone with you when you go up or come down. Thanks for the comment about the co-workers/employer. I hope this helps. if you need some moral support my email address is shawna.murry@yahoo.com. Oh by the way get a shower chair it is a big help i put the back of the chair toward the shower, scoot on to the chair and i can put the operative leg on the back of the tub. I was glad to have a 72 year old mom who had the stuff i needed to aid in my recover for at least a few days.
i was concern about going down and went to my PT before surgery the trick is to have the strong leg hold you up so the bad leg and the crutches go down first and then the good leg.
Thanks, Shawna.
My surgeon told me to only use the brace when walking. But in bed, I can take it off. I have 4 steps to come in my house. I did them when I came home from the hospital, but my brother in law held me from the back and kind of lifted me a little as I took each step. It was hard as I felt my bad leg would give in.
I have my sister and brother in law taking me to my dr visit. My sister had suggested to ditch the crutch going down and hold on to the railing and go with the good leg and swing the bad leg. I’m not sure that will work, as I can’t bend the bad leg with this locked brace. I will try how you said. But they will be with me. I figured worse comes to worse i would do the scoot as well and just sit down and go that way.
My dr, didn’t want me working on strengthening this week. He felt it was more important to get the swelling down, which would reduce the pain and heal faster. Who knows. The only exercise was the CPM machine and exercises flexing the foot back and forth. He also recommend putting my ankles on two pillows and let my knees drop down, so the tendon would fall into place. I felt it was better to do it on the CPM. So I set the CPM to -2 on EXT (extension) and gradually got to -6. It feels like a good stretch. I’m up to 90 degrees on the CPM.
My email address is dolce0301@optonline.net.
Joanne,
You stand on your good leg and hold your braced leg in front of you. You put your crutches down on the step in front of you. Transfer your weight from your good leg to the crutches. Then, step down with your good leg, supporting yourself with the crutches and holding the bad leg raised slightly in front of you. They should teach you how to do this and help you practice a few times.
Katherine
Joanne - My PT gave me these little words of wisdom when tackling stairs.
Up with the good (leg)
Down with the bad (leg)
I find myself repeating it every time I get near steps.
Go up the stairs with the good leg, do down the stairs with the bad leg.
I use one crutch and the handrail when possible using the formula above and keeping the crutch on the same step as the bad leg. One step at a time.
I have used both crutches but seem to feel like I might lose my balance, it’s ok if someone is there to assist you though. I even tried both crutches on one side so that I’d have both at the other end. THAT was NOT a very good idea and don’t recommend it!
good luck.
Joanne
hope the appt went well for you today, keep with the CPM machine as directed, i didn’t have a CPM, i guess they don’t do that here in michigan because most people i talk to have PT right away like 5 days post-op. Hope all of the advise worked from me, Laurie and Katherine. Good luck talk to you later by the way i am up to 113 degrees flexion and 0 extention. Progress is slowely coming this friday is 3 weeks exactly
Shawna
Hi Everyone,
Thanks for the suggestions. I tried the way Katherine suggested. It worked, but I don’t think I would do that when I’m alone just yet. Too scary. My brother-in-law stayed in front of me and my sister next to me and we went down one step at a time together.
Thanks, Shawna My appt went well. He said he normally sees patients after two weeks, but he’s going on vacation next week and he didn’t want me to have to wait till third week. He took off the bandages and he was happy with my progress. He told me to keep it up and that I can start PT on Thursday. He joked with with me how I was walking w/ the crutches. He’s like “what are you doing? Get the crutches out your armpits, stand up straight, swing both crutches with the bad leg and take step. See now you’re walking normal.” I was like what the hunched over, little old lady style wasn’t working. Oh well.
He wants me out of work for an additional two weeks. Since it was more involved, he doesn’t want me to commute to and from work, just yet.
I feel better to have the heavy bandage off. But my incisions are a bit tender. He covered it with tape (butterfly stitch) to be safe and a lighter bandage. I only have to wear the brace outside for now to be safe. But he adjusted it and made it a flexible brace.
Shawna keep up the great work!
Every dr and PT are different. I wouldn’t question it. My dr. did say that conventional medicine is getting ppl to PT 5 days after surgery. He just doesn’t a different way.
Hi All,
I initially tore my ACL 5 years ago playing soccer and went through all the necessary physio to regain strength in my knee. However I opted not to have surgery. Life continued as normal and I could do most things like swimming, running, cycling, but i could still not play sports with fast change direction ie. soccer.
I made the decision this year to go under the knife and have the surgery.
The specialist i saw recommended the hamstring graft (which is from the same injured leg) and I took his advise and went ahead with the surgery.
I must say I was suprised with the results.
I was on crutches for no longer than 3 days and was walking around (gingerly) as I was told that the quicker you start walking on your own the better. I was back at work after 2 weeks. I had no pain whatsoever and had not been on pain killers at any stage post op. Swelling was also very minimal and no-where near the same amount of swelling as from the initial injury. At no stage have i worn a knee brace and i have iced it as much as possible. All follow up appointments to GPs and physio were pleasantly suprised with the progress within the first 2 weeks.
I am at 2 months now after the surgery and have continued with physio twice a week. My knee movement is at 90% range and I still have some minimal swelling in the knee. Hamstring has been in reasonably good throughout.
It is important to do the exercises immediately after surgery (flexing the quad and pushing your heel down on a flat surface).
I highly recommend getting your leg as strong as possible before surgery to give you a faster recovery time. Obviously a great physio helps to get you back to normal and ask as them as many questions as you can think of regardng your recovery. Also a great surgeon who specialises in knee reconstructions makes the surgery as less traumatic as possible.
Good luck to all.
Hi Michael,
My story is alot like yours -except my left knee was patella graft and my right knee (4 1/2 weeks post op) is a cadaver graft. Guys almost always do well with this surgery - it’s the women who have problems due to the hips and knees not tracking straight - like guys. We have alot more pressure on our knees due to physiology.
You’re two months post op - don’t be surprised if you have a plateau in your recovery - just keep on working thru it and you will continue to get better. It’s fun when progress looks like a jet taking off……..but it doesn’t always go that way all the time. I know I’ve had a much easier time than most people with these surgeries - and yet I still have had plateaus in recovery. They can be a real downer…….don’t let them get you down.
Katherine
Good luck Michael, sounds like you are doing awesome. Keep it up.
Peace be upon you all
Last Friday (the 21st) I underwent ACL surgery on my left knee and got an allograft, All Praise is due to God. The first few days of pain were really bad….I took vicodin but eventually stopped because I hear its a bit strong and some people even get addicted? Anyways, I have been wearing an extra-bulky brace and within it my knee is enwrapped with a bandage. Today I went for my first visit since surgery and the Doc unwrapped the bandage and removed the knee brace. To my surprise my knee wasn’t as swollen as I thought it would be but there were many incisions made, at least 5-6 from what I can remember.
The doc wrapped my knee back up and put the brace back on. I asked him when I could take it off and he said the next time I see him, which is next week. I was surprised when he told me this because I’ve been reading the recovery stories on here where people say they got rid of the brace within the first week and started therapy too. Either way I’m gonna go with what my doctor says and stick with the brace. He also told me that the knee looked clean and things were going well.
Also, today I started to put some pressure on my left leg and it wasn’t too bad at all. The only thing that hurts is when the brace drags down (when im standing up) and pulls on the staples/stitches inside. That being said, any recommendations or headsup?
Thanks!
Ali
Hi Ali,
Welcome. I only have 4 incisions. Yes, pain is bad the first few days. It’s important to distinguish between pain and soreness. I took the vicodin when I had pain. I took about 4 a day for the first 2 days and then 2 a day to nothing for the past 3 days. I don’t feel I need it anymore. I don’t miss it. You can get addicted to it, but I think that’s only if you misuse it.
The brace is annoying. I was told to wear it when walking the first week. But I do not need it if I’m on the couch or in bed. Right now, I’m 8 days since surgery and I do not use it in the house at all. I only have to use it outside. It seems like every doctor has different opinions. My dr had also said if I was able to put weight on my bad knee and walk with the crutches that it was fine to not have the brace. Once I can walk with out a limp, I can ditch the crutches all together or only use one crutch.
The brace does slide down and it really irritates the incisions. I would suggest making the first strap on your thigh a little tighter to help it stay up. There really isn’t much you can do to completely stop it from sliding.
Good luck with your recovery.
-Joanne
hey everyone just wanted to update you on my progress. I went to PT today ached all night and during the PT session, however i pushed through the pain and worked it out. I have 0 extension still and 120 degrees flex which i think is great. I asked the therapist when will i be able to get on the elliptical machine and we might try it on friday or in next weeks sessions. As for work she said that i wouldn’t be ready until maybe the 1st week of October, i will probably ask to go and work in Pre-op and Post -op instead of the Operating room until i have more strenght, so we will see. i know my job is not interested in having back if i have to work with restrictions again, we did that when i first got injuried and they didn’t have enough stuff oto keep me busy pass three weeks and i worked for five. so i guess i will try to get it together and start walking like i should so i can get back to circulating in the OR. She did say i could play the wii fit with the children and to work on the balance games.
BTW i only have three small incisions, i am completely happy with that, my therapist loves to push and message my incisions, which hurt like crazy but they will do that in PT. They do this to keep scar tissue build up under the the incisions. Good luck with that. I had to get rid of that hot donjoy brace but i do have a post op brace i will start wearing when i get back to work, it is a defiance brace that they make to fit your leg only and you can get it in any color(i got pink) I will wear as need for my job of course since nurses tend to pivot a little more and for karate when i go back, tiger woods wears his when he golfs.
hello all
I got to 124 degrees flexion today at PT, i can get up to 129 with a little push from the therapist, it didn’t even hurt that much, i wonder if it is more flex because it is that time of the month for me. I am very happy about my progress, but i know i have a long way to go. I tried to do one of my karate katas and i can’t jump at all so i backed off and will cont to do what my therapist says. It like when katherine tried to run to the phone at work we can’t do these things yet. I started playing the wii with the kids, they are excited that mommy can play with them again.
Hey everyone….so i tore my acl back in may on my left knee. At first the MRI wasnt clear so my surgeon (who is on the baltimore ravens sports medicine team) couldnt diagnose it. He said it looked as if it was some injury but not torn. well after having a few falls without warning and pain i went back and had another MRI. This time he told me that It was my acl that was torn. I chose to have allograft surgery and its scheduled for september the 10th. Im really not sure what to expect…..i work a sit down job so im only taking about 5 days off thinking I should be able to go back to work and sit there…..can someone please help. im so confused and debating on if i should just cancel the whole surgery or just get it over with……it seems when i walk now my knee will move the wrong way and i hit the ground….and my knee gets soo tired. especially when walking stairs…..
Hi Shawna,
wow, 124, that’s excellent. You’re progressing so well. Keep it up.
-Joanne
Hi Chrissy,
I’m happy I did it. I tore my ACL, meniscus and had a lot of cartilage and bone cleanup. I would definitely do the surgery as soon as possible. Your ACL is your stabilizer. It’s what keeps your knee from wobbling. You have a higher chance of re-injuring yourself if you don’t. I got arthritis, because my injury damaged my knee cap and my dr had to shave all the bone spurs and smooth it out. Being that you keep falling, you are risking more damage to the knee. My dr told me the more our knees buckle, you get bone on bone with causes the damage to the knee, in the form of arthritis. I would just get over with. The sooner you do it, the sooner you can start recovery.
It’s hard to say how long you will need. It depends on how fit you are now and how much damage you have to your knee. I did the allograft. Most ppl recover quicker with it. But if you are highly athletic, some have suggested the autograft, your own hamstring tendon or patella tendon is the way to go.
I’m out 4 weeks, as I have had a lot of damage to my knee, plus I’m not athletic. But maybe you could do a work from home if you need more than 5 days. I highly suggest going to physical therapy before your surgery and get your quads as strong as you can. That also can cut down on the length of time you may need. Speak with your doctor. How long does he say you need?
I know from my experience, I could never have gone back to work 1 week after surgery. I could hardly walk far with the crutches. I had a hard time with steps and sitting for more than an hour. My commute to and from work is lengthy. I have to rely on public transportation. Also, at the office, I found that it was hard to properly elevate my leg when I injured it. I was very uncomfortable. But everyone is different.
I hope that helps. Let me know how it goes.
Good luck
-Joanne
chrissy please go ahead with the surgery, if you are that unstableit is time. I was trying to becareful and fell a couple of time and when i finally did have my surgery, i had more damage then expected. I completely tore my ACL and had a grade 2 MCL tear i did in a karate tourniment. I was told to do PT for a few weeks and then reevaluated by the doctor. I went back to work and got my foot on the injuried leg swept by a co-worker and i had torn my meniscus it was painful, i still have a lot of pain now in the front of the knee at this point , but i am so happy that i got my knee fixed its been three weeks since surgery adn the surgoen did a lot of work in my knee, recovery is going good but i have a long way to go, to learn how to walk properly, jump and run i cant even cross my leg over to tie my shoe, but it will come in time. Get you knee fixed if you keep falling your meniscus could be in danger and your healing time will increase, like mines did. I can now bend my knee on my own 124 degrees, i need to get to 130 like the other leg, so good luck in your decision keep us posted regarding the surgery schedule Sept 10th. Btw i am still off of work, i am a nurse and stand all day it is no way i can go back to work sitting again so i’m trying to heal right, so that i can return. take as much time as you need, i think i might go back to work at the end of Sept only 8 hr days, not 12 hours. I did the allograft also didn’t want to risk taking my strong ligaments and doing the autograft to many knee problems in my family.
Hey everyone
i went to PT today, had a bad weekend i guess because it was so cool here in Michigan. iI had a lot of discomfort. I did manage to work out at the gym on saturday. I found a zumba gold class that i could attend, because i heard it was a great way to lose weight the gold class is for seniors and people with physical disabilities the therapist said that i should be able to take the regular zumba class at the end of october. I got to 125 degrees today, next monday i will be trying to run on the treadmill, she is doing everything according to protocal that is going to be scary. I hope that everyone else is doing good in their recovery. I will keep you posted.
Tomorrow is 6 weeks post op. I started weight lifting on Monday (5 weeks 4 days - if you are counting…..
) Anyway, I’ve had all my flexion back since week 2, and all my flexion back save 1 degree - until I got measured on Monday and I’m perfect now.
(But, horses are way more exciting and fun.)
Megan, my ATC started me doing single leg extensions and hamstring curls at #40 and #30 lbs respectively. Well, my leg is a little weak and I thought that was sort of rough. I was able to do 6 reps x 3 sets each, and probably could have done more - but why push it? Then, I tried #40lbs and #30 lbs respectively with my left leg and was practically doing it with my big toe. So, that made me think I better push it. I’ve always lifted weights, but haven’t been doing the single leg method for about 18 1/2 years, and haven’t been doing it all all for about 4 months. I forgot how much weight I was working with. Having decided I had my work cut out for me, I have already worked up to 10 reps x 3 sets. I will bump up the weights a week from today.
Also, I am consciously making the decision to walk up and down stairs alternating feet like “normal people”. I was doing two ‘injured knee’ style and 1 normal knee and worked up to 1 and 1 and now I am just doing it the ‘right way’ all the time. If I need to cut myself some slack, I do it going DOWN STAIRS. I learned from my first knee injury that going down is harder than up. My father, who was in the front lines of Korea (and got shot and lost his leg) said that was true. Marching in the Mountains of Korea, uphill was preferable to downhill.
My Doc said I could resume horseback riding, and then said your horse is calm and quiet, right?” My reply, “Uhh, no. She’s affectionately known as ‘Killer’, and she’s been off work for almost 4 months…” So, we agreed I would stick to longeing my mare and ride lesson horses for now and not my dressage horse. I’m still doing yoga and exercise bike. Not doing treadmill or pilates. I have been swimming several times in pools. No kids and no waves. Also, I’ve been motorcycling. I have no trouble holding the bike, even with my bad leg. (By the way, motorcycling is a ’safe sport’ compared to horse back riding statistically. There are at least twice as many people riding motorcycles as there are riding horses, and yet equine accidents are twice as likely to be fatal than motorcycle accidents. So, buy your kids dirt bikes!
So, now the weight lifting and the real rehab begins.
Oops, I meant all my “extension back - except 1 degree……”
Katerine
you are doing such a good job on your recovery, i just don’t know what to say about your rehab. I can even catch up with you right now, but you are my inspiration. I went to PT today almost 4 week post-op and i think i am doing pretty good, i have all of my extention, but my flexion is only 125 by my self and 132 with the help of the therapist, i just think it is my quads not strong enough yet. the thing i worry about the most is the balance, mines suck and i was pretty good in karate, so that is what i am focusing on this week. I started some new more difficult exercises and not looking forward to the treadmill, the steps are tough but i mix it up and do normal sometimes, don’t want to tear something else. I started doing machines also with a small amount of weight 25 lbs, i will go up maybe next week.
Shawna
How do you not fall off a treadmill? I’m not even going to walk BY one!
My surgical leg is pretty weak. I was visiting my best friend’s new indoor arena for the first time and walking in the sand on on the new gravel drive - I had problems. I have trouble in my yard, too, because my Maltese thinks he’s a terrier and digs little holes covered by the grass that I can’t see. I had a lot more trouble with this with my left leg back in 1990 and it was a good two years before one day I realized I was just walking and not thinking about any uneveness to the terrain. For now, I will stick to walking the dog on pavement and staying off the grass.
I’ve got a long way to go.
Katherine
Shawna
How do you not fall off a treadmill? I’m not even going to walk BY one!
My surgical leg is pretty weak. I was visiting my best friend’s new indoor arena for the first time and walking in the sand and on the new gravel drive - I had problems. I have trouble in my yard, too, because my Maltese thinks he’s a terrier and digs little holes covered by the grass that I can’t see. I had a lot more trouble with this with my left leg back in 1990 and it was a good two years before one day I realized I was just walking and not thinking about any uneveness to the terrain. For now, I will stick to walking the dog on pavement and staying off the grass.
I’ve got a long way to go.
Katherine
It is a long way to go Katherine, we have to learn so much, like running for instance and jumping. I would like to get back into karate. Before the surgery I got on the treadmill and did the incline, I only went 1-2 mph but it felt great to be on there,my therapist thought I was crazy. But this time I will wait for her to put me on it, she stated that i would be jogging. I don’t even run on the treadmill on a good day lol. I wonder if they have ever messed up someone new graft by pushing so hard? Sometimes i leave out of therapy hurting like crazy. I have uneven terrain in my back yard I have been out there but walking very slow. I still can’t get the steps going up is ok but i feel a little heavy on the bad leg and coming down is crazy. Any suggestions?
Shawna,
No. Just keep doing it a little of whatever makes your leg feel wierd - without pushing it. I have the ‘heavy leg’ feeling going down stairs, and when I first get up in the morning. My old trainer told me w/ my left leg to always do what you’re going to do as if that bad knee will be there for you and support you.
I also know with my last knee surgery, that about 9 months out - I went on a vacation to the beach and the tide and shifting sand really helped my knee. I wouldn’t recommend playing in the ocean until 8 or 9 months post op - though. I know people who blew their knees out getting hit by a wave.
I’m not ready for any shifting, sucking sand right now. In a couple of months, I’ll put on my brace and walk my dog on some loose gravel, though.
Hi Ladies,
Well, I had a little set-back. I went to PT on Tuesday and that night my steri-strips came off on the middle of knee. The incision hasn’t fully closed and is still a little split. It was also a little red and had some oozing of clear liquid. So I emailed my doctor and he put me back on antibiotics. I’m grateful that he’s always available by email, even while he’s on vacation.
I’ve been cleaning the incision with peroxide and putting Neosporin on it. I’m glad it’s not the big incision on the leg. But being on the knee, I can’t go to PT this week per Dr’s orders.
It’s little bit of a bummer. I was doing really well at PT on Tuesday. I took the express bus by myself and everything went ok. I was on the stationary bike for 5 minutes and then 5 minutes on the treadmill. The PT aide stayed with me while I was on the treadmill. I went slow and he was there in case my knee gave out. I felt great after I left.
-Joanne
I actually tried walking my two dogs to the mailbox yesterday, which is probably 150 feet away. But they pulled the whole way and went in different directions. So I won’t be doing that again with both of them. I think I will try one at a time. I find that my dogs listen to me less since the surgery.
I know what you mean about walking on uneven surfaces. There’s a lot of potholes and sidewalks that are not completely flat. I find I’m always walking looking down. I was at a diner, and they told me it would be easier walking down the ramp. That would be a no. It’s harder as the decline makes you feel like you’re going to fall.
I don’t know about the rest of you, but I feel very vulnerable walking by myself with the crutches. I feel like a target.
-Joanne
Greetings and peace be upon you All
I am 2 weeks post-op and today I got to remove my brace for good and the staples were also removed from my knee. It felt so weird to take the brace off and walk around…my knee doesn’t really hurt (minus some of the incisions) but I can’t stretch it out fully, this is because I am scared to make it completely straight.
Anyways, the doctor suggested that if I had access to a pool, to go in it and stretch out my knee/leg. I am wondering, can I do this in the Jacuzzi as well or is it too much because of the jets?
God-Willing, I will be starting PT next week.
Hope all is well with everyone else. May you have a speedy recovery, God-Willing
ALI
Hi everyone
@Joanna sorry to hear about the infection in the knee incisions, i hope that the antibiotics work well on that, make sure that you take your temp and check for fever. Yes and please watch the dogs if they are big dogs they can drag you up and down the street.
today I went to the Michigan State Fair and walked around for 3 1/2 hours, I did take one crutch unlike Katherine when she went because the terrain was too uneven to chance it without. i thought i would be sore and stiff but to my surprise i feel great. I wanted to go to the fair as this is the last year that we will have the fair, it may be a meijer in the next few years. I will ice well tonight and do my thing in PT tomorrow.
Okay, this looks like a pretty helpful chain…ACL completely torn 5 weeks ago. Been in PT 2 times a week for the last five weeks. It’s been somewhat of a nightmare because my office is in Seattle but I live in Southern California…hence I am on a plane every week…in fact, I was on a flight 3 days after the injury in the full brace (first class upgrades are a real blessing when dealing with this injury). Here are my quesitons.
1. I have opted for the allograft. I was referred to my doctor as being the best OS in Newport Beach for ACL, and apparently he does all of the reconstructions for local physicians that suffer the same injury. He is a strong believer in the allograft…he himself had a patellar tendon reconstruction 10 years ago and said that it is a perscription for arthritis in 7-10 years. However, I have read the same articles about the potential failures of the allograft in active people in my age group (30). I am an avid snowboarder, golfer, and general outdoorsman…and I don’t have time for round two…
2. Recovery - While I am able to work from home I need to be able to travel as quickly as possible. As you may know, airports on crutches are simply impossible…right after the injury I navigated O’Hare, Seatac, SFO, Orange County…none of which were easily managed. Surgery is on October 8th. I would perfer to lay off the travel until I don’t need the crutches at all…what do you estimate the down time is??? I hear feedback from 1 week to 3 weeks…
3. PT - Post op - how quickly were you in PT? How many times a week did you go?
4. Continuous motion machines - did anyone use one of these machines?
Hi Shawna,
I’m doing great. I don’t have an infection right now. My dr put me on antibiotics just for precaution. My dogs are small. But I have one that loves being outside and the other that’s afraid of everything. They both are pulling in different directions.
I’m actually walking normal and I’m only 18 days post op. I don’t need the crutches in the house. I got up to 120 on the CPM machine. I go back to PT next week. I can’t wait.
Have a great weekend.
Joanne
Hi Keith.
It’s a tough call. Right now, I’m not very athletic. But for me the allograft was the best choice, as it offered less recovery time and I couldn’t afford to weaken my patella tendon. I’m 18 days post op and walking normal. I only need 1 crutch for outside just in case my knee gives out and to keep ppl from bumping into me.
It seems most athletes go for the hamstring tendon graft. Maybe ask your dr or get a second opinion. Snowboarding is really tough on the knees. It’s a tough call.
The CPM machine -(Continuous Passive motion) is great. I would suggest it for atleast the first week. It helps get your flexion back to normal. It gentle guides the leg up and pulls it towards the chest. It definitely keeps the knee loose and limber after surgery. I used mine for 6 hours + per day for 10 days. I mostly did it when I was sleeping as it gets pretty boring.
My dr is a big believer in not going to PT right away. I didnt start PT until 10 days post-op. He does this with all his patients (athletes and non-athletes). It helps to lessen inflammation so the swelling does not flood your quads. But most doctors will send you to PT within 5 days.
I will be going to PT for 3x per week for at least the next 4 months.
Good luck with surgery. Let us know what you decide.
-Joanne
Hi Keith,
So sorry to hear about your injury. I’m now 5.5 months post surgery and my allograft is strong. I’m pretty athletic myself and am a very strong 42 year old. Even my PT says I compare to his strongest male PTer. Anyways, I didn’t use a CPM at all and didn’t hinder my flexion at all. I was easily at 90 a week post with full extension. I didn’t do any PT prior to surgery but did wait 8 weeks post injury before surgery. I tore my MCL and completely tore my ACL. I didn’t do any PT at all prior to surgery but did get on a stationary bike and did exercises on my own. If your insurance is pretty good and allows you more that the normal 20 visits a year, I would definitely do the PT prior to surgery. Needless to say, I think my quick recovery was because I was very active prior to my injury, my quads came back pretty fast. I started PT approx 10 days after surgery and went 2x a week. After my 4 month check, I went once a week just bec I was seeing a lot of progress in my strength and I liked knowing my boundaries with regards to what kind of exercises/movement I can or cannot do while the graft is getting stronger. Mind you, I was warned by my OS that it will take a full year to get to a 100% and 2 years for the allograft to fully mesh with your body. Just words of wisdom that I definitely take to heart. Like you, I don’t ever want to do this surgery again.
As for back to work, it took me 6 weeks to get back to work. Again this is because I don’t have a sit down job. I’m literally on my feet walking for 12 hours (no joke). I was walking without crutches by 4 weeks. Back to work at 6 weeks on my feet walking for 8 hours. It was tough but it’s doable. It was 8 weeks before I could walk 12 hours straight without it killing me.
There’s a lot more to share but don’t want to overwhelm you. It’s going to be a process and it does take time. I worked very very hard to get my quads back quickly and it definitely paid off. It’s still at 90%. Good luck and take your time healing.
Hey Bari-are you still there? Are you having problems with patellar tendonitis after you run? If not, what did you do to make it go away? My OS said to lay off running until it goes away.
Suz
Hello everyone
I had PT today and my therapist wouldn’t let me do the elliptiacal machine, she just didn’t know that the holiday weekend i went to the gym and did the stationary bike for 10 minutes, while eyeing the elliptical. I did the elliptical for 10 minutes and it felt great, i know that it is a gamble but something told me i could do it. I did the 20 minutes on the bike today and some additional exercises today and did pretty good, my therapist said that i am already two weeks ahead of schedule. She had me doing a very fast walk today to see how steady i was, it felt funny at first, but the more idid the fast walk it started to feel like my leg again. Why does it feel like one leg is shorter than the other, i did still have the limp even with the fast paced walking. I think she is going to start more fast paced exercises this week, along with the other things that i am doing. I am still off form work because i too like Suz have a standing only job, i need to be able to stand for at least 8 hrs with out difficulty and then move up to 10 and 12 hours at least 3 days a week. So i go to see the doctor on Friday to see if or when I can go back without restrictions.
BTW i hated the stool scoots so i asked last week for an alternative exercise and she gave me seated leg curls with weights a few days later she added seated leg extentions with weights, that one is the hardest for me. The new stuff for the day ball assisted wall squats; step downns with eh operative leg on the step and the good leg touching the floor: and the sliding board with a added weight in the arms going up. I have a lot to do before i get my balance back.
It’s rained the whole holiday weekend! It’s been raining off and on today. I just wanted to say that I can feel each little pin and screw in my bones. (Even in my left leg 19 years and 9 months post op). My right leg really, really aches today. I feel very stiff and old!
I think I’m going to take a hot bath before and after working out today……….
I just wanted to whine……
oh no Katherine
that sucks, its been raining allday here as well and my knee has been hurting since i left PT. I just went to Target and pick me up some motrin, that seems to be the only thing that works for me. I hope i don’t get an ulcer. try taking the motrin maybe that will help for you as well.
5 week doctors appt i am clear to go back to work in two weeks 6-8 hrs standing. I do however have abakers cyst on the back of the knee that is putting a lot of painful pressure on the back of the knee. The doctor tried to take care of it in surgery but it came back. I am waiting on the cyst to burst on its own theat is the only way i can be rid of it for good. If not i will have the doc drain it for at least some temp relief
Hi Shawna,
Sorry to hear about your cyst. As if you don’t have enough to deal with. I would drain it. Pain must be alot.
Tomorrow, will be my first day back at work. We’ll see how it goes. I’ve been getting pain from my sciatic nerve when I sit too long, so I have to remember to move every half hour. It’ll be weird to be back. I’m sure I have hundreds of emails to sift thru.
Good Luck today Joanne everything will be ok, make sure you stretch out you hamstring and quad muscles throught out the day.
i went to my first Zumba gold class everyone, i an so excited. I am now off the bike at PT and on the elliptical, i think i am going to start waslking on the track daily to get ready for work in a couple weeks.
11 weeks post op and now running (in a straight line). Running mile and a half at a time and it feels good. Doc said no pivoting for awhile. I am really grateful that the recovery has been textbook. Really work on that range of motion for the first month. Then, you can work on the strength. Good luck to all.
eggman that is so great, i want to be able to run, i am 6 weeks post op my therapist will start me on the treadmill next week. I have to be able to go to work amd i am a nurse so i stand a lot. i just started the elliptical this week so that is a good thing.
Eggman,
Which surgery did you have? Just wondering.
I’m 8 weeks post op today and in just the past two days I have been able to kneel AND sit back on my heels. Getting on my hands and knees - I’ve been able to do for a couple of weeks - mopping the floor - taking care of animals, etc. But couldn’t close that angle with weight on the front of my knee. This may sound silly to you, but I garden - so it’s a big deal to me. Plus, I like to crawl around on the floor and play with my pets (and clean up after them, too!) The ground has been far away for too long! I think I’ll crawl around and vacuum baseboards this weekend! Yippeee!
Katherine
Hi Everyone,
I’m 14 weeks out now, and trying to get back on track after taking a couple of weeks break from PT due to illness. Seems like I’ve lost lots of muscle in that time period, since Ii’ve also lost a few pounds of weight. Really, since my surgery, I’ve lost between 10 and 15 pounds. I think it’s mostly muscle I’ve losts. So getting back on schedule and staying on that schedule is even harder now.
I started a pilates class, which my PT guy wasn’t happy about, but the instructor is very aware of how to accommodate my knee issues. She has been incredibly aware of it and makes sure that I don’t do any moves that will hurt my knee. My PT told me to be very careful, and gave me extra exercises for my back to help with the pilates class.
I’m doing sprints on the mini tramp, lots of balancing on the bosu ball and lots of gym ball exercises now. If I could just get on a regular schedule (I’ve never been good at that) I think things would go much faster. The biking, walking, etc. is really boring for me, so I’ve started getting books on CD at the library to help me get through those. I’m also going to get out on the road with the bike now that the weather is cooler too.
Anyway, I hope everyone has a great week and weekend. Take care!
Deb
Katherine,
I had the autograft. Sounds like you are at full range of motion?
Shawna,
I’m extremely happy with the progress. When you start running you will mentally want to favor
your good leg. I’m just focusing on striking the heal and rolling forward off the ball of
my foot. Don’t plant and pivot yet
This is an excellent blog. You guys really provide a lot of valuable info. I just found out two weeks ago, after being tripped up by a wave in the ocean (yes embarrassing) that I have torn my left ACL for now the third time. I tore it 10 years ago, playing college basketball, went ahead with surgery, rehabbed, came back next season and was only able to get through a few games. After having it scoped looking for cartliage damage, they discovered ACL torn again. I went through the surgery again, rehabbed, and in the middle of jogging on a treadmill 2 months out, my knee locked at 90 degrees and would not budge. No pain, but wouldn’t move. MRI revealed a screw came loose from previous surgery and floated into my joint. That required a quick 15 minute surgery to remove. So after 4 knee surgeries and nine years since the last one I thought I was good to go. I’ve remained active but did leave the college level after the 4th surgery. I went to the doc this past Friday to discuss which graft we would use, but it depended on the size of my previous tunnels which were evaluated with CT scan. I’ve already used patellar and hamstring from left leg, so my option is hamstring from my good leg or cadaver. Both the surgeon and I prefer hamstring. Found out my tunnels had shrunk in some areas and expanded in others. Now I’m looking at TWO more surgeries. The first which will be on the 22nd of October, will be to remove all old hardware, the frayed ACL and then a bone graft to fill tunnels in. After that procedure, I’ll wait 8 weeks to have my ACL surgery. Has anyone here had to do the bone graft? I’ve gone through the other stuff before but this is something new for me. What about using the hamstring from the good leg. My doc said it IS going to hurt for a while having both legs opened up like that. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.
Eggman,
Yes, I am full range of motion. I had that all back within 2 1/2 weeks. I’m weight training now, and have been told I can ride ‘gentle, quiet’ horses. Which means I can’t ride my own horse for now.
I’m almost forgetting my knee these days. It’s a little weaker, and every once in a while I have one of those mondo bone aches…….feels like I’m getting drilled on again….then it goes away.
Hello everyone
i hope that everyone is doing well in their recovery phase. This is the first week that i have felt great. I am walking better and faster, and i love being on the elliptical machine. I got on the treadmill this morning and actually jogged with out having any pain. I am 7 weeks post op and getting stronger everyday. I was a little upset last week because my job wouldn’t let me come back with restrictions. I asked my doctor to lift all restrictions for me to go back to nursing in October. I just started my functional exercises last week and i think everything is going well. I tell you the side shuffles are a killer, it goes to show you how out of shape i really am. But i am determined to get through this recovery and back to normal. As for Karate i am not sure what i am going to do, i can’t chance blowing this knee or the other one out again. I may just go back to dance or concentrate on health and go to Zumba classes which is latin dance. This week end is my birthday and i will take a break for therapy, the house and the children and go on a little trip. My plans are to take on Traverse City , MI and let loose and have a little fun. Good luck everyone I will keep you all posted on the progress. Thanks for your support
Shawna
I am back from Traverse city, everything went well, the hotel had a nice workout room and i got a little workout by walking a round a lot. I did go on the beach and walked in the sand and that felt great, i thought i was going to have trouble. I did a little jog across the street also just to keep from getting hit by a car, surprisenly it was not that bad, i almost feel normal again. this Friday coming will be 8 weeks
Hi all,
I am 4 months out from ACL reconstruction, hamstring. I wish I had found this site sooner! I would have had many questions.
I’ve been doing well with rehab and have gotten really fit as a result, but recently my leg has gone cold and numb. I took a 3 hour flight a few weeks ago and the sensation seems to have begun around that time. Has anyone had any experience like this? I try not to sit for long periods of time and keep up with stretching and working-out. (I made an appointment to see my surgeon this week.) -k
Hi every one I had my surgery in March 09, acl repair.. I still have an enormous amount of pain. Is this norma?
Thanks
Dear Linda,
No. This is not normal. Unfortunately, your surgeon can make or break you. If your surgeon doesn’t have a history of returning professional athletes to their sports - you may want to seek another surgeon who does. My first surgery in 1988 was a complete disaster and I was crippled from 1988 to Dec. of 1990 (ages 19 to 22) when I had a re-reconstruction done by a surgeon who repairs the knees of professional football players, soccer players, and other athletes.
I had my right knee done 11 weeks ago yesterday and I have been mostly pain free all along. I am running and lifting weights now 4 to 5 days a week.
Katherine
There are certain advantages to using allograft to reconstruct your ACL. First, the time to perform the operation is decreased, and there is no harvesting that needs to be done on the patient before performing the actual surgery. This means there are smaller incisions made and pain after the operation is minimal. Another advantage is that if the allograft fails, a patellar or hamstring graft can be attempted using your own tendons. The only disadvantage to this option of ACL reconstruction is infection. However, infection is a possible risk regardless of the option chose to reconstruct the ACL.
Hi Everyone,
Sorry I haven’t posted in a while. I’m now just shy of 8 weeks post op. I feel great. I walk with no limp, my only issue is going up and down stairs. I don’t have a fluid movement and feel like my knee is going to snap going down the stairs. My PT says it;s lack of quad strength so I’m working on strengthening them. It feels like its taking forever. But I go to pt 3x per week and do exercises at home.
I hope of you are doing well.
-Joanne
Hi James,
There actually is very little risk of infection from the allograft itself. My dr told me ,when the graft is harvested it’s actually put in different solutions and then frozen.
The risk of infection is mostly do to being opened from any type of surgery, but not the graft itself. There is also little chance for your body to reject the graft. It’s not a living organ.
I would totally recommend the allograft. Healing time is great. If I would have been athletic prior to surgery I would have gained my quad strength back quicker.
Good luck.
-Joanne
Hey Everyone
I am almost 3 months post op, and i have had my ups and downs with the recovery. I think my problem is that i tried to do too much to soon. I just started working 12 hour shifts by the time i get home i am very sore. the Dr. did so much more to my knee then and ACL reconstruction and i have pain plain and simply. I recently lost my main job because the Dr. kept putting me on 4 or 6 hour restrictions, well when you work in a hospital as a nurse they won’t let you come back on restrictions even limited hours. I am so happy that my job lost was due to the fact that my personal leave was up and i couldn’t return to full duty then for my performance as a nurse. I look at it this way when one door closes another will open, i lost my job on Friday and on Monday i was being offered full time at another hospital doing what i like to do best Labor and Delivery. When we post things on this site it is a guideline for people to go by, but remember everyone is different and all recovery periods are not created equal. It also depends on what the surgoen did to your knee i had more then just an ACL reconstruction, i had other ligaments involved , a bakers cyst and serve meniscus damage and arthritis which is the worst of all. All i can say to everyone is to try your best and do all that you can to strengthen your muscles around the knee and stay warm. @ joanne i still have trouble with the stairs, but i can run on the treadmill and stand/walk for 10-12 hours.
Thanks Shawna for that bit of encouragement. I’m nearly 4 months post op after the hamstring autograft, and meniscus trimming (both medial and lateral). Also had a bit of arthritis in there. Had torn my MCL and LCL vertically at the same time as the ACL-severing injury but those healed (or are healing) on their own without surgical intervention. The doc says I’ll have pain / swelling / popping / grinding for 6 months to a year post-surgery. He is the OS for two local university football teams so I know he has tons of experience and is great at what he does. And yes, everyone is different in progress, healing time, genetics, age, PT… everything. We’ll all get there. Time, patience, ice, therapy, exercise, determination, and faith has been seeing me through. Hang in.
Thanks Diana i have my good and bad days and i think the heat is working for me at this time, but i will use ice from time to time. You really messed up your knee i didn’t tear the lcl of the pcl so i am blessed the acl and mcl amd medial and lateral meniscus that is a different story. good luck witht he recovery
What type of heat are you using Shawna? Yeah, really messed it up but I am also blessed because it could have been so much worse. My husband and I were on a remote paved bike trail. We could have been anywhere along it, on a bridge, inaccessible, etc. but we were only about 1/2 mile from the ONLY town along the trail. The restaurant had just opened, a nurse was there, they had an ambulance service, the ER people in another dinky town were great, I got in to my own doc’s office just before they closed, the ARNP there was super and called to get me in for an MRI early the following week (some folks have to wait a couple of months), the OS saw me the following week, and the rest is history. My guardian angel had extra duty that day… take care and heal well. D
Hello everyone.. I tore my acl a couples months ago playing basketball. But decided not to get surgery until december(15) because i couldnt afford to miss school. I go to a big university and it requires alot of walking. So the problem im having is deciding on picking a graft. Autograft, Allograft, or hamstring. I know this is a very common question but any information would help. Ive heard that there is a risk of infection when using the allograft?? Im very active 21 year old male who loves to play basketball. And i really hope to get back out playing soon. Im not on a team but just love playing for fun so there is no time limit for when i have to be back. I just want to eventally play again at a competitive level. So anyone with any information I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks
Hi Tim!
My doctor recommended allograft for me. He also said he recommends it for most of his patients. It’s less taxing on you because the recovery period is shorter with allograft and the post-op pain is less. But then at 21 and being very active, you’re a great candidate for autograft too should you go that route. The risk of infection is less with autograft since you’re using your own graft. For me, even if the doctor didn’t wholeheartedly recommend one way or another, I probably would’ve chosen allograft anyway. I’m not good with too much pain and like the shorter recovery period.
Good luck Tim! I’m sure either you choose, everything will work out great! Once the knee is fixed, there’s no way to go but back UP! Mine was so loose pre-op, it’s scary! Now I’m walking around with just a slight limp and am doing great. It’s just a matter of time (up to a year) before the knee is 100% good. I’m doing PT 2x a day each day. It helps so much!
Keep us posted!
Sarah
James,
I too went the allograft way and am very happy with everything. Of course I’m only 3-month post-op. But so far so good!
Good luck with the surgery! Let us know how you’re doing now and then!
Sarah
Tim,
Btw, I’m sure you’ve done lots of research on the allograft v autograft issue, but in case you need one more, I wrote about my research in this blog entry: http://loveyourknees.wordpress.com/2009/07/18/autograft-vs-allograft/ . Hopefully, it’s help too!
sarah
Sarah
I appreciate all the information and the time you put into answering my question. Im still deciding on which way to go but i have some time before I have to let my doctor know my decsion. But I have two more question for you or anyone on here that would have some type of knowlegde on this topic. If I do decide to go with the allograft… 1) would I be able to be as active as I once was?? Because I heard that choosing the allograft was a way to go if you were not going to be as active. 2) what are the chances of infection from allograft (HIV,Hepatitis, etc…)??
Again thank you for your time. It is comforting knowing that there is a site out here with so much help when needed.
Tim,
1. That, I’m not sure. I used to play volleyball and hope to get back into it in a year. My doctor said I should be able to. So I hope he’s right. I definitely will not put 100% into playing again. Guess I’ll always be afraid to hurt the knee once more so I’ll probably play at 50% effort. But that’s just my own fear.
2. My doc told me the chance is 1% - something very small. But I guess it’s there. He said he’s done mostly allograft ACL surgeries, and so far so good with all his patients.
Take your time deciding. I think if you don’t mind the extra pain and the extra time it takes to recuperate, autograft would probably ease your mind more? I did mind them, so I took the other option.
Ask your doctor all these questions, maybe he can give you more detailed responses than I can.
Good luck Tim!
Sarah
Hi Tim,
I reccommend that you find a surgeon who works on professional athletes and has a team that does all three types of surgeries.
I had a patellar-bone graft in 1990, at the age of 22 and an allograft in July at the age of 40. I can tell you that the allograft is A LOT easier to come back from. I will also tell you that I was in college in 91. I had my surgery on Dec. 17 and returned to school on Jan. 6th. I lived almost two miles off campus, didn’t have a car, and went to a large university, I.U. Frequently, I had nearly a mile or more to walk between classes. I did it, so you can, too.
At your age, your doc will probably reccommend the Patella graft, but I am still very active and am VERY happy with my allograft.
The risk of infection is about the same between all types of grafts, with the autografts actually having a higher incidence of infection than the allograft.
You do have to baby the allograft longer, even though you’ll feel like doing stuff sooner. You won’t feel so much like doing anything with the patella graft for a while.
The most important aspect of your recovery is your surgeon. If he has athletes returning to professional soccer and football - then you can trust him. Also, be sure to get a sports brace and you’ll be able to do some things sooner, while protecting your graft.
Good luck,
Katherine
Katherine
My surgeon worked for the Chicago Bulls during the mid 90’s and currently is working with the Chicago Wolves hockey team). My surgeon actually recommended the allograft, so I am leaning towards going with his recommendation (since he has worked with athletes such as Micheal Jordan). I feel like I am putting to much pressure on myself trying to decide on which graft to use. So im just going to go with what he recommends and wish for the best. Thanks for your input on the subject. I really appreciate it.
Sarah
Thank you also for all your help. Both you and Katherine have helped made my decision much easier.
You’re welcome, Tim! I was in your shoes not too long ago too! Know exactly how you feel!
Let us know how the surgery goes! The first 2 weeks post-op are the hardest. After that, it’s much easier! I also heard that men recuperate faster and with less pain than women too! Just not fair.
Sarah
Tim,
Short and a quick because I am still working: Two weeks post op at this point…
30 years old - Snowboarder, softball, golf, beach volleyball, biking….very active
Doctor - Top doc in Newport Beach..operates on athletes and other docs….he himself had an autograft (pat tendon) and said that if he could do it again he would go allograft…so I followed his lead. He is also very active.
Two weeks post op - Off crutches by end of week one, used pain killers moderately for the first four days…no need to be in pain if you don’t have to….Had surgery on thursday and was back at work on Monday. Still kind of painful…but not bad at this point… PT is a pain in the a@@…mainly because I work 1000 miles from home and have to fly every week…this means that I have to go with a Monday and Friday schedule that is inconvenient.
Long story shory…easy recovery with allograft..and I plan on giving it a run for its money once I have fully recovered. Don’t stress…just get er’ done and get on with life…really not a big deal. Good luck…I did the same thing you did and reasearched all of these blogs…they are very helpful…but once you have it done you realize that it was really nothing at all…good doc and your good to go.
Hi Tim,
My doc is also a sports doc, worked for football teams and PGA. I had the allograft and I’m 2 months post op. I feel great. I walk with no limp and have absolutely no pain. I’m just working on getting my quad strength back. Going down stairs still is not fluid, but I need more quad strength.
My doctor explained to me that there is very little chance from infection from the Allograft. Even though it is from a cadaver, once it is harvested, it is put in solutions and then frozen. It’s not living like an organ or tissue transplant would be. So infection from it is extremely slim, as well as your body rejecting it. The main chance for infection is from just having surgery and being opened up, just as in any other surgery.
Don’t sweat your decision, go with what your doctor recommends and most important is if you can strengthen your legs prior to surgery, you will recover faster. Ask your doctor about PT prior to surgery as well as after.
Good luck, let us know how it goes.
-Joanne
Tim,
I just had an ACL PCL allograft on 10/8/09. It is definitely the way to go. I did an autograft several years ago which was not only incredibly painful but slow to heal and I ended up with blood clots. I think it’s all about your doctor and trusting your doctor’s recommendations as everyone has stated. I had 2 failed surgeries with my previous doctor when I decided to seek out another doctor. I’ve been seeing the new doctor for the last 8 or 9 mnonths waiting for my season (racing) to be over so I could have the surgery. I left a lot of the decisions to him as I completely trust him. When I went in for the surgery, he was not even sure at that point exactly what he would be doing until he saw my knee. My doctor is very conservative and didn’t think I could get back in a race car for at least 3 or 4 months but I know I’ll be ready to go by next month for our testing at Daytona. I’m only a week and a half into my phsical therapy and already feeling great. I was back to work in a couple days and other than just dealing with the bulky brace, I’m thrilled I went with the allograft.
Good luck to you!
Laura
Hi,
I am just about 4 months post allograft repair and just found this site. Have appreciated reading of everyone’s experiences and wonder if anyone might be able to comment here on mine. I am unfortunately having to go back to surgery to have two tibial securing screws removed that are about 5 and 3 mm too long. I was told at my post op exam ten days out that they were left “proud” but shouldn’t be a problem. If they do become a problem, then they will just go in to remove them. I was still in so much pain at that point that I never thought I’d walk normally again anyway so I didn’t really analyse the conversation then. Well, this whole acl experience has been a lot more than I had ever imagined with the most intense swelling and pain with revcovery. I cannot fully squat down or rise up on the affected leg, yet and stairs are still an issue. Figures also that I am feeling some discomfort in my calf at the point of the proud screws . Since my insurance will run out at the end of the year, my orthopod said they should go in to remove the screws as soon as we can to just solve the issue of my slow return to function and associated calf tenderness. Problem is that my insurance is not going to fully cover the second surgery and I don’t think I should be responsible either. Battling insurance for the first is still ongoing as well. Does anyone know why the screws chosen to secure the graft were longer than the diameter of the tibial shaft? Is that normal? Was the surgeon in a rush and couldn’t find the right sizes? Couldn’t they have trimmed them before they closed up just in the chance that they would be problem? The seceond surgery inclusive is to be around $4000. The first totalled out around $27,000. Yikes. Insurance is only covering 60% if anything which is a bummer. Although, the recoup after hardware removal will be nothing like the first, I am still nervous. I didn’t do well with anesthesia and pain meds are a nightmare. I also would like to be able to dance at my upcoming wedding in two months and am getting kind of freaked out about everything aside from just being plain frustrated.
Thanks in advance for any thoughts or comments……
Christie
Hi Christie,
I had an issue with a screw after my second acl reconstruction. However mine was a mistake on the doctors part. They thought the screw went out through suction but it didn’t. One month after surgery it locked in my knee joint. I went in for surgery within two days and the rehab for it was hardly anything, I was walking the next day, and back to my regular rehab within 3 days.
Also being I work for an insurance compnay, you need to make sure your doctor states that it is medical necessity. Chances are you will have to send it through the appeals process.
And just for the record, I had those surgeries 9 years ago, however in a fluke accident i tore my acl for a third time just over 6 weeks ago. I’m one week post op of my third acl reconstruction. The first one i used my patella tendon, second hamstring tendon, and one week ago did the allograft option.
Sorry for the late reply but Im appoaching the last month of the semester of school so Ive been busy. Just wanted to thank everyone for all the info. And I had a few more questions as I appoach my surgery date. 1) Why are they taking chest x-rays…. 2) and what exactly is the blood test for?
3) are these tests just for allograft patients or all acl procedures?
Those test are just pre surgery testing. Its because they will be putting you under. Just precautionary stuff.
Hi Tim,
They do all that testing for any kind of surgery. It’s totally normal. They want to make sure you don’t have any underlying conditions that have not been diagnosed that could complicate surgery. They’re just trying to make surgery as safe as possible for you.
Hi everyone,
My son, 16, tore his ACL in a high school football game. He is a very accomplished athlete and looking to get better and get back to sports as soon as possible. So we are debating the allograft v autograft procedure. Any advice for someone his age who is a college sport prospect? He is a baseball player as well and hoping to come back in 4-5 months. Any chance for that time frame? We have seen 3 accomplished doctors in the DC area and have one allograft, and one autograft w hamstring as the strong opinions so far. So we are really struggling with the decision. Any advice would be appreciated.
Steve, I can just tell you my story. I was a college athlete, basketball, 10 years ago. Tore my ACL during a game. Team doc at the time recommended Autograft using patella, so I did that. I was able to start playing by about 5 months, but not real competive til 6 months. Which was in the summer, by the time season started I had all kinds of problems and found out it had retore/failed. We had a new team doc this year, who did an autograft with hamstring. It went well. It held up for 9 years, then I just retore it a few months ago, which was a fluke accident. I ran into the ocean and a wave hit me….no one can explain why after 9 years something so minor retore it. I’ve stayed fit and active, but not at college level performance. I have the same doc and we were going to do hamstring from other leg because she doesn’t like to use allografts in people under 40…I’m 29. We scheduled that appointment and a few days before surgery she called me and after discussing with several other surgeons, she decided to opt for allograft ONLY because this was a revision surgery. I will be 4 weeks tomorrow and I’m doing well. The pain has been a little less than the hamstring, but I’m progressing at about the same pace as I did 9 years ago. I personally would recommend hamstring since this is his first reconstruction. It really wont make a difference in how quick he can come back, because all three options have about the same time frame. You have to be careful because the graft is at its weakest I think around the 3 month mark give or take…its when you feeling good and think you can do anything. I highly recommend taking your time coming back to competive levels. He will only get strong and make his knee more stable. That’s my two cents!
Hi Steve,
Whatever decision you make be aware of one really important concept that you must understand to reaqlly know when your son can get back on the field.
First, no matter what graft tissue you choose, it dies within 2 weeks and the body begins remodeling new tissue around it. The graft tissue becomes weaker and weaker over time, and the new live tissue becomes stronger and stronger over time. There is a point at which the overall strength of both combined makes the joint incredibly weak, and this point is at about 5 1/2 months out from surgery. Most people have built up the muscles around the knee to protect it enough from injury at that point, but there can be delays in muscle development, and this causes many people to trash the joint all over again at about that point.
Not trying to scare you, just want you to be aware of trying to get back to full bore too soon. Just remember to be cautious about getting back to “normal” by a certain date, because it can come back to haunt you in a big way. My 6-month anniversary was Nov. 11, and my inside quad is still not firing properly. I’m really bummed, too, because I really wanted to get back out on the slopes this season.
Good luck with your son’s surgery. Keep us posted!
Hollie and Deb,
Many thanks for your posts. We decided on the hamstring autograft today. Surgery is scheduled for Tuesday as Tyler has a reasonable range of motion and the swelling is not excessive. We all feel much better now that the decision has been made. Since the pop, his pain level has only been 1-2 out of 10. What should we expect post op?
We will heed your warnings about coming back too soon. It will be tough to keep Tyler from overdoing it. He has a huge tolerance for pain and a great work ethic. 24 hours after the accident I found him in the basement doing bench presses. What are some of the signs when you are doing too much in rehab and what are some of the signs where you finally feel comfortable that you are ready to come back to full speed. He wants to set target dates for milestones to achieve on his road to recovery. Do you have a resource that might help in that regard?
Thanks again, I want to be Dad that deals with this only once. Best, Steve
Hey Steve,
As far as pain goes, he’ll be the most uncomfortable the first 24-48 hours. Nothing major though. I took pain meds as prescribed during this time and did just fine. Have they mentioned giving him a nerve block for the surgery? That will keep his leg completely numb for about 12-24 hours afterwards which was hugely beneficial in my last surgery. My second surgery we had some complications and I ended up spending a couple nights in the hospital and getting the nerve block the next day. Complication he wont have to worry about. It was due to having two reconstruction within such a short time frame and then finding out I was allergic to morphine, and a few other painkillers, so they couldn’t control my pain. I dont remember much cause they kept me doped up on other stuff. But my other two went great, and the pain was minimum. My actually hurt more tearing it.
Make sure he tries his best to get all the Range of motion back he can before Tuesday, it makes it easier afterwards. As far as setting milestones, every doctor is different as is every physical therapist. There are many sample protocols online if you want to start getting some idea, but ultimately he will need to work very closely with his physical therapist and they will give him exactly what he needs to do and where he needs to be at certain points. As far as over doing it, one of the first and most noticeable things will be swelling. Once the swelling is under control after surgery, any time he over does it, it will swell. Plus there may be some pain and soreness.
I know it’s scary anytime you think of a reconstruction surgery, but all and all, ACL reconstruction isn’t as bad as it seems. You just have to be dedicated to getting back to whatever it is you do, which doesn’t sound like he will have a problem…and most importantly be careful. Trust me its no fun doing it over and over again.
Best of luck!!!! Keep everyone updated on his progress. He’ll only be a little over four weeks behind me, so we can compare stories.
Hey Steve,
As far as pain goes, he’ll be the most uncomfortable the first 24-48 hours. Nothing major though. I took pain meds as prescribed during this time and did just fine. Have they mentioned giving him a nerve block for the surgery? That will keep his leg completely numb for about 12-24 hours afterwards which was hugely beneficial in my last surgery. My second surgery we had some complications and I ended up spending a couple nights in the hospital and getting the nerve block the next day. Complication he wont have to worry about. It was due to having two reconstruction within such a short time frame and then finding out I was allergic to morphine, and a few other painkillers, so they couldn’t control my pain. I dont remember much cause they kept me doped up on other stuff. But my other two went great, and the pain was minimum. My actually hurt more tearing it.
Make sure he tries his best to get all the Range of motion back he can before Tuesday, it makes it easier afterwards. As far as setting milestones, every doctor is different as is every physical therapist. There are many sample protocols online if you want to start getting some idea, but ultimately he will need to work very closely with his physical therapist and they will give him exactly what he needs to do and where he needs to be at certain points. As far as over doing it, one of the first and most noticeable things will be swelling. Once the swelling is under control after surgery, any time he over does it, it will swell. Plus there may be some pain and soreness.
I know it’s scary anytime you think of a reconstruction surgery, but all and all, ACL reconstruction isn’t as bad as it seems. You just have to be dedicated to getting back to whatever it is you do, which doesn’t sound like he will have a problem…and most importantly be careful. Trust me its no fun doing it over and over again.
Best of luck!!!! Keep everyone updated on his progress. He’ll only be a little over four weeks behind me, so we can compare stories.
Full tear of the ACL playing soccer (no impact, just bad plant & pivot) on 11/15, confirmed torn on 11/23, surgery scheduled for 12/9 - Allograft. Doc says he thinks I have a minor meniscus tear too, but the radiologist didn’t pick it up.
Some things I’m curious about -
1) Can I do any type of cardio between now and 12/9? This is a rough time of year to be sitting around doing nothing.
2) My doc says I will be at PT the next day. Anyone know why some docs wait 3 weeks or more?
3) My doc says I should be on the crutches from now until the physical therapist says I can be off of them. Is this for real? I don’t have full range of motion, but I can walk fine with a mild limp. I can’t imagine being on the crutches for two more weeks before I even have surgery. Is there risk of damaging my knee furthur?
4) Surgery is on a Wednesday. When is a realistic time frame to be back at work? (I have a desk job, but typically need to walk around a lot…and I sit on the 2nd floor and the elevator is really far away).
Thanks!
Hi Mary,
Welcome to the group.
I too had a meniscus tear along with ACL, plus cartilage debris and he also needed to shave bone spurs on my knee cap caused by the injuries. I had a meniscus tear back in 2005, but didn’t require surgery. I tore my acl sometime in between that MRI and the one taken in August, after I further tore my meniscus. My doc believes the ACL injury wasn’t recent. My ACL was not completely torn. I had the allograft and my doc recommended PT prior to surgery to strengthen my quads. I had no trouble walking prior to surgery ( so no crutches) and knee was feeling better. I did not go to PT right after surgery. I only had pain for 6 days after surgery with each day being less and less. I started PT 10 days after surgery. I had very little inflammation when I started PT and have nothing now. My surgery was 8/19.
To answer your questions:
1. I would think the only cardio you can do would be the stationary bicycle. But you need to speak to your doc first. See if he is being overly cautious or if you really have a serious injury that any exercise would make worse.
2. Conventionally thinking is to get right back to PT after surgery. My doc believes in allowing the knee to heal a little to greatly reduce inflammation. He feels that when you start PT right away, the inflammation in the knee just floods into the quads (causes pain..etc). I was in PT 10 days after surgery and no inflammation. The day I came home from surgery my doc had prescribed a CPM machine and told me to try to flex my knee as much as I could. And keep doing it everyday until the machine goes back (3 wks). Plus he prescribed a cooling machine, that I wore most of the time that kept swelling in check (2 wks). He also recommended light exercises, while lying down, like leg lifts.
3. Your doc is probably recommending crutches now until surgery because you have a full tear of the ACL. This means your knee is not stable and can give out unexpectedly. He’s trying to limit further damage. I would follow his orders. The fact that you have a limp will cause your body to shift and other muscles to compensate. Talk to your doc further. Make sure he’s top of the line and deals with Professional athletes.
4. I have a desk job too. I took off 1 month, mostly because my surgery was extensive and I live in NYC and need to commute to work via the subway. It would have been too much for me to do 3 flights of stairs to and from the train. The extra rest did me good. I stopped walking with a limp 2-3 weeks after surgery. I didn’t need the crutches after 2 weeks, but took 1 with me if I was outside and even when I first went back to work. It was more to keep ppl at a distance, so they would not accidently bump into me.
I listened to my doc’s orders to the T and very grateful I did. I have no limp and the only thing that gives me slight trouble is when I try to go down more than 3-4 flights of steps. I’m still going to PT and working harder to get really fit. I’m not athletic and wasn’t prior to surgery. The fact that you are, you will bounce back quicker. But don’t rush it too much. Treat your new ACL with care and make sure you get a really good physical therapist to help with your recovery.
Remember your new ACL will not be considered completely healed until 1 year after surgery.
Good luck, Let us know how it goes.
-Joanne
I have a desk job and took off 2.5 weeks. I have a nice little walk from the parking garage and then to the elevator. My doc took it slow this time and I didn’t start PT until after my two week check up. Also, keep in mind this is my ACL reconstruction. Well one reconstruction two revisions. So Ihaven’t had all the options, patellar, hamstring, and now allograft. Take the time between now and then to focus on getting as much range of motion back, and do light exercises to build/keep your quad built up (leg lifts, quad sets, etc.) It helps make things easier after surgery. Best wishes. Its not a fun surgery, but if you are determined, you should bounce back just fine, and make sure you have a great physical therapist.
Thanks for all the info! I guess I will be taking it really easy for a while & keeping my crutches with me.
2+ weeks! Yikes! I guess that’s why they make sick time…
Hi
Had ACL done on right knee in 2001 (hamstring graft). I play badminton. Slipped on Monday in a match and twisted knee. Now fear have blown ACL again. Cant wait bear yet, on crutches, no bending. Just wanted to hear fromanyone who has had a second ACL recon on same knee having first had a hamstring graft. Did you go for Patella graft.Not ssure about donated graft due to disease spread?? Sitting here with leg elevated really bored and frustrated but glad found this site. talking helps. Hopefully will get to see my surgeon next week when I can at least get out of the house. Its been just over 48 hours now and the swelling is coming out now. Im from the uK and will be grateful for any responses.
Thanks Mark
Hi Mark from the UK!
A few people in this forum entry have gone through similar experience as yours. If you read above entries, you’ll find them. I had mine done with a donated graft because my doctor recommended it, also because I didn’t want to go through more pain than necessary. I’ve been keeping a blog ever since the injury and surgery - hoping it’ll help others who are going thru the same thing.
Perhaps you just sprained the ligament and didn’t completely tear it? You never know!
Let me know if you have any other questions. Good luck Mark!
Sarah
Hi Mark,
I only tore my ACL once. But I just wanted to comment on the allograft, in regards to disease.
My doctor told me there is such a small chance for disease or your body rejecting the graft because when the graft is harvested from a cadaver it is put in all kinds of solutions and then frozen. It’s technically dead and viruses and bacteria can’t survive on it. Its a different process than an organ transplant, which must be kept alive for it to work and carries a high risk of disease.
We have more chance of getting infections, just from being opened up as in any normal surgery. My doctor gave me antibiotics, not for the graft but for surgery.
I could do patella tendon or hamstring as both were weak and my doctor said especially he wouldn’t do the patella on me, as it would further weaken my knee and I would need a full knee replacement in 5 years. So he chose allograft to hopefully put off forever needing a knee replacement.
Good luck,
Joanne
Wow alot of great information. What would you do autograft or allgraft for your 14 year old daughter? She is very athletic and tore ACL while playing basketball last week.
Hi All,
Just an update on things. Just had my 6 month check, and I’m cleared for everything except the two things I really want most - skiing and tennis. Doc says the allograft takes a bit longer to incorporate than autograft, so wait at least 2 more months for anything that twists the knee so much.
At least I now I feel comfortable starting to push the knee harder and can put on more muscle before doing those.
Thanks to all of you for your support! It’s been a blessing to me and I’m incredibly grateful!
Take care all —
Deb
Hi everyone,
Just had surgery on the 15th… I was wondering how long should i keep the brace and ice pack on??? And what about the ACE wraps??? Should I take those off to let the knee breath?? I’m calling the Doctor in the morning but just wondering what everyone else did. Any help will be appreciated. Thanks in advance..
Tim
Ali,
I was wondering how your recovery is going. I am a high school basketball coach and my daughters have all had acl repair surgery. My youngest daughter just underwent acl repair and wants to return to play as she is being recruited collegiately. Why did you choose allograft? Was this an MD reccomendation? What type of allograft was used? My daughter’s repair was hamstring autograft assisted with post tibial allograft. We are trying to learn what we can expect from your experience. Thanks.
Hi Greg,
I had my surgery in August and went to physical therapy for 6 weeks. Since then I have been working out my quad, hamstring (very little) and thigh muscles on my own at the gym. It has been about 4 months since the surgery (achilles allograft), which my doctor specifically recommended I get. I also felt like going with the Allograft because although I played basketball in highschool for 4 years ( I am now in my 4th yr in college), being a guard my leg muscles were not too strong and my legs are small in general. I did not want to have to take any muscle out of my right leg for surgery, as this would have made recovery difficult for me. I feel pain somewhat in my knee, particularly if I do not work it out for long periods of time, but this is due to my lacking work ethic.
I feel there is progress in my ACL healing up, but I am psychologically scarred from my past 2 experiences of tearing/reinjuring it. Insha’Allah (God-Willing) withing a 9-12 month span it should be strong enough to play on, assuming I consistently work my leg out and wear a protective brace.
Good Luck with your daugthers’ recoveries.
Ali
Hi guys,
I was wondering have any of you experienced your knee feeling numb around the incision sites. I have about 6 incisions and on 3 of them, the area that surrounds it is numb. If anyone can help I would greatly appreciate it.
Thanks
Tim
Hi Tim,
Numbness around the knee and the incision sites is normal. They cut through your nerves, which is what causes the numbness. I had surgery in March and I’m still a little numb in places, although much better than at first.
Bari
Ali,
What type of graft did you have when you injured your knee the first two times? Is it the same knee that you had revision on?
Greg
Hi Greg,
I originally partially tore my ACL in August of 2008 and did not get surgery. The ACL healed slowly over time but was still somewhat torn. I did not take this to account when I played basketball again in July of 2009, when I reinjured it and tore it a 2nd time. It was then in August of 2009 that I had my first and only surgery, Alhamdulilah (All Praise is due to God).
I went with an Allograft that the MD said was an achilles.
If you have Anymore questions I would love to be of help.
Ali
Hello everybody its been a while since i last posted something. Just wanted to update you on whats going on with me. I am 4 months postop and still having pain. The surgoen did a lot of work on my knee ACL reconstruction, meniscus repair and i also had chondromalaysia. He is a good surgeon working with the detroit lions, tigers and the pistons. I have been having trouble going up and down the stairs since October and now I am going back to PT nd getting synovial fluid injections to lubricated the joint. I hope this works and that i wont wipe out as the weather is starting to make me afraid to go outside. I hope you all are recovering better then I am and I wish you a Happy Holiday.
Hi Everyone!
I tore my left ACL two weeks ago in an indoor soccer training session, and just found out that my surgery is scheduled for Jan 21st. I’ve been trying to google and research on which type of surgery I should get (allograph or autograph) but it’s not as good as hearing it from others who have been in the same boat. I play soccer for WMU, i’m a 20yr old female, and i’m extremely active, so I want the best outcome in the long run, but also, I want to be ready for fall season which starts in September. I’ve been leaning more toward and autograph just because i’ve heard it’s a little bit stronger and better for young athletes, but I would REALLY appreciate some input on what everyone else thinks! Thank you!
-Gilly
I’ve torn my ACL three times in the last two years: my right knee senior year of high school, left last January, and left again this past fall. I have my third surgery this Monday (1.4.10).
I was a highly competitive college basketball player and this third injury has forced me to retire, unfortunately. But I am an extremely active person and desire to continue to be so after this surgery.
My 1st surgery= patellar autograph
My 2nd surgery= hamstring autograph
This coming surgery= allograft
I’ll soon have an unique perspective because I will have undergone all 3 types of surgeries!
I agree with many of you, It is extremely frustrating how diverse the opinions are on the “right choice” of graft are…especially coming from doctors, when medical world is by nature a concrete, scientific field. I’ve visited many doctors, read tons of articles, read online forums (including this entire thread), and have deemed my findings somewhat inconclusive. I do, however, have my experiences to share.
In short, my patellar graft was EXTREMELY painful but I got back in 3 months and had a great senior basketball season, and it has held up the last 2 years. Psychologically, really tough, though. Hamstring graft on my other knee was way less painful and I felt “back to normal” sooner, but this could have, in the long run, hindered me because I tried to get back to sports before my leg was truly ready. It’ll be interesting to see how the allograft compares…it’s not my first choice, but I’m running out of harvesting options! HAHA.
Let me know if any of you have questions…I’d love to help! This way all the pain, disappointment, etc. I’ve gone through these past two years will not be in vain.
What a great conversation we have going on here! So glad I found this blog.
Wish me luck on Monday, any prayers would be appreciated!
Gilly-I’m so sorry girl! I would say go with the autograft at this point, but either way you go, the most important thing is that you get your muscles back to full strength before you go back. Work out like crazy this summer and ensure you are ready before stepping back on the field. Best wishes, and if you have any questions feel free to ask.
Ali Mae G,
May I ask where you play college ball and why you chose allo over using your patellar tendon on your reinjured knee, in that your patellar graft has held up on your right knee? I am a high school coach and my daughter is being recruited to play collegiately and is recovering from acl surgery.
Greg
Hi-
I tore my right ACL a few weeks back while skiing, and am undergoing surgery in about 3 weeks. My doctor first told me that i should definitely go with a patella tendon autograft, but after I told him I have knee pains in my patellar tendon after skiing and long car rides, he recommended an achilles tendon allograft. With past knee problems, my doc thinks that I might develop tendonitis in my patella tendon, with considerable pain. He alluded to slightly higher re-tear rates and the risk of infection, but left it up to me to decide.
I am almost onboard with the allograft, but the one snag is the risk of disease (HIV, Hepatitis). All the research I find online is fairly outdated (10yrs old), so i was wondering if anyone can provide any input on this topic… What i have found is that the risk of disease has lowered considerably, but is still there.
Also, does the allograft hold up over time (10-15 yrs later)??
Thanks.
Hi Demian,
I had an achilles tendon allograft this past August. I feel great. My doctor explained to me the risk of infection from the graft itself is minimal.
The cadavers are screened for diseases. Once the grafts are harvested they are placed in liquid nitrogen and frozen. During surgery the doctor has to thaw the tendon out and cut it to fit you. Since the tendon is not living, like an organ transplant would be, the risk of contracting a disease or risk of your body rejection the graft is 1 in 2 million.
You can get infections from having any surgery. My doc put me on antibiotics for a week after surgery. I’ve had no issues. I wasn’t concerned about the risk of diseases from the graft or surgery. I just wanted to be able to walk well and feel no pain.
My doc said there is no reason the allograft can’t last over time. He said the key is staying fit and keeping your quads and legs strong. I’m still going to physical therapy 2x per week. I feel I need to, as it keeps me on the right track.
Good luck.
-Joanne
I haven’t blogged in a while. I’m now 9 months out from surgery. Like you Demian, I tore my MCl and ACL last Feb while skiing. I had a cadaver allograft and have no regrets. I no longer wear my brace but would when I play basketball with my kids until 2 years post. I’m 90% back. Pain lingers around the area where they inserted the drill. Something to do with bone growth-that’s what I’ve been told. It’s amazing what I can do. Again, lots and lots of hard work. I recently joined the local YMCA and can now single leg press 30 lbs x3 reps. My favorite is Zumba! I wasn’t worried about bacterial infection at all. Agree with Joanne. I’m glad I didn’t use my hamstring since I’ve met a few people who did and they still can’t do low squats even after sev years. You need to pick a really good surgeon. His technique plus where he gets his grafts, in my opinion, will dictate reconstruction success and longevity. Do your homework, work hard pre and post-op and you will do well. I was filled with angst before surgery but it wil get better. Good luck.
Suz
Hi,
Thanks to everyone for sharing your experiences on here. I completely tore my ACL back in July 2009, had surgery end of August so I am a little over 4 months post-op. I chose the allograft and am satisfied with my choice. I didn’t really want to take another part of my body away and deal with another area having to heal. Speaking with my doctor and discussing pros and cons, I felt comfortable with the decision. One issue I have been having is the area where the tibial screw is. Sometimes I feel a catching of the skin in that area - my doctor says that he didn’t put the screw all the way in because my bone structure is smaller , he didn’t want the screw going into the joint space. I would have to wait a year then he could go back and shave it down. I was just wondering if anyone else has had issues with this?
Good luck, everyone with your recovery. It’s a process but it does get better as time goes on!
Well, I’m 39. Been playing soccer forever and at my indoor game on Nov. 14th tore my ACL, MCL, Lateral and Medial Meniscus. Found out today that they are going to do the surgery on Tuesday and I am scared out of my mind. I’m a chicken with this kind of thing. I also am still trying to decide on either having the allograft or the autograft done. I have read the blogs and I appreciate everyone on here. It’s been helpful. Still trying to decide though, but thank you!!!!
Thanks for all the responses. My surgery is scheduled for Jan 21st, and I will meet with my doc one more time to discuss what I should do. I’m still leaning towards an allograft, but we’ll see. All the comments on the blog have been very helpful.
Hi Demian and Carolyn,
Good luck with your surgeries and decision. I think you are both doing the right thing by getting as much info you can and speaking with your doctor.
Carolyn, my surgeon, schedule surgery only 10 days after my injury. It felt like everything was going so fast. But the quicker you get the surgery over with, the sooner you will start your recovery.
Let us know how it goes and what you decide.
Best of luck to you both.
-Joanne
Hi Jane,
I also had my allograft in August 2009. I do not have any issues with the tibia screw. My scars still feel tender when pressed but no issues with skin catching the screw. I wonder if tibia screws come in different sizes. Curious, why he wouldn’t shave the screw to fit you before he put it in.
-Joanne
Joanne,
Thanks for the feed back. I will let you know how it goes and what I decided to do. I go in on Tuesday at 6:00 a.m. Still nervous but looking forward to starting the recovery process.
Demian,
Good luck to you as well. Let me know what you ended up deciding to to and how it goes for you. Good luck.
-Carolyn
Just had my 6-month checkup. I now don’t have any restrictions on exercise! Before this point it was to get stronger and able to run straight lines. A few “hopscotch” type PT exercises, too. And lots of stationary bike!
Hang in there folks. It DOES get better.
Hi im 16 years old and am a basketball player. I had an allograft surgery on Monday, and am feeling very well. So far I have not really experienced any pain, and I am already off crutches, although still wearing the brace. I can now bend my knee to 117 degrees, and the day after surgery could bend it 100 degrees. My doctor told me that my gradt looked very good and all went well. I am hoping for a 4 month to 5 month return to sports and will keep working hard every day to get there.
Daniel,
What type of allograft was used? May I ask why you went with the allograft over autograft?
Greg
I think it was a pataller tendon and I chose allograft simply because of the doctors reccomendatins. I fully trust him and he has far more knowledge as does any of us who have not gone through medical school, so I decided to go with his advice.
Daniel,
Thanks, I wish you the best in your recovery. Has your doctor given you a returning time frame?? My daughter is 6 weeks out of surgery and is a basketball player as well. Good luck
Greg
Can anyone out there tell me when the swelling after surgery went down? How many weeks post op did this occur when you felt the swelling was all but gone?
Greg
Greg,
I had very little swelling because I followed dr orders. And I had a lot done to my knee (allograft, meniscus repair, shaving of bone spurs and cleaning up of cartilage and debris).
As soon as the dr finished my surgery he slipped on a cooling sleeve over my knee and then the brace so I could go home. I was released same day, 2 hours after surgery. Dr told me to use a CPM machine when I got home from surgery. I got up to 100 degrees of flexion. I kept the cooling pad on 24 hours for 8 days. I had only minor swelling 1 week after surgery and I didn’t start pt until 10 days after surgery. I only did the cpm machine daily for 2 weeks. At 1st PT session, I had little to no swelling.
Some dr will send you right away to PT. My dr doesn’t believe it does any good. He said you need to get inflammation down before you start PT. Inflammation = pain and when you start PT too early, the inflammation floods into the quads.
-Joanne
yea my doctor said that he thinks i should be good at around may. i too use the cpm machine but i dont think for much longer as i have already maxed it out at 120. The interseting thing about my situation is that I actually patially tore my ACL in September but tried to continue playing on it up to now in basketball and the doctor said I have a great advantage because of this as I was in far better shape and s\conditioned better than most people.
I just met with my doc for the last time before surgery. I decided on the allograft because of chronic patellar femural pain. I guess this can get really bad after surgery if you go with the patellar tendon graft. The fact that my doc does allograft surgery 70% of the time really re-enforced it for me. I go under the knife on the 21st.
Anyone have a good estimate on when i’d be good to travel- walk and hike lightly? I was told somewhere around 2 months to do that and 4-5 months to be fully active again.
Thanks all.
-Demian
Demian,
I tore my acl in football and played with it torn, due to that I had a bucket handle tear of my miniscus. I could not walk for 2 weeks after surgery because of the damage to my miniscus. Depending on what your doctor does with the surgery, he may or may not put you in a brace. I have a donor graft that was originally a tendon along the tibia in someone else. My doctor said if i did not have the serious miniscus surgery i would have been walking (with help of crutches) the day after the sugery, no brace or anything! If you do your rehab exactly the way your PT tells you, i would say you could walk and travel in around 2 months without any problems! The more you do your physical therapy, the faster your knee will heal, but also listen to the knee if you are pushing yourself too hard, trust me you will know.
im back posting a week out of my surgery and everything is going fantastic so far! Got my stitches off yesterday and my knee is looking pretty good actually, with barely any swelling. The doctor is extremely pleased with the surgery so far and says my knee is excellerating at a far more faster rate than most, and syas he actually may need to slow me down in the future at this rate.
Daniel,
Good to hear! Just be sure to follow doctors orders because you don’t want to have to go through the whole thing again! I think one time is enough for me!
Daniel,
Good to hear! Just be sure to follow doctors orders because you don’t want to have to go through the whole thing again! I think one time is enough for me!
Daniel - Congrats. I am glad your recovery is going so well.
I had my surgery 9 days ago and finally decided to go with the allograft. I think that I am glad that I chose that way. I am recovering nicely and my doc did a great job. I had complete ACL reconstruction, MCL repair, Lateral and Medial meniscus repair and I only have two little holes below my kneecap and about a 2 inch line below. It looks great.
I started therapy already but because of the extent of the damage I am not allowed to put any weight on my leg at all for 6 weeks. AHH!!!!!!!
I am off the pain meds and have been for about 5 days.
Did anyone else find a comfortable way to sleep with the brace on? Right now, that is the biggest issue I am having. Everything else is great.
I go back to the doc today so he can tell me if he thinks my process is on or needs improvement, but I am feeling much better.
Good luck to anyone who has an upcoming surgery. Really and truely, the first week is the hardest!!!
Hang in there everyone.
Carolyn
wow! 6 weeks you cant put any pressure thats a lot. I also had like a 4 or 5% tear in the meniscus which they just cleaned out as well. also, the scars on my knee are also tiny, main one probably an inch long and twoo meniscus ones about 2 or 3 centimeter. i acatually stopped using crutches on about my 3rd day out of surgery and now my brace is fully unlocked and can walk pretty good now, in a couple of days i will take my brace fully off beccause my doc said as soon as i can walk a full day with brqace unlocked you can take off brace , and i have done this 3 days in a row, but am only a week and a couple days out of surgery so im not trying to push it yet lol. i really just cant wait to get to the level where i can start sports again i would say in about a month i will start running and continue it from there keep you guys posted
I just had an ACL donor graft surgery yesterday. Turns out i tore about 2% of my minisucs, which the Doc said really isn’t a big deal. I’m in a CPM machine, at about 75 degrees movement. I made it to 90 this morning, but that was because my leg was still numb from the femural nerve block that I got pre-surgery yesterday. PT starts on monday, after a follow up with the doctor.
So far everything looks good, and i’m in not too much pain. Minimal weight bearing with crutches. Hopefully I’ll get better everyday and be able to travel in a few (short) months.
first day today without wearing brace anymore less than 2 weeks out of surgery. was of crutches in like 4 days after surgery
Hi Everyone!
I just had surgery on Thursday and I went with a patellar autograft. I’m still in a LOT of pain. I’ve been using my CPM machine 24hrs a day and have a cold therapy pad on too. I also had a femoral nerve pain pump in, but it was too painful in itself so we had it removed. I’m also taking percoset which help with the pain, but i’m still not finding any comfort…
I was just curious as to when I will start to feel some sort of comfort and relaxation?! I get to remove the dressings on Tuesday, and i’m hoping that will give me some sort of relief!
Any input would help
Thanks!
Hi Everyone, my first post here!
I had an allograft ACL reconstruction on 1/20/2010, and the doctor said it went well when in the recovery room. I am a 23 year old male and even though I am an avid skier, hiker, and wake boarder, I went with the allograft since I could not find medical journal articles that show that they are not as strong as the patellar graft (only hearsay articles). There are four incisions, two on the bottom of my kneecap, one 3 inches above and one 2 inches below my knee. The graft was a from a 60 year old, which I am really shocked about since it will be 120 years old when I’m in my 80s! Anyone else know the age of their cadaver?
There is the background, now the recent stuff. I can’t bear any weight, and whenever the knee is below my waist there is an excruciating pain from just below the kneecap and a little to the left. This pain brings me to near tears each time I crutch back and forth to the bathroom from bed. This pain slowly fades once back in bed over 10 minutes. I have PT tomorrow and that will be painful but maybe informative. Will take a lot of pain killers. Has anyone else experienced this pain? I believe it is the connection point for the ACL into the tibia? Everyone else that has had the allograft has not mentioned this pain. Please let me know if you did and that everything turned out alright! Thanks,
Drew
Daniel - You do know that we are all jealous, right? Congrarts on the great progress and recovery.
Gilly - I had surgery on Jan. 12th. I was in a lot of pain when I went back to see my doc two days later and even had him give me a refill on the percoset. I ended up not refilling it though and I felt better a couple of days later. It does get better. Just watch the amount of percoset. I don’t know how it affects you, but it stopped me up. Add lots of fruit to your diet. LOL! Don’t worry. It gets better. I can’t put any weight on my legg for another 4 weeks. I had ACL reconstruction, MCL, Medial and Lateral Meniscus repair. Doc is playing it safe. Good luck and keep us posted.
Drew - You can check out my previous posts but I too had a lot of pain just getting to the restroom. Believe it or not, the P.T. will help with that. Not sure why that is. I have been going to P.T. for about a week now and mine are great. There are a few exercises that hurt a little, but I always feel better after I have been. As long as I put ice on my knee when I get home it’s great. FYI, don’t over do it though. On Saturday, I went to my son’s soccer game, out to eat, moved back to my own house, went to my nephews soccer game, and back home. My knee is still swollen so now I am back to lying around until the swelling goes down.
If it hasn’t already, the pain should start to go down in the next day or so. It might also be easier for you if you take your brace off when you travel to the restroom. Mine is heavy!
Good luck guys and let me know how it goes. It’s an encouragement to me to read everyone’s post. THanks.
Carolyn
Gilly - Sometimes its the dressing that hurts cause it’s pressing on the area. You’ll probably feel better when its removed. Are you also doing the cold therapy 24 hours a day? I found that helped me and also kept the inflammation down. I used to sleep with the cpm machine on all night and it kept me from being stiff in the morning.
Drew- That’s a good question. I never asked my doctor but I will. It does sound surprising that they would use a 60 yr old, but if it’s the achilles tendon, you should be fine. I got an achilles tendon and the dr said that was one the strongest tendons to use.
So your 4 days out of surgery, are you icing and doing the CPM machine? You should be icing as often as you can. (20 minutes on and 20 minutes off ). A cooling pad works best as you can keep it on 24 hrs.
You need to probably relieve inflammation to the area. Inflammation makes the area more tender, which could also aggravate where the tibia screw is. PT will help because they will massage and make you move, which will move the inflammation away from the knee and make you feel better.
Good luck all,
-Joanne
This is definitely a very informative blog!
I torn my ACL on December 6th and due to finals and Holiday travel I wasnt able to get the surgery right away. The pain was very minimal as well as swelling. I was able to move it a few days after doing pre-rehab. I honestly thought it wasnt a bad tear, that maybe it was MCL, but MRI showed a clear torn ACL. Right now, I use a brace because where I live I have to walk a lot and to prevent any major problems before surgery. I havent taken any meds in a month or so though but, I have a bit of swelling since I can feel it around my patella.
Im a professional water polo player, which luckily doesnt required much impact as it would with soccer, basketball, etc. Im schedule for surgery this Wednesday Jan 27th. Apparently, me and my surgeon had a little misunderstanding and although I was thinking about getting a cadaver allograft, I sort of had decided on using the hamstring. I called my doc today to get a few last minute questions answered and because I had a gut feeling that something was not right. Well, I was right, all this time he is prepping for an allograft and have been mentally prepping for hamstring autograph.
I will be liying if I say that I am not a little freaked out since I only have tonight to think about wether canceling the surgery or go through with it. My trainer thinks I should cancel and go with the hamstring because my muscles are very strong and he cant stop thinking about the possible complications of an allograft (disease transmission, rejection). But, after reading this blog and everybody’s experiences with allograft I may just do it. My surgeon is the doctor of doctors, so apparently, and from what I have read, he is very good.
I have a very important tournament coming up at the end of July that I would really like to play in. I know I shouldnt be rushing but in a way it would be about 6 months after the surgery and, dont forget, is a water sport that receives very little impact in the knee (the only bad thing is the constant egg beater motion we have to do).
If anybody has any last minute suggestions please let me know!
Thanks! and good luck to anybody recuperating out there.
Thank you Carolyn and Joanne for the helpful comments.
I know what you mean Carolyn about stopping you up, lots of fruits and of course coffee! I went to PT yesterday for the first time and they were shocked at my muscle control and bending. I can hang it off the table and bring it down to about 100 degrees and lift it back up on my own, and also do any kind of leg lifts with little pain. They said that was excellent, but I still cannot go vertical, and they are concerned that I can’t bare any weight since that involves standing up. I called my doctor yesterday since of PT’s concern and my pain, but he never got back to me. Joanne, I really like the idea of a cooling pad, definitely going to have someone go out and get me one (I didn’t know that they exist). Also, it was a bone patellar tendon bone allograft from a 60yr old. My research online indicated that the achilles and BPTB graft were equal in strength since although the achilles is bigger, they are both shaved down anyway and are of the same body material.
Angelica,
I had the allograft, and am amazed at how little the incisions are. Although I have four of them, three are one stitch, and one is two stitches. Although not really a big deal, scarring wise, I believe the allograft is less. Besides that I don’t have much information for you since I just had my surgery a week ago and am still in pain and don’t know anything about the results yet. Goodluck, and I am sure either way will be successful. Also, I don’t believe you will need to cancel surgery, you might be able to just tell the doctor when you get there which one you rather, I told my doctor the day before to switch to allograft. The day of surgery is the best, you get to sleep all day and not feel anything! Goodluck,
Drew
why is it that no one can bear any weight on their leg? i was encouraged to do so since like my second pt appointment which was the second day out of surgery. im 2 weeks and a day out of surgery and i guess its going great so far. fully out of that itchy, uncomfortable brace and am walking with not that much of a limp. I can also walk up and down the stairs pretty normally, but it does hurt a little bit wwhen i go up them. also idk what to do with half of my shaved leg lol. one half has no hair and the other has tons and it looks very weird. anyways my goal is to be running in 2-3 more weeks and truely just shock evedryone. i honestly feel like i am capable of this as my knee feals better and better every day.
hey everyone,
Im 7 weeks out of surgery and I’m feeling great. The first week was probably the worst week for me because I found it difficult to sleep with that big brace. The only thing I can say to those of you that just got the surgery or are going to get it, is that the cold pad works wonders. I kept it on for the first week almost 24/7. I started physical therapy 1 week after my surgery and I can not describe in words how much it helps. I started to see progress in my range of motion within my first few days of PT. The way my physical therapist works is to have the first couple of weeks after surgery (1-5 weeks) to get your range of motion exactly how your other leg is. After that it’s about getting the maximum strength back. As far as pain goes, the first 3 days is all I expierenced with any pain. After that I did not have that much. I was on crutches for the 2 weeks and after that I was told by my doctor to discontinue them as long as i felt comfortable bearing weight on my leg.
Background: Im a 21 year old male, I tore my ACL and had minimum damage to my meniscus. I did it while playing basketball and my knee hyperextended and I heard a loud pop.I decided to go with the allograft because I wanted the least amount of scars and wanted to limit the pain after the surgery. As far as those of you who are scared about allograft because of diseases it is highly unlikely. Dont get me wrong there is always the possibility but diseases can be caught with going into any type of surgery.
In the end I am glad that I went with the allograft and now 7 weeks out Im doing great. I feel like i can start running but I dont want to over work myself because I do not want to go through this process again. For me I understand that this is a long process but I know in the end it will be worth all the hard work.
Sorry that I wrote down so much but I remember when I was searching through this site looking for answers. So I hope I helped some of you and feel free to ask me anything and I’ll try to help.
i tore my acl, part of the meniscus, sprained my mcl and had bone bruising to my tib, fib and femur on 1/13 playing basketball. i went to the er, and the doc initially said it was a sprain… on 1/15 after a couple days of putting back vicodin and not being able to sleep because the pain was so bad i decided to see my primary doctor she called right down and got me into see an othopedist. he took one look at the knee, moved it around a little and says yep torn acl, scheduled me an mri for the following wed to see exactly what was damaged. just got back from meeting with the orthopedist and going over my mri scan. and the results are as listed above. im just now off crutches as of 1/24 and today i lost the brace. im getting married this sat 1/30 so i am very excited about that. now ill be able to walk down the isle and not have a brace over my tux pants. surgery is scheduled for when i get back from acapulco on 2/15 right now i have decided to go with the cadaver graft but im still wieghing the options. my main concerns are recovery time and strength, iam 25 and very active im getting into electrical line work at the moment so im gonna be climbing power poles the rest of my life and need my knee to be strong. recovery is important because the job im going for is opening up soon and ill need to bust my but to get it. i live across the street from my gym so im there everyday and the pt part of things before and after will definitely help the recovery process out. im just really torn on what surgery i want to do… no pun intended… if it makes a difference the othopedist that ive been seeing recommends the cadaver graft over the other two even givien what my career will be.
Hi Angelica,
I hope surgery went ok. Let us know what you decided on. I think no matter you chose you will be fine. They both are strong options, with one involving more recovery time than the other.
To All:
The most important thing to remember for everyone recovering from knee surgery, “set yourself up for success, not failure.” Recovery will take as long as it takes and will vary among all of us.
Be happy for the little milestones, like being able to take care of yourself,walking to the bathroom, being able to ditch your brace and/or crutches, walk without a limp, be able to do stairs with no pain, not having to think about each step you take and how are you going to navigate uneven path …etc Don’t put so much pressure on yourself to be in game ready shape in 7 months.
The most important movement we all have to be careful of is pivoting. It’s what got us in trouble in the first place. Your PT is critical after surgery. Make sure you have a good one, that is active in pushing your recovery along, safely.
Good luck,
Joanne
Drew,
Sorry to hear that. I have 4 scars as well, 3 little dots on my knee and a 2 inch scar under the knee towards the inner leg (that’s for the ACL). I had great range of motion when I first went to PT. Leg lifts were hard for me as I didn’t have strong quads prior to surgery.
I think the cooling pad will help. But keep calling your doc until you get an answer. Let us know what happens. Hang in there. We all get bumps in our recovery. I had to stop PT after 12 days post op. One stitch on the bend of my knee was splitting and the butterfly tape was coming off. So I had to take a week off from PT.
I’m 5 months post op and I feel good. I finally don’t have to think about every little step I take. I still am conscious of how I walk up and down stairs and make sure I use good form. I can do 3 flights of stairs up or down, no problem. When I get to the 4th staircase, I feel my knee lock for a quick second or buckle. So I’m careful. I still go to PT 2-3x per week.
-Joanne
Hi Daniel,
Keep up the good work. I’m 40 and have had a really good recovery too. We all recover differently. Steps are a pain in the beginning. PT taught me “up with the good leg, down with the bad.” If you are going to try running, do it when the PT is there.
-Joanne
PS Not sure what to tell you, to shave or not shave. If you shave the other half of your injured leg, then you will have one full leg hairy and one leg not hairy. You’re still not going to match. Just leave it.
Daniel - Maybe some of us aren’t being allowed to put weight on our legs because we are older. In my case, I am almost 40 and my damage was extensive. It wasn’t just my ACL. It was the full tear ACL and MCL and full tear of the Medial and Lateral meniscus. Since, as my doc put it, I am a pain in his side and might have trouble being compliant because I am active, he wants to make sure that I am actually healed before I start really moving on it. My doc is cool! He messes with me all the time, but he is careful and I guess that’s a good thing.
I’m 6 days post op. Pain has pretty much subsided to the point that i take 3-4 pills a day: before sleep , when i wake and before and after PT.
PT is going better than expected- got on the stationary bike yesterday and did 20 min today. I also do a lot of straight leg raises. I’m about 60% weight-bearing (with crutches). I’ve max-d out my cpm machine and also the cpm machine at the PT office. I’m told that i’ll be using crutches for at least 2 more weeks, but will be able to drive within a week or two (weird).
I agree with the constant coldpack- I have one of those ice packs connected to a cooler full of ice water- its great but is really annoying at night when trying to sleep.
The 2 spots where i still feel pain are right in the middle of my patellar tendon and on the tibia where the doc drilled into my bone. I got an allograft, so a pain on the patellar tendon is weird. My PT says its probably because the doc needed another point of entry to fix the small tear in my meniscus. I only tore 2% of my meniscus, but i guess he needed to drill through my patellar tendon to clean the meniscus.
good luck with recovery everyone.
Thanks for the helpful suggestions Carolyn and Joanne, they are very much appreciated.
I’m 6 days post op, and still in a state of constant uncomfort. I go and see the surgeon for the first time friday morning, so i’m really curious as to what he has to say about my recovery process. The worst of my pains are coming from the 3 inch incision over my patella and also strong pain on the medial aspect of my knee (which seems really odd because there are no drainage holes or bruising over the area) As for the medicine, i’ve finished the percocet and now they have me taking norco, which is a less extreme type of vicodin. I’m still not really able to weight bare, but i’ve reached 67 on my CPM, which is another thing i have questions about, how much should i be progressing on the CPM?
Sorry i’m drilling out a bunch questions, but if anybody else is in the same boat please let me know
It’s interesting to see other peoples recoverys compared to mine, and I’m curious if i’m on the right track or not!
Hope everyone is doing well,
-Gilly
you should get out of the cpm whenver you think that is not usefull anymore. for me i got up to 120 in the 3rd day and was done with it in the 4th because i fully maxed it out and the cpm no longer did much for me anyomre at that point. so whenever you feel your ready thats when you get out of it
Gilly,
Listen to your doc, your PT, and your body. Everyone is different with this surgery. Amount of damage, age, surgeon, PT, health, body makeup…it’s different for everyone. It WILL get better. I’m nearly 7 months out now and doing pretty well, but the doc says I’ll probably have some swelling for up to a year. My foot is still a little red and swollen, too, from the bleeding that happens at and after surgery. But I also have a low platelet count AND I’m 54 which are probably contributing factors. Plus I had meniscus trimming (not repair). So it’s different for everyone, but it does get better. I’m jogging a bit, riding stationary bike like crazy, and doing the “hopscotch” type PT they gave me. Feels great to do the exercise but I still have to ice and elevate sometimes.
Everyone hang in there…
Diana
The CPM machine is very useful and should still be used even if you max out at 120. The only exception would be if you replace the CPM with other range of motion exercises.
The purpose of the CPM machine is to build range of motion, safely and not to build strength. So it’s not just important to max out but continue to max out until you have to give the machine back.
For Gilly and others that are experiencing pain, it’s probably the safest way to keep your muscles limber and not lose the ROM.
Suggestion:
As your reach a level that is comfortable, turn the CPM machine off and let your leg stay in that position for up to 10-15 minutes. This will help drain any inflammation in the knee. My doc told me to do this and I have to say I did everything he said to do and I have no inflammation, then or now. Keep trying to push yourself to a higher level of flexion and each time, stop the machine for a few minutes. It works.
Hi Norm,
Congratulations on your wedding!
I would go with your doctors advice. If you are looking to recover quicker than the cadaver tendon is the way to go. Your recovery is up to you. The more you put into PT and getting your legs/knees as strong as possible the better your tendon will respond.
In the beginning you just have to be careful and mindful of the steps you take. We are considered fully healed at 1 year, no matter which graft you choose.
Good luck. Let us know how it goes.
-Joanne
Tim,
Keep up the great work. I agree with everything you wrote. It’s what my doctor also told me.
I have followed his advice and I’m doing better than ever. February is my 6 month mark and I plan on going to Costa Rica in May. I have to make sure I’m able to do all the hiking involved and if I get up the nerve I want to do the zip line canopy tour.
Adam H,
I see you tore your acl in football, may I ask when you had your surgery? How soon did you see a decrease in swelling?
Greg
joanne what you said about the cpm does make a lot of sense, wish i could have read that before lol. anyways i know everyone always talks about getting your quads strong, but is getting your calfes strong equally as important? i dont know if this is like veryone else but my calf know is noticeable smaller than my other one, and it really bothers me, i pretty much do like 300 calf raises a day some, with two legs and some with one leg, but was just wondering if everyone elses calf shrunk as well, and do you think they will ever be the same or will one always be bigger than the other now?
Daniel,
Not my calf as much as my lower left quad. I had a partial meniscus tear on my left leg back in 2005. DR said no need for surgery at that time. So the area right above that knee on the left side of that knee, my muscle atrophied a bit and slightly scooped in. I tore the ACL on my left as well and further tore my meniscus. My left thigh is noticeably thinner than my right thigh. It was more noticeable after surgery and I’ve been working with PT to “fill in the gap”. My muscle is building in that area. I do see an improvement. But it takes time. There’s still a difference.
I would probably do more calf raises with the bad knee separately from the good knee. I was told at PT to do one leg at a time with leg presses. calf raises and the Pilates reformer (which is like a leg press, but lying on your back). If you do it with both, then the good leg is doing more of the work than the bad leg. You want to tire out the bad leg. It’s ok at this point if the good leg doesn’t get as good as a workout as you would normally do, cause you want to give the bad leg a chance to catch up.
It’s really good to get all your leg muscles tight and toned. They talk about quads alot because if your quads are tight, they lift up which then allows your knee to suspend and function properly. This is very helpful if you lost part or all of your meniscus. The meniscus cushions the knee from the calf bone and you want to avoid bone on bone friction, because it damages the knee and leg bone and eventually will lead to arthritis.
Don’t worry so much about how it looks now. You’re only 2-3 weeks post op. It’s going to take time to build it back. Be grateful you are progressing very fast. You have no pain, you have full range of motion…etc. You’re doing very well. Keep up the great work and before you know it you’ll be back better than ever.
that does make a lot of sense thanks a lot for all your advice, but the thing is like i am a basketball player and since i cant play for about 4 more months i am trying to strengthen my other leg as well. also the leg presses, is that lying on your back like declined kind of or are you sitting on your butt in like a 90 degree position? because i feel like the ones where you lay on your back is way too much tension placed on your knees, i tried this yesterday and after one rep felt like it was too much tension on them. also, when going on the elyptical and such is it ok if i put it on a high resistance, because i read someone on this forum saying to do it without any resistence. anyways thanks for all the help and the great amount of knowlege you have.
You can still work the good leg but alternate, so the bad leg works harder.
The leg press I do is 30 - 40lbs in a seated upright position, alternating legs. My PT said to put as much weight as I can so I can build muscle. I’m not an athlete so I have to work hard. The Pilates leg press would be similar except, you’re lying completely horizontal, no incline or decline. Google Pilates reformer and you’ll see what I mean.
I haven’t done the leg press where you’re sitting at an angle almost on the floor and pushing you’re legs up above you. I think it’s called the reverse leg press. I haven’t done elyptical yet. I mostly concentrate on stationary bike and treadmill. I put as much resistance as I can take on the bike for two minutes or so and then lighten and back again. On the treadmill, I walk front ways, side ways and then backwards. We started with 2 minutes my first week of PT each way. I’m now up to like 10-12 minutes, each way.
I also put on ankle weights and do different leg exercises.
You’re most welcome. I only know a lot because of my dr, pt, this site and doing as much research as I can. I don’t mind passing on what I know and make another person’s recovery easier. Keep asking, if I can help I will.
Hi all,
This is a great site. I’ve done a lot of reading here and believe I’m the oldest postop ACL replacement on the list!
I’m a 54 year old female and ruptured my right ACL 1 1/2 years ago practicing agility with one of my dogs. There is a lot of running, sprinting, quick stops, changes in direction, and yes, the frequent collision with the animal involved with this sport. I happened to do a quick stop/pivot turn in a bare area of lawn and hyperextended. I heard the pop, felt the sudden looseness, shook it off and kept going. It really didn’t hurt………. until the next morning. Then it was swollen, stiff and painful. No problem, I iced it, waited a week, slapped a borrowed DonJoy carbon brace on the leg and went about my business running and competing with my dogs. For a while the knee seemed to improve, but I continued to need the brace to prevent the knee from hyperextending. I changed my running style a bit to make it easier for me to get to where I needed to go and stayed out of holes. It was ok (not great, but ok) until this past fall. I took July and August off from agility to train and compete in water trials with my dogs, so wasn’t runing much. My knee felt great!
When I went back to serious agility training in the fall, my knee was painful most of the time, even in the brace and the other knee was starting to not feel so great compensating. So I withdrew my competition entries and thought by not running I’d be fine. Then I got bored, so I ripped up my kitchen floor, carried in 22 cases of slate, tiled the floor and can you believe it, the entire time my knee was swollen and stiff. Since I didn’t seem to be able to do anything fun with the knee,I finally went to see an orthopedic surgeon this past November and scheduled surgery for Dec 10.
I chose the allograft mostly because of my age as well as not wanting to deal with two operative sites. The surgery went well and believe it or not, I had no osteoarthritis nor meniscus damage after all that time running on it. I was sent home a few hours after the surgery with crutches and the full leg brace. I started on the machine the next morning,continued with that for 10 days, got the stiches out,had about 90% functional flexion and started PT. I was able to weight bear with the brace on right after surgery and hardly used the crutches. My biggest issue was totally no quad. I really wanted to get rid of the brace, but I didn’t have good knee stability without the quad. I wore the brace when walking indoors for 3 weeks then only outdoors for the 4th week. We had a lot of snow and ice at that time, so it probably wasn’t such a bad idea.
Weeks 4-6 went pretty well.
I was very discouraged at week 6. I was back to work after week 4 and despite elevating and icing frequently my knee was very swollen and tight. I got on the exercise bicycle one day and I couldn’t get the knee to bend, the patella was stuck and wouldn’t budge. The PT worked on it to release the scar formation. Wow, that was great! Who knew? I had not been instructed to desensitize and massage the scars/ hadn’t been told about the scar formation interfering with flexion/extension. I was also having a lot of pain and burning at the tibial screw site, which I was worried was an infection or issue with the screw. In fact, it was scar tissue as well that was binding the skin to the muscle. That incision site had been so sensitive and painful that I’d put a bandaid over it. I couldn’t tolerate the feeling of fabric touching it. So, I had to go through desinsitizing the area and messaging the scar a couple of times a day for the past 2 weeks. That’s improved now as well.
Lots and lots of exercise. I’m now almost 8 weeks post op and have about 60% of my quad back. I’ve really not had a tough time at getting flexion or extension overall but I continue to have is joint swelling and stiffness that impacts how well I’m walking at any given time. When it’s not swollen, I walk quite well. No limp, good up and down stairs.
Overall, I think this is a difficult post surgical rehab for someone my age. Not for me,necessarily, because the pay back is worth it, but for the average 54 year old woman, yes. You really have to be committed to a lot of PT and work! Trading in my sports hobbies wouldn’t have eliminated my need to have my knee repaired. I was given the option to retire my sneakers and relax. Even if I had agreed, I don’t think that would have worked. I engage in and enjoy physical and challenging home maintaninance hobbies as well, so wouldn’t have had much of a “retirement” life without a good set of knees!
I haven’t found anyone, male or female, my age who has had this surgery. Where are they? How are they doing? Are they running and jumping? Competitive in their hobby after 9 months to a year?
Heather
Hi Heather,
I’m here.
54 years young. Popped my ACL last May 15 in a freak bike accident. Couldn’t put ANY weight on it and had my first ever (and hopefully last) ambulance ride. Had surgery June 30 since the doc wanted to wait 6 weeks for swelling and inflammation to go down as much as it was going to before surgery.
I, too, opted to have the surgery because I want to stay active. I walk a lot, love to bike, even do short sprints once in awhile. And if I want to pick up a racquet and play a set of tennis, I really want to have that option without the possibility of instability in my knee.
So, here I am, 7 months out now. I had the hamstring autograft. I also had lateral and medical meniscus shredding, so that was trimmed. I think it is indeed a difficult post surgical rehab for those of us who are a bit older. But I, like you, am highly motivated to recover and continue on with my activities. I’ve been riding my stationary bike 20-30 minutes every day and longer on weekends. I also do “hop-scotch” PT exercises where there is a ladder pattern on the floor and I’m hopping in and out in different patterns (learned in PT). I’m also jogging (in my basement), doing half squats (light or no weight), lunges (no weight), full squats (no weight, no bar or dumbbells), and leg extensions (machine with moderate weight, single and double leg), calf raises (single and double leg). The knee is still a little swollen internally at times (something I can’t see but can feel) so I still ice and elevate at times. The quad is coming back, albeit slowly.
So, yes, there are those of us “oldies” out here who are recovering.
Diana
i had my surgery on january 11, and am progressing very well. do you guys think it is possible for me to come back to basketball during may at some time?
Hi everyone-
I have been a little busy catching up with my graduate classes while recuperating. So, yes, I got the surgery!! Im 6 days post-op and doing well. In my opinion I am doing really well although when reading the blog I see that some of you have gotten way ahead at this point post-surgery.
I ended going for the cadaver allograft. After reading this, doing overnight research, and talking to some experts, I decided to go for it. Im glad I did it because I dont think Im in as much pain as I would be with any of the other options. I sleep very weel, if not great. The first day and a half was fine, no pain really. Then after that, I started to feel a little discomfort; mostly from the incisions (which were 5 of them?!?), sort of a burning sansation. I started the CPM the following day and I started at 30 degrees (like DR suggested) and have been increasning 5 degrees since, which means Im on 60 today (cause Im going up 10 degress today!). I honestly feel like I can do more because I have no problem bending the leg, no pain, just like the incisions are stretching…hope thats normal.
What concerns me a little bit is the fact that I can t really walk, even with the brace. Im using the crutches becasue I dont feel very comfortable on my own, none, zero. They told me to put fulll weight on it right after surgery as long as I had the knee brace on full, locked, extended position. I was very concerned because I live in the 3rd floor of an old apt building and there are no elevators, but they told me that it was fine and I went up all by myself. It also helped the fact that my knee was still under a bit of anesthesisa!
Anyway, the only thing that is causing me pain is the twitching. Yes, I twitch while I sleep, some days more than others. Im extremely active so when I finally wind down in bed I move a lot. So, I guess I havent move my operated leg enough because at night my subconscious decides that it needs to be moved, as hard as I possibly can and that is very painful. Other than this, no pain, just a bit of discomfort. I started taking 1 percocet every 4 hours and one night I decided to take 2 and almost have to call 911 because I was goign to pass out and started shaking. I learned my lesson, 1 percocet for me. On day 4 post-op I stopped taking percocet because the pain was bearable. Last night after my twitching, it wasnt very bearable, so I took 1 percocet but thats about it. The knee is not as swollen as I thought it was going to be. Its weird because the knee is not very swollen but the part of the quad right above the knee is, only the right side…very strange.
Now, Im just tryng to figure out if I should go to class or not. I think auditoriums are pretty uncomfortable places and I cant really have my legs down for too long or it turns red and it is a bit uncomfortable, which I think is part of getting the leg moving. I havent seen my DR since the surgery (last Wed). My next appointment is on thursday and I think I start PT then. I wish I would have start PT earlier, I have no idea why he is making me wait so long….he must know!
Wow, this is a long post. I will write more often from now on.
Hope everyones’ recuperation is going well.
Hi Angelica, I had a bucket handle meniscus repair in June and was supposed to also have ACL reconstruction. Since it was a repair, we decided to put the ACL off until a later time. It turned out that I had completely torn my ACL back in 1978 and never knew it. (The doctors at the time said there was no injury!).
Anyway, I too had the twitching sensation. Very odd indeed. I also had the sensation of pushing as hard as I could with the injured leg as if I was pushing away from a wall, I had no control over this. It would happen when I was asleep or awake.
I wasn’t allowed to put weight on my leg for over 6 weeks because it was a meniscus repair. If I would have put weight on it, I would have basically squished the repair out of existence. Once I started putting weight on the leg, the twitching stopped. Hallelujah!
I am still having issues with the knee and have put off the ACL surgery indefinitely.
Thanks to all that come and comment here, it is an invaluable source for info and support. Good luck to all and happy healing!
Hi Angelica,
I’m glad you’re doing well. I would probably wait until you see the doctor before going to class. How are you with steps? Maybe you can go to class every other day or do half days. If you feel comfortable going up and down 3 flights of stairs, you should be fine. Just go slow, take your time to get to school and class. Just make sure you going back to class doesn’t affect insurance or if you were on short term disability. I took off a month from work. I felt I needed it as I have to commute on the bus or train and steps were rough for me. I didn’t have strong quads then.
I was able to get down to 1 crutch after a week. But if I went outside, I took both crutches. I live in NYC, so its crowded and you want ppl to give you your space.
I couldn’t walk much the first week either. Once you are able to reach 120 on the CPM, you’ll be able to move better. The brace is a pain and its very hard to walk with it. I was very happy to ditch it.
I didn’t start PT until 10 days post op per my dr’s request. I don’t think that’s a big issue. It’s worked to my favor, no inflammation and I have full range of motion (flexing and extension).
Question: regarding leg pain and it turning red, do you have the brace on at all times? My dr only made me wear it when I was walking only, and not in bed or on the couch. I couldn’t sit for very long with my leg down, I started getting sciatic pain. Oh that was not a good feeling.
-Joanne
i really am getting progressively better with each day. i can now perform perfect squats with weights in my hand and without any pain whatsoever. i have also now mastered steps going up and down with no pain or limp whatsoever as well. my strenth is coming in pretty nicely, so far but my only concern is that i do still have some swelling around my kneecap on the inside of the leg and a little bit above the leg so i guess ill start to ice it more now. when has anyone else’s knee lost all the swelling and looks like the other knee? about how many weeks out of surgery would you say? also what are some good hamstring exercises beside the bridge with the big ball becuase beside that i dont really do much for my hamstrings beside that and stretching. anyways ill keep you guys posted as i continue to make improvements .
also i found out from my last appointment that my allograft was actually from some tendon in the ankle or something like that i forget what its called but its like the one in the front i think. my doctor says it was from a really young, healthy donor and it was an amazing piece, and he even said if he needed one then he would have put that one to the side for himself lol. that really made me feel good. anyways ill keep you guys posted with the improvemtns i contine to make. thanks.
Wow, this info is really helpful….unfortunately is seems like there havent been many conclusive studies dedicated to allograft vs. autograft, so I am truely thankful for all of your testimonials! I just scheduled an allograft reconstruction for March…completely tore the ACL in my left knee playing soccer. My Dr. reccommended the allograft b/c I am an avid long distance runner and have a physically strenuous job (law enforcement). He said that if he were having the surgery he would choose the allograft….but some of these websites are making me think twice. Also, I have severe patello-femoral syndrome in both knees, so im not sure the patella tendon would be a good choice in my case. I’ve had two scopes on the right knee (cartilage repair and lateral release) so I was pretty disappointed when I found out that I had completly blown the ACL in my ‘GOOD’ knee. Oh well….I guess thats what I get for running around on the soccer field with college coeds at age 30!
Hello to all. I feel like I’m in a conumdrum with my decision to go with an autograft (hamstring) or allodgraft for my left ACL. My surgery is scheduled for 3/1/10. I’m a soon to be (5 days and trying not to count) 36yr old. I’m female and very athletic. I’m not the average citizen or Joe out there and I train hard. I’m a yoga instructor, spin instructor, dancer, I surf, I like to run, play tennis. I live in a 5 story walk-up apt in NYC and walk all over God’s concrete nation here! I’m always on the move… I think my surgeon is about to wring my neck as I changed my mind again for the 3x on my choice. I hear/read that allografts have a higher failure rate amongst young, active athletes. I’m not too worried about infection as I know my immune system is strong and the technology & sterile procedures are much better today than yesterday, but the decreased reports of pain and quicker recovery time makes this option a good sell. But because of its failure rate in young active athletes, I fear having it re-done! But I also fear having to recover from 2 invasive procedures w/the knee & hamstring, but its reported that your own hamstring is more durable and stronger than a cadavers! But longer recovery and more painful! Arugh! I’ve been reading so many of your stories trying to get a better idea of what is best for me, so my question to any of you out there in your 30’s who has had the ACL reconstruction, that plays hard or who may have a similar active life-style as mine, and enjoys activity and a very active lifestyle, what they chose and how they feel today, etc???
wow life with this surgery suckkssss. i mean yea im progressing very well and honestly feel pretty good over a month out, but i just cant take this shit anymore. i want to go play basketball soo bad, and just cant stand this anymore. honestly starting to get depressed. just praying that ill be better than ever when i come out of this
Hi Jennylynn,
I’m a NYC girl too. Not as active as you are, but getting there. I’m doing my first Physique 57 class this weekend and I’m actually excited. Don’t worry about the 36. I’m 40 going on 41. It’s weird to say but no big deal.
There are not a lot of studies done on fail rate…etc. It seems a lot of drs are moving with allograft vs autograft.
My thought is this a lot of ppl on this site, especially earlier posts, who have had the allograft, have not come back on to say anything bad about the allograft and a lot of them are young and very athletic.
I think if you give yourself the proper healing time, you should be better than ever.
Good luck with surgery and your decision.
-Joanne
Daniel,
What am I going to do with you??? Yes, recovery does suck, whether you’re used to pounding the pavement or a madman chasing after a big orange ball. ;=) The first two months are probably the worst. Just think how much better you will feel at the two month mark. You’ll be more mobile and back to normal everyday activities.
Don’t rush this time. Let your graft heal so it has a chance of staying strong.
Tomorrow, I hit my 6-month mark and I feel great. My surgery seems like a long time ago. Yours will too.
You were ready to get back to basketball the 2nd day after surgery. Stop torturing yourself. It’s like taking a 23 hour plane flight to Australia and after hour 1 start looking at your watch, saying are we there yet, 22 hours left. Come on. Oh btw, I’ve done the 23 hour flight, there and back. It was doable and so is this recovery.
No depression allowed. You’re going to be fine, you know it. It’s just a little bump in your life and you will be better than before. You’re progressing fast and each day stronger.
Are stuck in the house all day?? Get yourself as busy as you can and outside. When does your basketball season start?
Dear Joanne,
Thank you for responding to my post and sharing your opinion. I will be calling my surgeons office again tmrw to change back to the allograft! I believe you to be right w/the stats bec even with other research, haven’t found much more on failure rates. As a cyclist, dancer & swimmer, I will ned that explosive power to take off, so decided to leave my hamstrings intact. I spoke to a few others who have had this surgery and they went with allografts and years later, fine, no issues or problems and they are very athletic too… Congrats on the Physique 57 class, Exhale I presume? Its a tough class, love it! I will come back and check in with my post/op stats…
In the meantime, I want to know if there are any swimmers out there w/this injury and how soon you got back into the pool to swim??
well my basketball season ends in about a week, and i am just watching all the gmes and practices on the sidelines. good to hear you are doing very well tho. at what point did you start to run agian Joanne? also my basketball season pretty much picks back up again in the summer and that is what i am aiming for, about a June return to sports.
JennyLynn,
I’m 49, quite active, and went with the allograft. I’m now about 8 months out. My doc put the graft in a little bit tight because the graft will stretch a bit after it’s incorporated. That means I can’t sit down completely on my heels yet, but it’s much stronger overall. That means I can play tennis and ski with more confidence, knowing it won’t blow out on something small. The really cool thing is that you can request a graft from a younger person so it will be stronger and/or last longer. Check in with your doc to see if he/she can get one. Also, the straight-line movements will come much faster than any twisting motions. You’ll get permission to bike, walk and run as much as you want pretty fast. Those twisting movements will take longer. I’m just now getting cleared for those. Allografts take a little longer to incorporate than autografts, so you’ll have to be patient, but the upside is you come back faster. I guess it’s all a trade off, but I’m happy with mine so far. Good luck!
Running??? What’s that? Oh please, back when I started PT, I was happy when they told me to do the Pilates reformer. I was like great an exercise I can do lying down. lol. Remember this injury has really motivated me to get fit and be an athlete. I’m a work in progress. But I have run for the bus or the train since the surgery.
I would say, you’ll probably be able to run soon. Given how you are flying thru your recovery. I would say month 2 -3. What are your physical therapists telling you? Do you feel comfortable walking? No limp? Can you walk at a good pace? Once you can walk faster with out your knee buckling, I would think that’s when you’re ready to run.
BUT, I not a dr or PT. So best to listen to them. What are they telling you? You may have a chance to get back in to in June. That would be your six month mark.
I’m not as fit as you. Your muscles are already strong, mine are getting stronger than before. So if I can not only get back to walking everywhere at a fast pace, running for buses or trains, I can’t imagine you not being able to soar past me in a month or two.
You have a huge advantage, of being young and already athletic. It’s not going to take long for you to get back in to it. I think as Deb said, the one thing that will take longest is the pivoting movements.
How long do other pro/non pro athletes take to recovery from ACL?
i honestly feel like i can already start running. i stopped walking with a limp at around week 3 i think and have been very comfortable walking around since then. i also have had my full range of motion sicne week 3 as well. im not quite sure how long it trakes most pro athletes but one of them, Philip Rivers, quarterback for the Sandiego Chargers made a return in 100 days. the only one concern i have right now is when i walk at the end of my stride it feels kind of weird and it was like this before my surgery as well, after i got hurt. my pt says it might be cus my muscles arent as strong yet, but now they have gotten a lot stronger and i dont know why that is. has anyone else felt this when they walk? and both my pt and Orthopaedic surgeron tell me i am doing amazing so far, but i actually havent been going to my pt for the alst 2 weeks because i have progressed past the initial stages where you need to go to the pt , and now jsut do my exercises at home. this is because my doctor wants to save my visits with my pt for when i can start doing more aggressive things. i have an appointment on march 12 with my docotor which will be my 2 month and 1 day mark, and hopefully then he will clear me for running and maybe jumping again.
Wow, 100 days. That’s very encouraging. Probably not going to PT is what’s making you crazy too. For me they would encourage me and I would feel like I was advancing towards my goal. Your doc might clear you for running then, maybe with a knee sleeve. His advice sounds good. I would just flow with it.
I do have a funny feeling in my knee on full extension when I’m walking. It happens now, when I’ve been walking a lot and doing stairs. Maybe it’s when my muscles are tired. My knee would also buckle prior to surgery, but that was from the meniscus injury back in 2005 and what did me in, in August 2009. My doc says that some time between my first MRI in ‘05 and ‘09, I tore my ACL. In between that time, I never had any big fall or knee pain, so I don’t know if its possible to tear the ACL over time vs just one wrong movement.
Since the weirdness started only after the injury, it’s probably the instability in your knee caused by the ACL tear. Can you do leg lifts from a lying down position on the floor? I had such a hard time with that for a good month or two after surgery, as my quads weren’t strong. My leg would shake and I couldn’t do it with proper form, so my PT nixed me doing it until my quads were stronger. Now I can do them.
yea ive been able to do leg lifts with perfect form lying down on the floor since like day 8 after my surgery. i tyhink the doctors said the weridness is because of lack of muscle there but idk hopefully it goes away soon
Hi everyone,
I found this site probably the same way others did; via a search engine. Thought I’d share my current ACL experience.
I tore my ACL in my right knee back on Dec 9th playing basketball. I had surgery to get the knee fixed on Feb 5th, so as of today, I am at the two week mark on recovery, and just started PT this week. ACL surgery type? I went with the allograft. It’s what I wanted, and its what my surgeon primarily does. They seem to be gaining in popularity.
I’m 32 M, and fairly active, and did a ton of research on the topic. I read the pros and cons of the allograft before hand, and I consider myself in an (unfortunate?) unique position to give my opinion of the allograft after two weeks. The reason? I also had ACL surgery on my left knee and went with the patella autograph the first time around (back in 95). I have one resounding statement: WOW is the allograft MUCH LESS painful!
I just started walking Wednesday, 12 days since surgery. I wasn’t walking without crutches the first time around with the autograft until 4.5 weeks. To be fair, I didn’t have meniscus tearing this time as I did a bit last time.
I’m not going to comment on the strength/failure stuff between auto/allo; I’m only two weeks along, but I think I will be fine. I simply reiterate, the allograft route is tremendously less painful a recovery, this coming from someone who has had both allo and auto.
At two weeks I at am at 108 degrees bend. I did not use a CPM machine.
One other thing I’ll add - if at all possible, get the femoral block when you have the surgery. Mine lasted almost 40 hours; preventing me from going through the worst part of the pain. Heck, as soon as I got home from the surgery I had no problems playing some xbox on the couch, relatively pain free thanks to the block.
Anyway, that was my experience - best wishes to everyone out there currently recovering!
Great info here. Just blew my right ACL on 2/15. In line for surgery. 3 months wait at Kaiser in Nor Cal. Leaning towards the Allograft for a quicker recovery, but Kaiser is pushing for Autograph because it is cheaper for them. On the stationery bike already keeping my knee loose and trying to build strength before surgery. Had a partial tear in the same knee about 20yrs ago and went with a Donjoy brace instead of surgery. Worked great. Should have had it on 2/15…
Will be checking back her e often.
Scared to death. My surgery is on Wednesday 3/3/10. Play extremely competitive racquetball, 7 days a week and was playing in the US Open this year. Went to Austria a few weeks ago skiing and tore my ACL and damaged the LCL. My surgeon is fantastic and I really like him. He is doing an Allograft. Is this the right thing to do as I am going back to competitive racquetball? How bad is the pain after surgery, Is the Allograft the right way to go, how long is the therapy, when can I play again and how likely is this to happen twice. HELP PLEASE!!!!!
I play competitive racquetball. It’s my life. I am certainly not young but will never give it up unless I seriously have to…Played 7 days a week. Went to Austria Skiing a couple of weeks ago, tore my ACL and have surgery this wednesday 3/3/10. I really like my surgeon so thats not an issue. I am really upset and very nervous. My questions are: Having a Allograft is this the best way to go in order to get back to competitive racquetball, how much pain is there after surgery, how hard and long is the physical therapy, went do you think I can play again. HELP PLEASE!!!!!!
Sorry everyone put it on twice. Looked at the top of the page didnt see it so did it again Oooopss!!!
Hang in there Sharon, you’ll do fine. I think Allograft is a solid choice, my surgeon does hundreds of them per year and allograft is becoming more and more common, from what I understand. You won’t have to deal with the second surgery site on your patella.
Pain is manageable. I STRONGLY advise getting a femoral block, it will save you from the worst of the pain during the first 24-48 hours.
The biggest thing for you is to mentally accept that you probably won’t be returning to racquetball for at least 8-10 months. Rehab takes quite awhile and you don’t want to rush it. You’ll also probably want to get a custom brace, given how much you play sports. Get a good PT to work with you and help you return to sports.
Is anybody out there a surfer or strong swimmer?? My ACL surgery (complete tear & going w/allograft) is this Monday. I’m not the average citizen out there and highly athletic for a 36yr old female who plays hard and trains hard. I’m a cyclist as well as a yogi (I’m an instructor of both as well). How long before you were able to get back into the ocean surfing or even pool swimming?? What about cycling or yoga? I’m told that I will miss the summer surf season here in NY… But want to be aggressive with therapy and get back to the open waters ASAP! Anyone out there participate in these sports and if so, how long before getting back to them? Anyone?
Hi Sharon and Jennylynn,
I think Tim’ advice is solid. I also had the femoral block. Worth it. The hardest thing is accepting that recovery will take months, maybe even a full year.
Your allograft is at its weakest at 4 months post op. You will feel better rather quickly, but work with your dr and pt. It doesn’t mean just because you feel better at 1 month, that you’re ready for competitive sports. You have to give your graft a chance. You can’t rush biology no matter how athletic you are prior to or post surgery.
If you read all the posts, there were a lot of athletes that posted their experiences. I think the norm is 6-12 months, depending on the type of sport. The movement that can hurt your allograft, as it hurt your original acl, is pivoting. So if your sport involves a lot of fast pivoting movements, you may have to wait longer to get back to that sport.
I was on a stationary bike my first day at PT, 10 days after surgery. I had no pain. I’m at 6 months out and I do take spinning classes. The hardest part for me is cycling in the up position. If my knee feels weird, I go back down and cycle in the seated position. Ultimately, you have to listen to your body.
I would think, that yoga, cycling, and even swimming should be fine for the graft. You probably will be able to get back to doing them rather quickly, just know that it may not be at competitive levels until you’re at 8 months out.
Please keep posting and let us know how your recovery is going and when you do get back to competitive sports. It seems a lot of athletes, stop posting once they’re back to competitive levels. I think your input will help others in the same situation.
Good luck to both of you with your surgeries. Just give your graft as long as it needs to heal, because the reality is for all of us, we don’t want to be having surgery or recovery again any time soon.
-Joanne
Daniel,
I am an acl reconstruct survivor, high school basketball coach and father of three daughters that tore acl’s playing basketball. I unfortunately have a lot of experience in this area and have communicated with many different surgeons that specialize in this surgery. I would answer your question about when to return to play this way. My answer comes from one of the top acl surgeons, who is the U of Missouri team orthopedic, he says that a return earlier than 9 months to competitive play after allograft surgery is taking a risk of re-injury due to a lack of revasculaization of the graft. He feels that the closer to nine months with this type of graft, the better your chance of full recovery. High school athletes often make the mistake of racing back to competition, many pro athletes take 9-12 months before returning to competitive play. Phil Rivers is a rare situation, plus he had a patellar tendon autograft-which many surgeons will tell you is the strongest type of graft due to bone to bone healing of the graft, rather than soft tissue graft healing which takes longer to heal. You will know when your knee feels ready and you are confident in the stability and strength of the knee. Best of luck in your recovery.
Greg
honestly i cannot wait 9 months period. my senior season is coming upo next year and connot afford to mis out on this entire season of not playing. even if at 4 or 5 months or whatever my knee feels good but actually as you guys say at its strongest, i will definetly be playing at thtat point. starting in may or june is when i will come back to playing basketball which is 4-5 months out. maybe at the 4 moth mark i wont play in games yet, but i will definetly starting intesely training myself, maybe without any game situation going against people. although my doctor did tell me that i should be able to go from my progress thus far at the 4 moth mark. also, not eeveyone is the same, everyone who has seen my results and recovery are astonished at how quicly i am healing, so this 9 month mark you speak of maybe isnt the same for eveyone. some people say there still on crutches week 5 or something like that, i was off them day 2 or 3. i know this sounds weird but ive been running up and down my stairs since week 3 as well, its actually more comfortable this way i dont know why, but it feels very good. anyways my point is 9 months for me is not happening. btw do you think that starting a jumping program will be okay when im cleared to play or is this too much stress on my knee or something, becuase i really want to start that program up agian.
Tim and Joanne, thank you so much for your advice and kind words. It seems like it will take a little long for me to really get back to competitive racquertball. Your right Tim. I think mentally I have to accept a few things but its so hard when you love something so very much. I just have that drive to play all the time and now I cannot do any of it for months. Gosh someone needs to teach me patience. PLEASE…. Joanne racquetball is all pivoting…After the surgery I will definately keep in touch frequently. Especially as I will have more time on my hands now
I do not want this done twice. I am not getting any younger and cannot spend this much time off the court again. Anyway for my sanity I need to stay on the court…I have 5 boys between the age of 16 and 31. What more can I say 
Thank you everyone for all your support. Sharon
Hey Sharon,
Don’t lose hope. You’ll get back to your favorite sport in no time. I’m surprised how fast 6 months went for me. I didn’t think I ever get to this point. Recovery can be frustrating at times. But I felt this blog has helped me get thru it.
Once you have the surgery, you will be grateful in the first few weeks for all the little things you can get back to doing. I would set little milestones (getting rid of crutches, brace, being able to do stairs and walking with out a limp, having no pain…etc.).
Maybe during this time, pick up a milder sport like pilates. It keeps you flexible and limber and really strengthens the core muscles. I know it doesn’t have the rush of racquet ball, but hey, it’s something to keep your sanity.
Good luck with surgery. First 48 hours are the worst, but get the femoral block it allows you to sleep your first night. Also make sure you have a cooling pad, that you can wear 24 hrs a day and a CPM machine. Your dr should prescribe it for you. Insurance usually covers the CPM, but not the cooling machine. I had to pay $200 to rent the cooling machine. But it was so worth. It helps keep inflammation down.
-Joanne
Daniel,
Do not fool yourself. You may have your muscles strong in 4 moths, but that graft will be at its very weakest. There are too many stories to count of incredibly strong professional athletes coming back after 3 or 4 months and trashing the knee again within just a few weeks. You will be taking a HUGE risk trying to get back to full bore activity if you do that. Just think about it: would you risk your entire athletic ‘career’ by rushing into it so soon? If you blow it again, your whole senior year is gone, not just one or two months of it. Trust me, as someone with ADD, it has been complete torture to not be able to get out and be active. I’ve been forcing myself to do exactly as my doctor has told me, and I feel much stronger because of it. I know I’ll be much better in the long run by behaving myself. I’m at 9 months now, and my doc still says only light tennis and light skiing, because of the pivoting movements. It will be at least April or May before I’m really back up to speed on the court, but I’m making myself wait because this has been torture and I don’t want to have to do it again if I can help it. Just my 2 cents.
yea but if my doctor clears me at 4 or 5 months like he says he will then why wouldnt i begin to play agian? also if im not playing in game situatuions and just doing drills and stuff would that be a better idea, ntil like 6 motnhs maybe
Daniel,
Your eagerness to return and frustration is understandable. A local athlete (QB) tore his acl during this past football season, he also plays basketball and returned at 4 months and re tore the graft the first game back. Sure, the Doc can clear you as his doctor cleared him. Clearance does not equate to readiness to return.
Greg
yea but at 6 months they say its very safe to retutn not 9 months thats just rediculous
7 years ago I had a hamstring graft, last week I had an allograft (same knee). For me, the surgeon recommended it because 1) I’m older (41), 2) 2nd graft, 3) bad knees anyways, not healthy for patella graft
Thank you so much Joanne.
You have really helped me already. I will let you know how it goes on Wednesday.
so today is my 7th wek post op. i also went back to pt today for the first time in amonth. it was an amazing session today, as i did these really good exercises that really made me feel good. my pt says my recovery so far is great and expects my doctor to clear me for running on my next appointment
I just found this forum & thought I’d chime in with my story. I tore my ACL on August 16th, 2009 while playing indoor soccer. It was the typical “landing from a jump with no one around me and…. *POP*”. I was 26 years old at the time & very athletic, so needless to say I was pretty bummed about joining the exciting world of being a cripple.
My surgeon recommended an allograft for me, which I had done on September 23rd, 2009. I also had a flap tear cut off my lateral meniscus, and a repair of my medial meniscus. I was on crutches for 5 weeks after surgery because of my medial meniscus repair - talk about a long time to be on crutches.
I have been doing PT twice a week since my injury (just finished yesterday, actually), and I also go to the gym four days a week, which usually includes some time on a stationary bike/treadmill/elliptical. I am just past the 5 month point in my recovery, and my knee feels great. I can run long distances without pain, and occassionaly rock the P90X Plyometrics DVD.
I am going to an informal soccer scrimmage this Sunday, and plan to play around with my old team. I was just surfing the net, reading about people re-tearing their ACL’s, so I can keep my head grounded. The last thing I want to do is get cocky & re-tear my knee. So anyway… Good luck to all of you, and I will let you know if/when I re-tear my ACL!
I posted a few weeks ago pre-surgery to get some advice on allo v. auto graft, so i thought i’d give an update…
I tore my acl end of December, had surgery 1/21/2010. I went with an achilles tendon allograft, mainly due to prior patellar femural pain from years of telemark skiing. I’m 23, but the doc thought allograft was best (over the generally stronger patella tendon autograft).
So i’m just over 6 weeks post-op, and feeling great. The femural nerve block was great and pain was pretty much gone after a week or two. I’ve been off crutches for just over a week, and pretty much walking normally, with an active brace. I went to a PT daily for the first 2 weeks, and have been going to the gym 5-7 days a week… leg curls, extensions, presses, etc. I also am on the exercise bike ~45 min a day.
Had a check up with the doc last week- told me to keep pushing the weight training, as long as nothing hurts. I have occasional paterllar femural tendon pain, but i guess that comes from being on my feet too much, not from working out.
From what i understand, I’ve had a pretty easy and quick recovery thus far; but my doc says that full recovery will take about a year, so i’m saving the rest my PT days until the 3-4 month mark. The one thing no one told me pre surgery was that a 3 by 6 inch section of my shin would be numb for 1-2 years.
Good luck to everyone.
OK is this normal. I am now 6 days post surgery.
I had very minimul pain after surgery. Was told I had majoy surgery but all went very well and they are happy on how the reconstruction went. Then on Monday I went for therapy and I did not do very much at all but since then I have been in so much pain its been unreal. Have needed double the pain meds and just sleep in so much pain. Have therapy again today and frankly I am dreading it. I will keep doing what I am told but wondered if the pain is supposed to get worse now as I had little pain after surgery….
Hi Greg
Listen to daniel I had surgery 7 months ago and i wont dare go bake to karate right now. I am so weak right now and back in PT because of the weakness. I was one of the people on here that was way ahead on healing and exercises in PT and then October came and took that all away. I went back to PT in January after getting Ortho visc injsections for extreme pain and in abliity to go up and down the stairs. Every one please be blessed that you are walking and give your knees a chance to heal properly. I sure as hell don’t want to go under the knife again.
Hi all… I am now 1wk post-op, yea! I went w/donor tendon to replace my ACL. I just saw my awesome surgeon yesterday who is happy with where I am at. I can straighten my leg to about 90% and the degree of bend about 60%. He still feels I need to wait one more wk before starting PT but has encouraged me yesterday to put weight down on my leg and start walking around. As a dancer & yogi, cyclist & surfer where I feel my balance has always been one of my best physical attributes in anything I do, this trying to walk thing has been most ungraceful, and yes, I still have pain and my leg has swelled a little, ankle & foot included. No clots, but typical after surgery my surgeon said & will go down. The pain is a bit ridic, I will admit, but I’m managing. SOme days and moments better than others… being very conservative w/the perks & alternating them with anti-inflam’s and a supplement called Nucelotide Rna/Dna. Not being able to do anything other than prescribed PT moves that my surgeon gave me, plus my years as an athlete and yoga instructor, I’ve been doing some moves moderately from home and at my own pace. But I do feel as if I’m progressing some, obviously not where I’d really like to be, but as everyone say, in time, plus I don’t want to blow it & be out longer again w/another reconstruction the reconstruction… But I too am wondering how much longer until I can look like I walk normally, when will the pain subside and returning to what I used to do on any normal day. Getting back to surfing, & my yoga, cycling is very important to me, so although I take all this in stride, eager to heal and as quickly & safely as I can. A good friend just wrote to me: “Just give yourself over to your knee. For the next few months your knee needs you more than you need it. Think of your knee as a temporarily disabled friend who could use some TLC. Remember, that’’s “TLC!!”, not tough love :-)” Hope everyone else who is recently post-op is starting to feel better!
Arrrrrgggghhhhhh! I am reading all of these encouraging and optimistic emails… I am 3 weeks post-injury, with a completely torn ACL and partially torn MCL and LCL… It occurs to me just now that I am NOT ACCEPTING that this injury will change my life for a year — or more?? Anyone else out there struggling/struggled with this? I am 43, very active, just fell in love with skiing (my downfall, no pun intended), keeping up with two young daughters. Rather than feeling encouraged by your experiences, I am in this moment overwhelmed: allograft vs autograft, P/T options, will I have a lot of pain or a little, will I be active at 3 months or at 12… Sorry. Just needed to vent for a moment. Any advice, encouragement, agreement most welcome!!
Hi Demian,
Great to hear you’re doing so well ! Keep it up!. I haven’t experienced any numbness around my scar or shin and I’m almost 7 months post op. I’ve never heard about that either.
I hope doesn’t show up.
Hi Sharon,
Yes, it’s normal. If you had the femoral block, then for that day and next day post op, there really isn’t much pain.
For me it was more soreness, unless of course I was trying to put weight on it. I would let your PT know about the pain. Maybe you have to reduce the inflammation more. I didn’t start PT right away. My dr advised 10 days post op for PT. Maybe you need to put it off a few days.
I would still go to your appt and let them know how you are feeling. Are you using a CPM machine and a 24 hour cooling pad? Both keep inflammation down and the CPM keeps your knee limber and helps with range of motion.
You’re still early into your recovery. There are going to be some down days but it won’t be for long. I love Jennylynn’s quote at the end of her post. Give your knee some well needed TLC.
Hang in there! Each day it will get better.
Hi Jennylynn,
You’re doing so well! It will take at least 2 -3 weeks to walk normal. Once you can ditch the crutch and brace, it will help a whole lot. The first 10 days are probably the most difficult. It’s so hard to not be independent and doing what you want to do. But you will be grateful for all the little milestones you’ll achieve in getting back to your “normal” day.
Rreducing inflammation really is key. My dr preached that to me and I have to say he was so right. I know ppl who had inflammation at 6 months out. I had little at my 1st PT session 10 days post op. By 1 month, no inflammation at all. Inflammation = pain.
Your yoga and dance training is going to help you so much in your recovery. I think I mentioned that I took a Physique 57 class. Wow what a class. I felt my core muscles for days after. But I was amazed how well my knee held up. There were very few moves I couldn’t do. The class was a combo of yoga, pilates and calisthenics with some free weights.
I love your friend’s advice to you. It is so true.
Hi Amy,
You’re going to be fine. You will be active again. It just going to take a little time.
First up, the sooner you have surgery, the sooner your recovery can begin. As far as which graft to do, you need to talk to your dr. Most of us have had the allograft. If you read the earlier posts, some have had both types. You need to make the choice that’s right for you.
You’re going to have to accept that recovery will take time. Your original ACL/MCL/LCL took a beating, you can’t expect an allograft or autograft to be at peak level in just a few months or you risk having more surgery and more recovery. That fact usually wakes everyone up pretty quick.
Read Sharon and Jennylynn’s post, they are 1 week post-surgery and will be grateful to just be able to walk normal. Yes, they would love to go back to surfing, cycling , racquetball…etc, but their body is too important to them. They are accepting their knee needs to heal more than they need to do a certain sport.
Secondly, most ppl report more pain with autograft, than allograft. As far as being active, you will gradually be more active than the day before…etc. Your graft will be at its weakest at 4 months post surgery. You will feel better rather quickly. Certain sports with fast pivoting movements or ones that put great stress on the knee are not going to be an option until you heal at 12 months post op.
But that doesn’t mean you’re going to turn into a couch potato.lol. You will be able to hit the gym, lift weights, cycling, swimming, yoga, pilates…etc. There are other options right now.
I’m 7 months post op. When I first had my surgery back in August,7 months sounded like a lifetime. You feel the first few weeks to 1 month post op, because you are truly not as mobile as before. But each day and week that passes, you will be more mobile and be able to build on that. This what helps the recovery go pretty quickly.
Set yourself up for SUCCESS, not failure. Go into this recovery knowing it will take some time. Since all athletes have to train to be competitive at their sport, think of your recovery time, as your training period to getting back to your normal type of day or sport you love. It’s doable.
You just need to get yourself in the right mind frame and the rest will follow.
Keep posting. let us know what type of surgery you choose. Good luck.
hey gys just recently saw my doctor and he is stunned once again at my recovery. my strength in my legsa are almost completely the same and he is clearing me to run in two weeks which is 2 months and 2 weeks post op for me. he also said that he expects to clear me to my sport again on may 1st which is also fantastic.v
Amy,
When I tore my ACL/meniscus back in August, I had a huge mental pity party for myself, wallowing in my sorrows that my days of athletics were behind me & I’d never be the same. SNAP OUT OF IT. I’m 5.5 months post-op, and I’m telling you, you’re going to blink & be as healthy as ever again. If you want to go back to skiing & sports, you will be fine to do that. Just make sure you put the time in now doing Physical Therapy & working your knee back to full strength/flexion. I played soccer this past Sunday, and although I’m a bit mentally damaged - nervous about quick weight transfers - there was very literally no physical pain in my “bad” knee. Just do what your doc tells you!
Joanne and Sean, thank you so much for your words of wisdom and encouragement! It’s reassuring that you both feel that time has passed at a bearable rate for you and that increased activity is within your grasp. I saw Dr #2 yesterday, who would do only an autograft; Dr #1 would do allograft. I need to do more research to decide. Both agree I need about another month of P/T to get the knee ready for surgery. Apparently the location of the MCL tear makes this injury very stiff. I don’t have full ROM on extension or flexion yet. I am being a very good patient — P/T 3x/week and daily exercises at home. Today I will endeavor to be less cranky about the whole situation!
: )
Hey all. I don’t know if you’ve read far enough back in the blog to know me but I am at my one year mark today. I am 44, active in yoga, cycling and horse back riding. I am running a 5k next month, workout hard 5-6 days a week. I do everything that my 20-something workout/running partners do and I do a lot of it better
I wish I could tell you I am 100% back to normal with my knee but that would be a lie. I do everything that I did before the surgery but I do experience pain in my knee, especially when I overdo it. I was hiking in the snow a couple of weeks ago and twisted my knee and limped a little for two days. This is distressing to me, especially since I’m a the year mark. I also find that if I miss workouts (I got sick and couldn’t do anything for two weeks) my knee regresses a little bit. I still ice my knee after especially hard workouts. Here are my thoughts as to why I might be having issues still at this point so maybe you can learn from me.
- my doctor kept me in my brace fully locked with no weight bearing for 6 weeks. I did have a complete ACL tear and meniscus damage but I think this was excessive. Were I to do it again, I would ask more about the after the surgery stuff. Ask how long you’ll be in the brace, if you don’t like the answer, pick another doctor.
- I was not cleared to start pt until around the 6 week mark. I think this just makes the whole thing take longer. Ask when you will be cleared for pt.
- My pts were not very aggressive. There were a lot of older, overweight people with knee replacements as the rehab center my doctor sent me to. They were aggravatingly conservative with me and I think I should have been doing more, quicker. Go to a rehab center that works with athletes!
- I think I have slightly favored my knee longer than I should have. This was pointed out to me by my trainer who was having me do something and he said, “stop favoring that knee! I can see you doing it!” I didn’t even realize I was! After that I started consciously making sure I wasn’t. Pay attention to that, it can be subconcious!
Anyway, hope that will help someone. I do not regret the surgury and I am still hopeful that I will be completely pain free at some point. And like I said, I am back to all my old activities with the exception of skiing which I decided I didn’t love enough to risk a repeat injury.
Happy healing to all.
Joanne thank you. It makes a big diference to hear from people that have gone through the same thing. Thank you. Today I am 8 days post surgery. Knee is more swollen than last week although the pain is better today. Did not need as many pain meds. It seems that everytime I get back from PT my leg is more painful and more swollen the next day. They said on monday I can loose my brace. That will only be 11 days post op. Will this be ok. I am really worried about that as I have no muscel control yet and no strength in the thigh at all. I am scared I will ruin something to quick. I cannot go through this twice. Is it ok if i have no brace and no crutches and just walk on it so soon. Please let me know someone if they did the same thing. Thanks
yea at 11 days loosening your brace shoudl be fine. my brace was completely off in 13 days and i was off crutchjes in like 5 days i think. but the mian thing is if you feel you dont need it anymore. for me i dint think i needed the brace even 7 days post op but kept it on just to be safe. also your knee being swollen is normal, at around 3 or 4 weeks thhough you should have no more swelling and hsould felel comfortable walking around by then.
It’s funny all this talk of post-surgery braces. My doctor never mentioned a brace to me, so I figured have no brace after surgery was normal. When I came back to work, crutching around my office, everyone was going “Where’s your brace?!?” Somehow I managed. You’ll be fine w/o it.
Dear Renne,
I just read your post and feeling better to know that your highly active in your 40’s, female, and getting along. I’m 36, female and also do the same things you do. I’m a yoga instructor & cyclist coach. I surf & horse back ride as well. I love to play tennis, have run a marathon, skied, snowboarded, etc… you name it I most likely did it. I’m curious as to where you are in your yoga practice? I’m advanced, so wondering if you can sit on our heels yet, and at what point were you able to and bend deep w/the knee. Also, what kind of work did you have done? You mentioned still having knee pain, so I’m wondering if you went the patellar route? I decided to go w/allograft since the research I have done doesn’t prove the failure rate, except in those younger athletes in there teens and early twenties, and the failure is due to young athletes pushing it too soon. SInce I’m 36, and although still highly athletic and strong (I too work out 5-6-7 days a week, w/the exception of right now) I’m not going to sweat the failure rate. Through my years of med school & training & over a decade of yoga practice and teaching yoga, ex-gymnast & dancer, I have a good grounding and balance, & sense of limitations that I will honor, but I will also push myself. Knowing the difference between discomfort & pain is a big thing. I discuss this with my yoga students. You have to move thru the discomfort, but back off when feeling pain. Have to know the difference.
So when did you start to feel stronger? Right now I’m 1.5wks out of post-op. Just started walking around w/my crutches in my apt, and by next week, my surgeon wants me to ditch the crutches and walk w/brace & start PT. In another week after PT he feels strong enough that I can ditch my brace too. Walking around my apt, I’m feeling all sorts of weird sensations that I have never felt before; w/the allograft, they drilled into my femur & tibia to anchor the cadaver tendon in, so I feel that, but I also feel my knee clicking, and like it almost wants to buckle or sometimes crack. My leg can straighten pretty well, but I don’t feel like I have the fullest of extension like I do w/my right knee. The bend is ok… Like when sitting up straight in a chair, I can put my foot to the floor & have a natural bend to it, but to bend any further back, it feels tight & pain starts coming on, so I’m not ready to attempt that again until I start PT & have measured guidance. Not willing to explore the degree of my bend unattended.
I’m told no ballet bar class, pool swimming, cycling for 3mths. Yoga take in stride & slowly. No ocean swimming or surfing for 6mths and horse back riding too… How soon were you back to the yoga, cycling & horse riding??
W/snow hiking, how did you twist your knee? DId you feel it gave out, or would you say it was related to how you moved?
I do plan on taking PT pretty aggressively & seriously. I actually booked myself at 4 different places to make sure I pick the right place and like they’re way of treating an athlete. I too have been in PT before in my past for other things and found it to be a waste of time, nor did the therapist I think listened to my needs. SO I agree that this is an important part of finding the right place, right PT and right rehab to match your level of fitness & goals to get back to where you last were; or as close to it. What moves in PT did you think really helped you get stronger?
I’m so glad I read your post, I’ve been looking for someone who has done similar activities as I have and is still highly athletic and now back to them… not that tracking someone elses success or failure in they’re recovery is to help mark my own experience, but it helps in the sense that I can aspire to be there soon enough and back to what I loved most, and what has brought much love to my life.
Tx!
To everyone else, move thru your pity parties when they come, Lord knows I do, but when your done your new word is “MOXY”!!!! Drill it into your head & feel it in your gut! Your stronger mentally right now than physically, so use your mental power to pull you through where your feeling physically weak. We’re all there right now, and like many others I’ve been reading who are now 1+yrs beyond their injury, looks like we’ll all pull ourselves from the trenches … We all agree it sucks, but hey, I had to put it to myself the other day; I’m not paralyzed from waist down; its not terminal nor permanent. I’ll be fine… and how fine? Well, that depends on me… & you… Keep heart!
Thanks Daniel. So I will not worry about my brace and crutches. It seem like it will be ok. But yesterday I was in so much pain and had so much swelling. I have stayed off my knee and see no reason for it. I am scared to over do it and scared not to use it. Is anyone else scared about doing the right or wrong thing that I should or should not be doing. I guess its that I want to go back to competitive racquetball and do not want to do anything wrong. When should someone go to the doctors. Wanted to go yesterday but did not. It was so unbelievablly painful for no reason. Is this the norm. Thanks everyone for all your advise. I certainly do not want to moan or go on about this but my racqetball is my life and I want to do the right thing. Thanks you all.
well i was encouraged to weight bear right awy and to try and walk around immediately. my first pt appointment was the day after my surgery and this is when my pt told me to do so. although i was actually comfortable doing this as well. so my advice would be that by walking around that will not interfere with ur reconstructed acl at all. think about it how is that possibly going to retaer it or something like that again. the longer youw aitthe more strenth you lose. it hink why i am doing so well is maybe because of how hard i worked immediately after my surgery. my doctor is amazed at how fast i regained all my stretght and i think it may be becasue of this
Sharon,
If you feel that much pain, then I would go see the dr. Soreness is one thing, pain is another. At the very least call your dr up, maybe he can advise you over the phone. What kind of exercises are you doing at PT?
For me, my dr recommended not to wear the brace in bed or on the couch, even when I got home from surgery. He said only if I’m “walking” about. The brace makes walking hard and if it’s too tight could be pressing on a nerve which can cause the pain your feeling.
I remember when I first woke up from surgery, I had unbearable pain in my ankle of all places. I had the femoral block, but the pain was tremendous only in my ankle. I was close to tears. They gave me percaset, that didn’t help and then they gave me something intravenously. It knocked me out only for a 1/2 hour and then I was wired. My sister kept saying to the nurse, maybe the strap is too tight and then she loosened up the strap on the band that goes over the ankle , when the the nurse left. That helped too.
I hate the brace so much that I stopped wearing it in the house after 10 days and only wore it outside. When I went to PT,I would take the brace off and do the exercises and stationary bike.
I had no strength in my quads to do straight leg lifts, so my PT told me not to do them until I could do them properly. I used the Pilates reformer and the seated leg press, calf raises..etc. The first few sessions weren’t hard. They went easy on me.
Do you have the CPM machine (Continuous Passive Motion)? Do you have a lot of inflammation in the knee?
-Joanne
Hi Joanne, I do not know what a CPM machine is? what does it do. I do have some inflamation in the knee and sometimes it gets worser for no reason at all. I see my doctor on Monday at 2.00pm after my PT at 11.30am. In PT I just have to do straight leg lifts, sit on the edge of the table while he trys to push my leg a little further back when its just hanging over the side and this week I think he said I would ride a bike. For instance yesterday I was in so much pain after doing exercises at home that I was in tears before I went to bed. I can tollorate a lot of pain and I am certainly not a baby. I am tough when it comes to exercises and putting up with pain and working through it. But last night it really hurt. I felt silly calling the doctor as he said the surgery went fine with no problems. Maybe everyone goes through this do they? I had the surgery a week last Wednesday. I need not ave a block I had general and still did not have this much pain afterwards.
Should I get one of those CPM machines? Where do I get them from. Are they good?
Any help is so much appreciated.
Thank you all yet again and again
Hi all,
I just wanted to give everybody an update as I just pasted my 9th month mark. Hamstring autograph, 50% of medial meniscus removed. I’m an active 40 yr old female and am pretty much back to all my old sports - rock climbing, snowboarding, yoga, cycling, hiking. Only running is still giving me a bit of a problem, but my knee feels solid and muscles strong…and I struggled quite a bit at the beginning, esp. with the weakness in my hamstring.
9 months seemed like an eternity when I first had surgery, but looking back the time has passed pretty quickly. PT takes a lot of the time and energy you used to put into sports, albeit way more boring! I started up yoga (with restrictions) at 3 months, rock climbing at 5 months and first went snowboarding at 6 months. Now I feel confident and, while not totally 100%, am pretty close to my “old” self physically and mentally…and still improving.
Hang in there everyone!
Sharon ~ just wanted to send some supportive thoughts your way.
I am still pre-surgery - have another month of P/T ahead of me before I will be ready for surgery. But I already have experienced some of the frustrations you mention regarding pain. I also am not a baby when it comes to coping with physical effort or pain. I can honestly say that even after having been stranded, with no clear way out, of the Himalayan Mountains, and having later given birth to two babies, I still have never before known effort or pain like that which I have encountered since my injury (complete ACL tear and partial tears of MCL & LCL.) I use deep breathing and visualization to cope…
Wish I had major words of wisdom for you. But I do feel that heeding your gut, and calling your doc when things don’t seem to be going as expected, is a good idea. Sometimes having the psychological comfort of being told that things are (or are not) “normal” can help us rest easier and therefore cope better.
Good luck - hope you are feeling much better very soon.
Hi to all,
I had durgery March 2 and I go back to work this Tuesday and I’m so scared. I go see my Dr. tomorrow (post-op) and I’m still using crutches. I havent tried walking without them. I’m 28 female and I went with the patellar bone option. Its been great. NO Pain!!! I have NOT used any pain meds yet(knock on wood) and nothing is swallen. I guess i’m just lucky because Ive been reading all this blogs about pain that it makes me think that pain is on the way… I just hope I can go back to playing soccer again God willing!
Good luck to all!
Well My first bit of good news today since my surgery. I had a very rough weekend but continued to do my exercises as I did not want to fall behind. Walked into therapy sat down and had tears in my eyes. He asked what was wrng and I just said going from being extremely competitive in racquetball to nothing, putting up with the pain and bored I guess I was just feeling sorry formyelf. Absolutely not like me at all. I am a tough cookie and always happy. I felt like a baby and thats just not me. I was dissappointed in myself.
Well I blew my nose, sucked it up and did my therapy. I leg extension is now completely flad and my knee can now bend to 105 degrees. He was so please I lost my brace today yeh!!!!!! That was a great feeling. I then went from therapy to see the surgeon. He took the stitches out and said I neednt use the brace anymore. He said in about one week and a half I may even be able to go down to one crutch. Depends on a leg stability. He said although it obviously hurt me he said I was determined to work hard and only 10 days post op it had paid off. I am so happy. Such a change from this morning. I now see a light at the end of the tunnel…. Yeh!!!!!!! He also expained every picture of the surgery. It was fasinating. So I hope you dont all think I am a baby because I really am not. I can now push through the next stage now as their is a light at the end of the tunnel. Thank you for all you feed back and your stories and all the encouragement because you guys all make a diference in my daily life believe it or not. So to all of you thank you so very much. Speak to you soon. Sharon.
Sharon, Good work! Happy to hear you had a break thru. I’m 2wks post op now, doing my own PT from home, mixed with other things that I just have to do, because like you, very active and going nuts from inactivity & boredom, feeling like I’m losing tonality as the days pass… its frustrating. So asides from leg lifts, I varied them to include Abductor & Adductor lifts. As a ballet/modern dancer, I did calf raises which activated my quad & I could do under slow control. I also did some research and found out that one of my favorite weight lifting moves “The Dead Lift” is excellent for strengthening not only the hams, glutes & quads, but the ACL! check out this link: http://www.protraineronline.com/past/nov15/deadlift.cfm
I do intervals of triceps by positioning myself on a bench & dips, push-up w/crossing my bad legs ankle over my strong one, shoulder presses abs… I must admit, it makes me feel better about myself being able to at least manage this under slow controlled movements, while waiting to start PT which I do later this week after I see my surgeon for my 2wk post-op appt.
But I can totally relate to the pity-party… been there, done that, go back, re-surface… Its all just going to be a process. For the 1st time today I took off my brace alone and tried walking across the room w/out it. Felt very weird, a bit unstable, and it almost brought me to tears… An ambitious athlete that I am, with almost everything I do requiring balance (dance, yoga, cycling, surfing…) to now feel grounded right now has kinda shaken me to my core & although to afraid to try to bend my knee unassisted, when I tried, also feel scary so now I’m feeling petrified of the pain I will encounter come Thursday with my first PT appt.
Not sure what kind of ACL reconstruction you did, but I went w/allograft & decided to leave everything else I had intact. Because I do a lot on my knees, I did not want to risk knee pain for the rest of my life if chances were I fell into that category. I believe w/my kind of reconstruction, it needs its time to soften & stretch & stay as stable as possible which is why I have been waiting for clearance for PT, but fear a of scar tissue build up so hoping my surgeon (who is one of the top @ NYU Hospital for Joint Diseases) is right. Because I’m also not the average citizen out there; I work hard, I play hard.
How long before you got to your degree in bend of knee? How odd did it feel to first walk w/out the brace? How was your first appt of PT? I’m trying to predict what to expect come Thursday and why I feel like a fraidy cat is beyond me, bec thats not me as well. I’m the girl that charges waves 2x my height & gets my ass kicked by mother ocean & keeps paddling out there. I cycle & take the harder routes bec its the thrill of the challenge that gives me a sense of accomplishment & feels alive. My yoga and teaching of yoga gives me the other side of that aggressive balance but even there, I reach & keep reaching and w/dance, there’s no end, I dance till exhaustion… it’s my creative outlet for self-expression… so feeling a little stiffled at the moment w/not being able to move as I naturally do, or even w/grace! W/this brace I feel like I walk like Frankenstein! But deep down I know this is not the truth to be for present times, and hearing that you too had a moment of emotional lows about your injury makes me feel like I’m not the only one who’s passionate about they’re activites (because everything I do is my life to and I also get paid to perform & do the sports I do) and fears to never participate in them again.
Congrats on your mental-break thru… I think we forget, as I’m being reminded constantly from friends, and some who have went thru this too, that its not just about physically getting back thats the reward, but moving out of that dark space also requires strength & determination and deserves a well-done when you choose to stay positive.
All the best… thanks for sharing… I needed to read this today…
Oh Jennylynn it was so awesome to read your email. Thank you for such kind words. It really meant a lot to me. My first therapy session was tough but not as bad as I thought it would be. My therapist is fantastic. I have used him through a couple of other surgeries in my shouders due to racquetball. He knows his stuff and he knows how dissapointed I am especially as I was playing un the US OPEN for racquetball this November. Well of course thats out now until next year but I will come back and I will play in the US Open in 2011. Thats my long term goal and I will get back there. Thats a 100% promise to myself.. In my first PT he wanted to start working on a few things. First was to be able to straighten my leg out fully on the table, completely flat then to make it harder he rolled a towel up under my ankle and had me straighten out my leg. That was painful and uncomfortable but in my 2nd PT I was able to do it, and the 2nd thing he had me doing was calf raises which were easy and I had no problem doing them, then he had me doing leg raises in order to strengthen the thighs so that when I walk without crutches my knee wont buckle under me and the last thing was to sit on a chair with both knees together and feet on the floor normaly and then slowly moving the foot that is the knee I had surgery on and slide it under the chair as far back as I could. That hurt but he said today was at 105% and then sad by next week he expects me at 115% and crutches should be on their way out. Yeh baby!! Cant wait.
So please dont worry so much about the PT. I was terrified and that has definately not been my worst thing. I really think the mental side of it all missing my gym and the racquetball has been far more painful than anything else. The paid should get easier my sugeon said. He said I am only 10 days post surgery and doing great.
I am with you al the way. Let me know how PT ends up.
All have a wonderful day
Sharon
So i beign running again in one week, which is not to say i havent already tried running. which is a little less than 2.5 months post op. when i write it like that it seems like such a long time but it has honestly gone by so far. i guess this is due to how busy i have been. i have been working out every single day since 6th day post op and have gotten alot stronger becasue of it. i have also kept myself busy soing a lot of shooting and dribbling drills. recently i was doing drills in my driveway and my knee felt amazing, like i never even had surgery, was doing moves with ease and very fast as well, just wasnt explodng after the move like i normally would. anyways feeling bettter and better each day and working harder and harder to not just get to where i once was, but get far past that.
Anyone use one of the cold therapy devices (Cyro Cuff, Breg Kodiak, Don Joy Iceman… etc) after surgery? Trying to decide if any of these are worth the purchase or just use the old standard bags of ice. I go in for my ACL surgery on 3/24. Planning to go with an Allograft. I am in to recycling…
Thx
Shawn - I didn’t use a cold therapy device. I was going to pay for one, but at the last second decided not to. My wife helped me with good ‘ol ice packs and it worked great. If you are on the fence, my two cents is that you can probably get by just fine without spending the extra $$$.
I also did not have a CPM machine, and have had zero problems getting back full range of motion. I had the Allograft as well.
My biggest piece of advice, however - GET the femoral block if at all possible!!
thats interesting becasue i was given the cold devivce thing for free and they never even mentioned to us having to pay for it just gave it to me and taught me how to use it.
I used the cold device and it has been the very best thing I had. When I went to the hospital they gave it to me there. I have not been asked to pay for it yet? Infact I had one from the hospital before I left after my rotator cuff surgery and it ws briliant then. Now this one is for the knee. If you have the chance to get one my recommendation is absolutely yes. My therapist says it the best thing to have as well and he was 100% right.
Hope that helps. Thanks. Sharon
Shawn, In terms of what you did in the past when you had other injuries, did you ice & feel better from it? I ask bec I know people who cannot tolerate cold temps for long. This brings me to my point to you or anyone else about the IceMan Machine. My surgeon, when I asked him, said he didn’t feel it necessary. However, many friends that I know who had ACL surgery & the like, all used it & swore by it. So despite my surgeons thoughts, and he didn’t think it good or bad, its about personal preference, I’m using one. They are expensive, some insurance companies will cover the cost, some hospitals or medical device/supply stores will rent them to you, but I lucked out on borrowing a friends who bought theirs & had it sitting around in storage.
For me, I’m a BIG advocate for Ice Therapy, especially where inflammation is concerned. Once you hook this thing up & feel the cold temps circulating around the knee, I think you’ll be happy to have had it. At first I was so bandaged up that I couldn’t feel the water bladder temps penetrate thru the bandages. Once those bandages came off, and I still only had minimal bandages to cover the stitches & an ace wrap, I was able to feel the cold temps penetrate around the knee, and I think it def helped me. In fact, I got addicted to it because of the lull & sound of the water from the machine helped me also relax and fall asleep. I’m a water baby, grew up on the ocean & surf, so anything water related & the sounds of it is a bonus for me. But point being, helping heal my mental state thru this too, its what also agrees with me & what is making me feel comfortable thru it. The sounds of water & ocean always put my mental state at ease. If you go for Ice Machine, just make sure you have plenty of bags of ice on hand to fill it. If not, recruit friends, family to bring bags of ice when they come to visit you, etc… You’ll be going thru ice like mad. If you decide not to get machine & go the old fashioned route, you can do that too, and I still do that as well, when I don’t feel like fussing w/machine. Both will do the job, but one in my opinion, is more soothing, so my vote is with the ice machine & I’m sure I’ll still be using it after PT.
Also, I work/study as a holistic health & nutritional counselor, I would suggest to you & anyone reading this to eat foods that support your immune system & bring down inflammation. Foods rich in Omega-3’s or using the oil in place of olive oil in salads. You just can’t cook w/it bec high heat destroys its properities. Find O3’s in cold water oily fish, walnuts, flax seeds, canola oil and pumpkin seeds. Olive oil has been shown to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, and will help to reduce pain. Other healthy oils include rice bran oil, grape seed oil, and walnut oil. Your body needs protein to build healthy body tissues so clean, lean meats, preferably grass-fed, antibiotic free; better for your body, better for the enviornment &less cruelty to the animals. Also when you choose to eat grass-fed beef, you get the natural levels of CLA that your body needs to help metabolize & burn fat. Lets face it, some of us may gain weight & not being able to exercise for a while can bring that weight gain on for some, so it helps. You don’t get that CLA from mass-produced meat farms bec they feed their stock soy & corn, not grass which makes the CLA. If we humans only ate soy & corn & processed foods from these sources, how much more obese would we be? This is why America is one of the most unhealthiest countries. This is why we still struggle to get pounds off bec the sources we eat from are also fed the same processed crap. Even if your not trying to loose weight & want to keep your mass, especially for you men, you still want to be able to have a good level of CLA in body to work on the bad fats. Men gain their muscle mass quickly, although its hard work again at the gym. Keep in mind, there’s a difference btwn fat & weight. You want to keep your weight, not fat. Try to eat very clean! Lastly, whole grains that are raw, not enriched, fiber, green leafy vegetables, and brightly colored vegetables and lots of fresh whole fruits. Pineapple is a wonder fruit for inflammation along w/a few others, sweet potatoes… Water, water, water! Foods & drinks high in sodium, fats & sugar increase inflammation. Keep that in mind… Oh and, some dark chocolate on hand
A little nib to brighten the darkest of moments, and just incase you need a little sugar on some days!
I too had the allograft 2wks ago… I’m walking around my apt w/out crutches & bearing weight on my leg (not so gracefully as I would think for myself as a dancer, yoga instructor, cyclist & surfer where my balance & grace was always a given) but still w/this annoying immobilizing brace. I see my surgeon in 2days for my 2nd wk post-op appt, and start assisted PT in 2days. So we’ll see how things go from there, everyday its been something new. Yin/Yang… its a balance of both taking the good moments w/the bad. Sometimes I ask if the the universe wanted me to slow down, could it have asked me in a more subtle way?? But like a good friend said to me “Would you have listened?”. The honest to God truth is “Probably Not”… So despite my frustrations, limitations, pity-parties and the like in some moments, there are things that I find uplifting and actually looking at the things we take for granted (like taking a bath or shower on your own finally) as a new challenge and moving at a tortoise pace, allows me to notice more subtle things that I pass on a daily basis as I move @ warp speeds most of the time. So trying to listen more intently with my body & look at the slow down, including in my sports & activities as a new way to train & challenge. ANd I’ll repeat one last thing another friend said to me, “Your knee needs you more right now than you need it yet… so treat it like a good friend who needs your help to recover & get better”.
So good luck Shawn!
WOW that is a lot of information right there lol. i actually have been taking in alot of omega 3 lately. i have been taking 3 tablets of fish oil per day and maybe that has been helping me alot
Hi Shawn,
I swear by my Berg Kodiak. I don’t know how I would have faired with out it. But I don’t tolerate ice very well and the berg kept me nice and cool. It wasn’t unbearable for me the way ice usually is.
When I went to PT, there was a man there that had less extensive surgery than I did and his knee was like a soccer ball. He had tons of inflammation and pain. I ask my PT what happened to him and how bad was his surgery and my PT told me that I had a ton more done to my knee, plus I had the cooling machine and the CPM machine.
I posted the link for both types of machines, see post #839.
I would start making bags of ice now as the machine takes a lot ice plus some water. It’s very easy to use and I didn’t find it uncomfortable. I had to purchase mine for about $200. The medical supply place delivered it to me along with the CPM. I was instructed by my surgeon to bring the knee pad that comes with it to the hospital and they place it on for you over your bandages and under your brace.
It’s just a simple cooler with the knee pad attached to it. It’s the knee pad and the tubing that makes it so expensive.
Good luck with surgery and let us know what you choose and how you’re doing.
-Joanne
Thanks, Jennylynn,
Great advice! I definitely need to add more protein to my diet and fish oils too.
I’ve also been taking the liquid version of glucosomine and chondritin. I’m not sure if it helps or not.
I actually lost 10 lbs. my first two weeks after surgery. Surprisingly, I didn’t have an appetite.
Just a note about the ice machine. I had one and loved it! My only problem was that insurance didn’t pay for it, which I found out after I had returned it. The rental company charged me more for one week rental than it would cost to actually purchase it! I’m still fighting with them about it and there doesn’t seem to be an end in sight. I highly recommend you purchase one before surgery and decline their offer to rent. You can get a good one for around $150 online, or you can pay rental of $225 for a week like I did. Wish I had known up front about this so I could still use it if I needed to. Hope this helps!
Wow… Thanks everyone for the great info. I just purchased a used Breg Kodiak with knee pad for $75 on ebay (including shipping). Little grossed out about a used kneed pad so will probably purchase a new one for the unit. Great deal. Will definitely take the pad with me to surgery. As for the nutrition info you hit the nail on the head. My wife is a bit OCD on “Clean Eating” lots of Flex Seed, Bee Pollen and enough 0mega 3 that I swear I am growing gills…
Oh and on the dark chocolate. You should try out raw chocolate maca sauce called Chocolatl http://www.flowfoodschocolatl.com. We get ours at Whole Foods.
Blessings
Shawn
I used a Breg Polar Care Ice Machine & would recommend it to everyone getting this done. I had mine cranking nearly 24 hours a day. They are obviously not necessary, as you *can* continually change ice packs, but the machine keeps your knee cold for 5-6 hours, so as far as convenience goes, it can’t be beaten. It’s especially nice at night while sleeping.
i blew my acl out last week skiing. i was leaning towards an allograph. i have read all the posts about the allograph, what type of allograph did you use? my doc uses the tibiatis anterior, but i read about using the achilles tendon, hamstrings, what about a patella tendon with the bone to bone fixation? its a big decision, any info would be great..
Ken - my doc used posterior tibialis for my allograft. Anterior also is a common choice. I’d be curious to hear what other allograft folks received..
I recd an achilles tendon allograft.
Usually, hamstrings and patella tendon is your own, so then it would be an autograft. I wasn’t eligible for either, especially the patella tendon, as it would have further weakened my knee area and my surgeon feared, I would need full knee replacement in 5 - 10 years. I’ve also read that ppl whose job requires a lot of kneeling or squatting down, like a bricklayer or even a catcher, shouldn’t get the patella tendon.
i was totally against an allograft, but the i read about the differnt grafts the allograft might be the way to go. my doc gave me the choice between a hamstring auto or a allograft. im 40 years old, but i ski 70 to 80 times a year and work construction in the summer, just worried about the allograft holding up. my doc said the allograft would be fine, he is a u s ski team physician and has performed many acls with allografts sucessfully. im good to for surgey as soon as i make up my mind. im glad i found this site, its been alot of help.
Hi my name is Tom.
I completely tore out my ACL 4 weeks ago playing basketball. I’m 38yrs old and don’t have any plans to stop.
I’m having problems decided rather I should do the cadaver graft(achillies tendon cadaver graft) or the Patella tendon autograft.
I would like to hear from people who had the cadaver allograft and if any of you are playing basketball at your pre-injury level.
Right now I’m leaning towards having allograft done. My surgeron says it is not as strong as the patella tendon autograft but it almost as strong and I would be able to play basketball on it. After what I read on the internet I’m not sure if I totally believe him.
The only problem I have with patella tendon autograft is that they are cutting into the tendon thats back behind your knee cap potentially weakening it. I really don’t like that idea. I want to keep my knee as strong as I can, but I would to the patella tendon surgery if that is only way I can play basketball again.
Please post to me and tell me your stories. I have surgery in 2 months THANK YOU
so great news, today i began running again in pt. it felt great!!!!! only 9 weeks out and im doing amazinggg. i did a fast walk for about 8 mins, then ran at a relatively medium pace for 5 mins, totaling 1.4 miles. my pt says each day to increase how much i run by a minute till i hit the 10 minute mark , where i should keep it there for about a wekk, athen start gradually running longer and longer. so i honestly feel like i am back now, feeling freat less than 2motnths to go, and basktball is in the question.
also tom i had the allograft and am an extremly active basktball playler, probably much more active than you are at your age. but it has been going AMAZING. since day 1 post op i have felt good every day. also regaining your strenth is so easy, i am only 9 weeks post op and strenth is all pretty much back. i would definetly recommend it to anyone, and with the autograft i feel this can hinder your athleticsm by ccuttting up your other parts of your body, definetly wanted to sat away from that choice. hope this helps
Tom,
My suggestion to you is to seriously consider patellar autograft. I personally have patellar autograft which was done 24 years ago and has been no problem and I have played basketball throughout that time. I have three daughters that have all had acl reconstructions. My most recent daughter rec’d allograft and experienced some premature fraying and non acceptance of the graft. She had to have repeat surgery and now has the patellar autograft. Patellar auto graft, if you do your homework is the most stable and easiest to heal in due to the bone to bone nature of the graft, rather than having soft tissue try to heal into the tunnels. I would also suggest checking into a double bundle surgery where patellar tendon and hamstring is used, the problem is that there are only two surgeons that I am aware of that perform the surgery-Dr. Patrick Smith in Columbia, MO and Dr. Freddie Fu in Pittsburgh. I am familiar with Dr. Smith as he has performed surgery on my youngest daughter. Good luck with your surgery.
Greg
Dear “TORN”
I am now 3wks post-op and had the allograft. I am a 36yr old female, very active. I’m a dancer, yoga instructor, cyclist instructor, surfer, runner, tennis player…
I did MEGA research on this, plus with my years in my med program & school, I feel I was at a little more advantage with understanding a little more about the structure, anatomy & physiology of the body. I’m not going to say what I think is “Best” because its going to be different for all of us, and many people will stick by their opinions and pass it off as “The way to go” or “not go”. What I will say is why I chose to go with the allograft is because I did not want to have to rehab my hamstring or patellar in conjunction with the ACL reconstruction. I wanted to keep everything else I had preserved. With all I do, I need that explosive power from my hams & glutes. W/dancing & yoga and on my knees, I did not want to fall into that category of people who will always feel pain in the knee for the rest of their lives w/the patellar choice. Not saying everyone has that, but a good majority of people do. Tis’ true that the allograft is weaker than the ham, & patellar choice, but if you have a great surgeon doing the work, and he/she knows what they’re doing, you should be sure of your knees success and give your self the time to rehab properly. Rehab is the true key to your knees success in the later. The failure rates come form those athletes who rush back into they’re sports when the reconstruction has not had enough time to reset. ANd that was what I had exclusively researched.
I’m no different then any other athlete out there, age difference or not. What I do athletically is also my life, and I also get paid to do it in some of those activities, and I’m not quitting either. But what I had to surrender to is the time & dedication its going to take before I can return to them. And I want to return to them for good. But not at the expense of reinjuring my knee and sitting out even longer. So okay, it sucks, I’m sitting out a whole surf season, but I’ll chase the waves in another part of the world when I get clearance. I’m not dancing, but I’ll get my groove back soon enough. And although I cannot demonstrate anything physical when I teach yoga or indoor cycling, I can still show to my classes and verbally instruct. It’ll be 3mths before I can take my cycling back out onto the road… but while in rehab, I find other physical distractions that will make me a stronger athlete for when I return… I think you should do the same too. I’ve already worked my plan out and feeling good about it. Like a new training strategy.
I just started PT, its not easy… mentally, emotionally or physically for me, but this isn’t terminal or to be my truth for the future. But everyday I have progress, although slow, and feeling stronger as the days pass.
So choose what makes most sense for you & your lifestyle. I don’t regret the allograft, and honestly, I don’t think I will…
Just had my surgery today. Went with the cadaver graft. It is amazing how quick this is done. In at 12:30pm home on the couch by 5PM. Also - I am loving my Breg Polar Care Kodiak cold therapy machine. Took it with me to the surgery center and the surgery techs put it on me right after surgery. Woke up with it pumping cold water to my knee. This is so much better than running to the refrigerator and dealing with dripping ice bags or waiting for the gel packs to get cold. BTW - If you purchase one of these units and have a larger leg, go with the XL shoulder wrap. It is the same shape as the standard knee wrap but a bit larger and comes with an extra strap which works great for added compression.
Blessings
Shawn
Hello,
My name is Dominic. I had a complete tear of my acl in my rt knee. I’m a sheet metal fabricator, mainly roofs. I have surgery tomorrow, and after all that i have read, I am very hesitant to request for the allograft. I have a career that calls for me to be very fit and active. If there is a chance that the alligraft will fail, then why do they offer it as an option? Especally to active people like myself. As far as the pain aspect, does the patellar graft leave you with pain like i have read? Which is more stable or strong, the patellar graft or the hamstring graft? Any info that anyone could give is greatly appreciated.
Thanks, Dominic
Hi Tom,
No matter what type of graft you choose, give your self time to recover. Going back to any sport too soon ups the failure rate. Daniel is 16 and is excellerating by leaps and bounds. We’re all totally jealous lol. I would think the more he pushes back his return to basketball, the stronger his graft will be.
I had allograft and I’m 7 months out. I feel better than before surgery. This process has pushed me to be more active and get as fit as possible. I also had the achilles tendon graft and I feel no weakness at all and have no pain in my knee or any rejection of the graft.
Good luck,
Joanne
Hey Shawn,
Welcome to recovery….lol. Yes, the Berg will be your friend for a while. You’ll see that inflammation will be limited.
Tomorrow you may be sore, but keep your Berg on and if you have a CPM machine, use it. It definitely works.
-Joanne
I had the Patella autograft on my left knee 15 years ago. Fairly painful recovery. You have to remember they are cutting on you and creating a second surgery site. I’ve had occasional pain from time to time after playing basketball in the front part of my patella, but nothing too bad.
I tore my right ACL in December (basketball). Had surgery on Feb 5th, and it was significantly easier this time around. By the way, no one should have to go through two ACL reconstructions
.. My rehab is ahead of schedule, and I fully expect to be able to go back to hoops this summer, although I will be wearing a custom brace for the first year to play it safe.
Having had both, I can tell you that as of right now I am an allograft fan.
Hi Dominic,
I wasn’t eligible for the patella tendon. I think success depends a lot on if you give the acl reconstruction the time it needs to heal, plus the expertise of the surgeon. PT is also very important part.
I was very happy with my surgeon and my choice of an achilles tendon allograft. I have been doing very well in my recovery.
Let us know what you decide and how it goes. Good luck
-Joanne
Dominic,
You can do your own research on why many surgeons push the allograft. It is true that you don’t have to rehab your autograft when using an allograft and there is less pain involved.1. Allografts’ are not free and it drives the price of the surgery up accordingly, I am sure that there is some type of compensation when surgeons use allografts, I am sure they mark them up just as they do with other medical products they use. 2. the surgery is not as time consuming when your personal grafts do not have to be harvested. Economics may play into the equation?? You are always better off using your own tissue. If allografts were just as good as autografts, why don’t you see professional athletes using them??? They rely on their knees to make a living and the vast majority utilize patellar tendon.
Greg
i tore my acl 2 weeks ago and finally having surgey tomorrow. i was going back and forth between an autograft with my hamstring or an allograft. today i talked to the surgeon and we decided on an allograft, he is highly recomended and performs many allografts.
actually professional athletes have begun to use them, one of them being carson palmer , qb of the bengals, he opted to go for the allograft achilles tendon graft so there are pros starting to use them
my surgeon is a u s ski team physician and us snowboarding physician and has performed many allografts on pro skiers and boarders and alot of instructors also.
1st night of recovery completed. Learned a valuable lesson about the need for pain meds and following my docs instructions about taking the pain meds well before the surgical anesthetics ware off. I was hoping to make it thru this without taking any serious pain meds so I held off. Bad idea. Once the surgical anesthetic wore off I was in more pain than I can describe. Ended up taking the meds, but had to endure a few hours of serious pain until they kicked in.
Besides this - All is going well.
Thanks for everybody quick response!
I still would like to hear from someone who has had an allograft and is now currently playing basketball on it right now.
I agree you can’t rush recovery and from everything I read aggresive PT is the main key.
Dominc from what I read about patellar autografts is that they can be painful when kneeling down on them every after a couple of years after the surgery. It might not be good for somebody who works on rooftops.
My Dr is not pushing me into the allograft(he actually suggested the patella autograft, I was just kind of leary about it because I have talked to a couple of people who have pain from it after playing B-Ball years later after surgery, I have also talked to couple of people who had no problems at all) So I know that driving up the cost of the surgery isn’t my Dr’s motivation. I wouldn’t always follow what atheletes do anyways. Most of them only care about being able to get back on the court or field as quickly as possible and not necessarily care about short or long term knee pain. Most famous Pro’s are going to see Dr Stedman in Vail CO. for Microfracture surgery had mixed results see Bode Miller, Tracy McGrady, Amare Stoudamire,A.Hardaway, and Chris Webber.
Thanks for your advice Tim S, Ken, Daniel, Greg, and Joanne.
Still haven’t decided yet. But I’m alot closer now.
i looked in the mirofracture surgey, but it only works on certain type of tears. i was sold on patella graft but after talking with my surgeon several times i decided on an allograft. i live near aspen, co and we have many world class orthopedic surgeons and i know i have a great surgeon and he is the expert and he is %100 confident with this producre. i leave in 30min for surgey
12 hours post op, i underestimated the pain. i had torn acl and he also found my menicus was torn. goning to limit my fluids tonight before i go to the bed. the late night bathroom runs not fun
Hey Folks.
I am 5 days post op and off all pain meds with exception of some ibuprofen. Unfortunately my PT will not start for another 10 days as the PT department at my local Kaiser is booked solid so my surgeon just has me doing hill slides and quad contractions. Anyone know where you should be on range of motion at this point? I am almost at 0 for straitening and at ~50 degrees for bending. Also - just about 100% weight bearing. Want to kick the crutches but still fill a bit wobbly.
your ROM is differnent for everyobdy, but for me i was at like 115 or 120 at 5 days post op
Hi Shawn,
No don’t ditch the crutches yet. Wait until 7 days out. Try with 1 crutch using it on the good side, see how it goes. If you are still wobbly, then wait a little longer. You just don’t want your knee to buckle and risk damaging the graft or something else.
ROM can be faster for those who 1 have a CPM machine and/or 2 do a lot of range of motion exercises. I had the CPM and my dr made me go as high as I could when I got home from surgery, as I had had the femoral block. I got up to 100 that day but then it was like 50 the next day. But I it only took me a few days to get back up to the 100 and then by 8 or 10 days out I hit 120 and I also set the CPM machine to -2, so I could work on straightening my leg out. I also had very little inflammation, even though I had ACL, Meniscus and he had to clean out debris and shave down any bone spurs. It really varies. I think 50 is good 5 days out.
Don’t worry about not having PT now. I started 10 days post op per dr orders. It’s not a big deal. If you have a stationary bike, you can start using it a little. Just give you knee extra room, by raising the seat up slightly higher than you normally would, so the knee doesn’t bend so much. You don;t want to over straighten or over bend the knee. Start with only 5 minutes, with very little resistance. It will also help move the inflammation away from the knee. This is what they made me do in PT in the beginning.
so a quick update on me, im 11 weeks out now. running 10 minutes a workout on the treadmill, feelin pretty good. ive also been doing squats a lot lately, with light weight workin my way, up, at 135 pounds reppin it right now. do you guys think it is ok to increase the weight to as much as i can yet? also when do you guys think i can start jumping because it is getting reallllyyyyyy annoying to take 400 shots a day and not jump on any of them lol seriously
Hey everyone! I am scheduled for Allograft ACL reconstruction tomorrow. I tore my ACL and MCL skiing on Valentines day. I’m nervous about the anesthesia, but excited to have the surgery over with. I’ve been wearing a brace since the accident and i feel the instibitily sometimes, but otherwise havent had any pain for the past few weeks. I had three weeks of Prehab which helped immensely. I have an almost normal range of motion and my quads are fairly strong going into surgery tomorrow.
These posts from you all have really helped my with my expectations going into surgery. Thanks for all the help!
I just tore my left ACL playing soccer on friday last week 4/2/2010. I had already torn my right ACL playing soccer. The issue at hand is last time I used my own hamstring and it killed me. being that said I do feel that my right is stronger than before it was fixed. This time around after talking to my doc. we believe that using a donor graft would be best. there are several studies supporting both and attacking both styles of grafts. what he said is that its just as strong, what matters is the fact of PT and staying away from soccer for 4 -6 months. I feel stuck though for the fact that I do not want to have a weak knee.
PS. I had a medical defect of my knees anyways, the wholes where the ACL conects are small thus leading to less give. My right was medically made stroger by making the opening larger…. ask your doc. about it.
I am 3 weeks post-op on my right knee Allograft. Recovery is going well. Just about back to normal ROM. Yesterday I started experiencing locking issues with my knee after weight bearing. Locking is happening near the medial side of my patella tendon preventing me from bending my knee more then 10%. If I wiggle my leg around a bit I can get past the locking. Making an apt with my PT today to get it checked out.
Anyone experience post-op locking like this?
Hello! I’m now 4 days post-op after my allograft on my right knee. I had the femoral block which was wonderful. I was worried about removing it myself but I didn’t even feel it and it lasted 3 days! My biggest problem hasn’t been with my knee at all but with side effects of the pain meds.
I’m not used to taking much medication and I took the loratab and it made me so sick at my stomach that I couldn’t eat anything and threw up all day. Im now taking Toradol and it seems to be taking care of the pain without as many side effects. I’m going to try extra strength tylenol to see if that manages it as well as the toredol.
My OS wrapped my leg from thigh to ankle with many layers of ace bandages so I don’t have any swelling. I keep the immobilizer brace on all the time except when doing some exercises my OS suggested. I won’t get the bandage off until I go for my post op on day 10. It’s hard to work on any range of motion because of the bandage.
So far so good! The pain hasn’t been nearly as bad as I had anticipated! I’m glad I went with the allograft at this point!
Hello, all. I am about to choose the orthopedic surgeon to whom I will entrust the future health of my knee… Re: one guy I am seriously considering, a friend who knows him by reputation remarked, “You want a knee guy. He’s a shoulder guy who also does knees.”
Has anyone heard this concern elsewhere? Anyone worked on my a shoulder & knee guy? Any input/opinions/experience most welcome. Thank you !
Choosing a surgeon is a tough decision. I went with a dr. who specializes in sports medicine, specifically on knees and shoulders. He does ACL surgeries several times a week. He is the team physician for a large university near us. I would ask a surgeon how many of these surgeries he does each month and what the outcome is in these surgeries. Ask what kind of surgery he would recommend for someone like you and how many of those surgeries does he do compared to other kinds.
I know it’s a difficult decision to make and I wish you the best of luck!
Thanks, Juli, those are great questions. Sounds like your doc was a combo shoulder/knee guy, too. Maybe that’s more common than I thought. I live just outside NYC, so the good news/bad news is there are lots of surgeons to choose from. Your advice is much appreciated.
Hi Amy,
My doctor is an orthopedist and specializes in Sports Medicine. He does a lot of knee surgeries including allograft. You want someone who has done this alot. I live in NYC. I was very happy with the outcome of my surgery. I’m 8 months post-op. My doctor’s name is Dr. Ron Noy.
He also works on a lot of ballet dancers, broadway dancers, football, hockey players….etc.
He really took the time with me and is available thru email too. My surgery ended up being more involved than expected, he took the time to clean up any debris, plus shave down bone spurs I had. I’m not an athlete, nor was I very athletic prior to this injury and surgery. But that changed after surgery, he was very frank with me and told me if I didn’t get in top shape I will need full knee replacement in 5 to 10 years. I was his first surgery that day and being that he took extra time with me, I ended up putting him behind schedule. I really feel he did right by me.
Good luck.
-Joanne
Well, I’m one week and a day out from surgery and I’m having a pity party. I’m so tired of sleeping on my back because of the brace, tired of my knee hurting, of having to miss my kids ballgames, of not being able to even carry a cup of coffee because of the crutches, of being dependent on others, of spongebaths because of my ace bandage that I can’t take off, and tired of being tired from simply walking down the hall because I have no energy.
I know I will feel better soon. I know I should look on the bright side like I always do, but I’m just sick of it right now and need to vent.
I think I’ll feel better once I start PT on Wednesday because at least I’ll get out of the house and use up some energy.
Sorry to vent. I’ll get over it soon.
Hey Juli,
It’s ok. Vent as much as you need to. First 10 days suck. Period. There’s no getting around it.
You definitely will feel better by Wednesday and if you can get down to 1 crutch, it’s a beauty because you finally will be able to carry your own cup of coffee. lol.
Do you still have the surgical bandage on? I found once that was removed it relieved some of the pain, as it wasn’t pressing so tightly on the area. Maybe your ace bandage is wrapped too tightly.
Do you have to wear the brace at night?? My doctor told me only to wear it when I’m not in bed or on the couch. For me, I used the Berg cooling machine 24/7. It helped a lot with reducing the pain and swelling
Hang in there.
boy do i have good news! finally cleared to play basketball again!!!! little than 3 months post op, not playing games yet but just drills and stuff. today i played for about 4 or 5 hours, ahhhhhhhhhhh feals soo good! in 3 or 4 more weeks is when i will start playing games, but until then just focusing ion increasing my vertical getting faster, better endurance so i will ffeel perfect when the real games begin!!
Thanks, Joanne.
I’m feeling better after venting. And some friends came to visit and bought me dinner from one of my favorite restaurants so that helped a lot!
My doctor said to keep the ace bandage wrapped until I see him on Tuesday. Maybe that will help with the pain when he removes it. He also said I will be sleeping in the brace for longer than I have to wear it during the day. Not sure if that’s partially because I tore my MCL also or not. He did say that the brace helps keep my leg from being stuck in a bent position which is how most people sleep. He said that you can walk if your leg is stuck in a straight position but it’s hard to walk with your leg stuck in a bent position. So I guess I’ll be in the brace for quite
a while.
I’ve been icing my knee but I don’t have the ice cuff machine. I don’t know if it would fit over all these ace bandages or not.
Anyway, it helps to go back and see how everyone else was doing at this point and know that this too shall pass.
Thanks for the encouragement!
Juli,
This is exactly the place to vent, and vent all you want. I can tell you that when I was able to carry my own coffee it was a celebration! Once on 1 crutch as Joanne stated, you’ll be able to carry stuff and become much more independent. It’s a wonderful thing. Then all the little steps will start adding up and before you know it, you’ll be up and around like you were before.
One bit of advice though, don’t fill the coffee cup too full the first couple of times, because then you’ll be here talking about what a pain it is to clean up coffee off the floor. ha ha.
Take care
im trying to post a vid on youtube for you guys to see the rediculous stuff im a lready capable of doing, basketball wise. took a vid, just need to learn how to post it now.
Hey Daniel, I am curious to see what you can do in terms of Basketball. How long has it been since surgery?
ALI
had surgery on january 11, so a little more than 3 months. and i can virtually do everything there is to do lol. i was amazed i can do all this stuff already, wish i could have videotaped the stuff i was doing on sunday, but nonetheless, will try to get a vid up on youtube soon.
Today was my firs day of physical therapy. I was dreading the pain, but it wasn’t nearly as bad as I anticipated. My Range of motion was good: 0 - 97 degrees. I also got good news: I can walk with one crutch now! He also loosened my brace to 30 degree bend so I can sit in a chair normally.
Overall it’s been a great day!
Thanks for an idea, you sparked at idea from a perspective I hadn’t given thoguht to yet. Now lets see if I can do something with it.
Hi all, I just found this site — as I am scheduled for ACL surgery on 5/6, two weeks from today. I originally was thinking of using a cadaver graft, but just got this overwhelming feeling of being uncomfortable with it…mainly because of the risks of disease…I know they are small — but?! I guess my mind (and reading on the internet) is getting to me…and maybe fear of the actual surgery. After 6 weeks of PT I am just getting my range of motion back — and I am thinking I will be back to step one or worse post surgery…UG!
Thoughts, suggestions, experience re: the grafts?
Stephanie,
i had a realy hard time deciding between allograft and patellar tendon autograft. I went with the cadaver allograft for a few
reasons, the main one being that’s what my dr. recommended for me. At first I worried about the chance of disease, but it seems any problems people had with that was years ago and methods are very good now. Chances are much worse of getting a staph infection than a disease from the graft. I’m 2 weeks out from my allograft surgery and today at physical therapy I had a range of motion of 0 - 124 degrees! It’s great not having to worry about an additional surgery recovery from harvesting my own patellar tendon or hamstring.
My surgeon said that whichever method you use, allograft or autograft, the graft “dies” and your body uses the graft as a scaffolding to rebuild your own ACL.
Whichever method you choose, it will be great! It’s up to you and your doctor. Good luck and try not to stress out too much about the choice!!
http://www.youtube.com/user/dschnizzle24
posted two vids today of me doing some jumping at 3 months post op. also the other vids of squatting and deadlifting were at like 2 months post op
Hello Everyone,
I have a partially torn acl, and have surgery scheduled for this Wednesday the 28th. Today while looking for acl reconsturction videos on youtube, I came across some videos from sanders clinc. Has anyone else seen them? They show people recovering from acl reconstruction really quickly. Do you guys think this is possible? I’m a little skeptical, but I live right outside of houston and there is a clinic here. I’m seriously considering canceling my surgery and going to see this doctor.
The following are excerpts from the Sanders ACL Clinic in Houston, Texas-Food for thought for those considering Allograft vs. Autograft.
However, at the end of the day, research has shown that over 95 percent of ACL reconstructions using an athlete’s own tissue survive, as opposed to the 75 percent reported in allograft reconstructions. A recent meta-analysis was published in Knee Surgery, Sports Traumatology, Arthroscopy (2007), comparing the use of allografts and autografts in ACL reconstructions. The analysis showed that the allograft abnormal stability rate, which usually represents graft failure, was significantly higher than that of autografts: nearly three times greater. It would therefore appear that autografts are the graft of choice for routine ACL reconstruction. For this reason Dr. Sanders refuses to perform allograft procedures on athletic people or on anyone under the age of 40. Dr. Sanders carefully decides which cases are accepted at the Sanders Clinic, and he refuses to perform a procedure that he believes is not in his patient’s best interest
According to data from the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery, 85% of all ACL reconstructions in the U.S. are performed by surgeons that reconstruct less than 10 ACLs per year. That leaves only 15% of ACL reconstructions in the hands of ACL specialists. Here at the Sanders Clinic, ACL reconstruction is Dr. Sanders’ most frequently performed operation and with 23 years of ACL reconstruction experience, you can be assured that this is not our first rodeo.
youll be fine by any odctor you chose. personally, i had some doctor not from sanders clininc and i prob rehabbed faster than any of their pateints. personally, i would not want to injur my good leg, and take a ligament from it, makes no sense at all and would not want two injured knees lol. also, your rehab time period is all up to you, depends on how hard you rehab yourself, if you do it enough, you might be able to play sports at 3 months like me
Thanks Daniel.
I think I’m getting cold feet.
Greg
I did read that on the sanders website. I’m still not 100% certain on which type of graft tu use, but I’m leaning toward the auto-hamstring. The Surgeon I’m seeing ddin’t give me the patellar choice.What do you (and everyone else) think about that info on sanders clinic website? I’ve read so much it’s all starting to become muddled.
Andrea,
Myself and my kids have been through a total of 8 ACL surgeries over the past 15 years. We have used every graft available from soft tissue grafts-hamstring autograft and post tibial allograft, and bone to bone patellar tendaon autograft. We are all basketball and volleyball athletes and are very active. Speaking from our experiences I would only choose autograft and would stick to bone to bone healing patellar tendon if you plan to return to high level activities. If you are very active and wish to have an even more stable knee, consider the double bundle surgery. It is only performed by a couple of doctors, Pat Smith in Columbia, Mo and Freddie Fu in Pittsburgh.
You have to be comfortable with your choice, it is a tough choice.
Greg
greg,
to say that if you want to ever return to high level sports, autograft is chosen is in my opinion a ludacris statement. the times are changing, and more and more athletes are using allografts, including nfl players, such as carson palmer. i think the graft choice is all up to the individual person, and they will recover as hard as they rehab.
Daniel,
This site is about view points, I am only stating what the majority of athletes and many doctors who have had or do acl recontruct utilize- autograft. You name Carson as an example, for every Carson Palmer there are 100s of athletes that don’t utilize allograft. Do some further research on Carson Palmer and see when he returned to full competiton??
You can call the statement ludacris, you have the right, but I have never attacked your viewpoint. My view is from experience with my family and as a high school coach of 27 years. I hope you do well in your recovery, but any reputable sports orthopaedic will tell you that return to activity does not equate to healing of the graft- and allografts take longer to vascularize and heal. Common sense tells you that bone will heal to bone faster than soft tissue to bone.
Greg
no im just saying that you said ONLY autografts for high lelvel return to sports. and i feel that allografts area slo a good option
Daniel,
Andrea asked my opinion and I gave it to her from our experiences. I said I would only choose autograft and stick to bone to bone healing with patellar graft. Certainly others have chosen other options and I hope and wish them well, but stats support autograft over allograft for high level sports-that is a fact no matter how you slice it read the studies of failure rates.
Greg
Hi Andrea,
Here’s my two cents. If you are that unsure, it doesn’t hurt to get a second or third opinion.
One’s success rate depends on so many factors: age, how fit you are, extent of injury, skill of the surgeon, your recovery program (PT), and the type of sport(s) you want to go back to and the level of that sport.
This site is for everyone to post their experiences, but it should never take the place of the opinion of a skilled surgeon.
I had the allograft, as I’m 40, moderately active prior to surgery and I have no interest in playing high level sports. My surgeon did not want to use my patella tendon, as he feared it would weaken it and I would need knee replacement in 10 years. I also had a meniscus tear and bone spurs on my knee cap.
But he did tell me if I was an athlete, he would have gone with an autograft, and then said it really depends on a lot of factors (which I had listed above).
I’m 8 1/2 months post op and have become a lot more active then I was prior to surgery. I feel great and able to do more. I followed my doctors and PT’s advice to the T. If I miss a week of exercise, my knees ache. But I’m still working on getting my quads strong and upping my fitness level. I’m not there yet.
The allograft will make you feel better faster, but as its been said by many, it doesn’t mean you are healed. Take the time for recovery. The goal is not just to get back to your sport as soon as possible, but to have the ability to do that sport year after year and not end up with a chronic condition /pain.
Daniel is 16, maybe it’s his age,maybe its his high level of fitness, but his results are not the norm. Usually for the allograft to be successful, it is recommended that athletes not return to the same level of sports until 10-12 months after surgery.
Ultimately, the decision is yours and you need to feel comfortable with that decision. No matter what you choose, make sure your surgeon is highly skilled and has done a lot of the type of surgery you need (whether auto or allograft). And get a physical therapist who is also highly trained and will get you back to your level of sport safely.
Good luck with your decision/surgery. Let us know what you decide.
-Joanne
What a wonderful response Joanne! Thank you.
Being 54, active, and now nearly 10 months post op with a hamstring autograft, I can say that everything… age, fitness level, doctor, PT, amount of collateral damage, etc… has to be considered in recovery. Like you, if I miss a week, or for me, even a couple of days of exercise, my knees ache. It is taking longer for me to get my quads back to full strength. I will work until I get there but it certainly is a process.
Everyone’s experience, though similar, is unique. This is a great place to share.
Diana Lee
Next week I will be 5 months post-opt and I feel like I am 100% but I know im not haha.. There are no words to describe how i feel at this point. All the hard work over the past 5 months feel like a great big weight has been lifted off my shoulders. As I look back to all those hard work outs and constant complaning to my physical therapist, I know it was all worth my time.
So I have a question for those who might have more knowledge then me.. Since Im 5 months post-opt when do you think I can get back to playing basketball?? I’m scheduled to see my doctor in 2 more weeks and I am going to ask him then but i was just wondering if any of you guys any had expierences about this. Any feedback woulld be greatly appreciated..
And to those of you that are just getting out of surgery or heading into it the time flys by trust me!!
Thanks in advance
Hi Tim,
I’m now 10 months post-op with the allograft. My doc cleared me at 6 months for everything except sports with strong pivoting, like skiing, tennis,basketball, etc. He waited until 8 months out to clear me for the pivoting sports, but told me that it would be a full year before everything is completely healed. My left injured side is still not up to full strength, in spite of lots of hard work. I can still see that the quad especially is not quite there yet.
The thing to remember is that everyone is different and heals at different rates. If I were younger (I’m 49 now) I may have been cleared sooner, or if I used the auto instead of allo graft, but who knows? Daniel is 16 and out playing in 3 months (I’m completely jealous!) so you can see there is a really big variance in how fast you heal.
I freaked out around the 5-month mark because I knew the graft was at its weakest then, so I backed off a lot of exercises that might be too much for it at that time. I’m over that now and working hard to get back to playing status for tennis season. Your doc is the best judge of how you’re doing. Mine is the team surgeon for the local pro hockey and lacrosse teams here, so he really knows his ACLs! I do what he tells me and so far so good. For me, patience has been my friend, especiallly during ski season when I could hardly stand it.
Good luck!
Deb
ive heard so many differnt things on when the graft is at its weakest, some 8-12 weeks, some 4 months and now 5 months, which is the real one? lol
Daniel,
All the current research on the subject shows the wekest point is at around 4 1/2 to 5 1/2 months, depending on how fast your body heals and incorporates around the new tissue. The way it was explained to me is that when the graft is put in (regardless of allo or auto), the graft tissue begins dying immediately and gets weaker every day. At the same time, your body begins building new live tissue around the graft and so that new tissue gets stronger every day. You can graph the old getting weaker/new getting stronger over time and where they intersect is when overall it’s at its weakest. That is generally at about 4 1/2 to 5 1/2 months from surgery. Since you’re younger, yours may be at its weakest earlier on, since your tissue is probably growing and incorporating tissue faster than someone my age. In any case, all those stories you hear about NFL players getting back out on the field at 3 months and trashing it again at 4 or 5 months is why that happens. The tissue just isn’t strong enough.
All that said, the muscles around your knee are what protect it more than anything, so rehabbing all that muscle back to top condition is key to protecting the new knee graft. I guess that’s why I’m so frustrated about my quad no being back to normal yet. Patience is a virtue, especially here.
Hope this helps!
Deb
I had ACL surgery three weeks ago tomorrow on my right knee. My ortho didn’t go into the pros and cons of the type of graph but said he does the allograft on the majority of the over 40 patients and I’m 42. So all of this talk about weaker vs. stronger is a bit disconcerting to me but it is too late now.
I am driving, although slowly, walking without crutches (not perfectly) and my doctor doesn’t brace knees so I’m without a brace. PT is good but painful since I couldn’t take the pain meds due to how sick I was. Getting full extension seems to be the bigger priority over bending. I’m having to do hangs with 8 lbs on my ankle several times a day. I still have pain on the sides of my knees and am stiff in the morning.
My biggest fear at this point is re-injury. I have 3 kids and a dog and am constantly worried about twisting it the wrong way, falling, etc. I had no idea it could be hurt so easily. Right now I am having second thoughts about the surgery due to the risk of re-injury. I wish I could be in a plastic bubble until September. I am praying I will get through this.
Hey Denise!
Sounds like we are on the same schedule! I’ll be three weeks out in 2 days with an allograft on my right knee. Physical therapy is going pretty well, but I’m still stiff and having pain.
I’m also able to walk without crutches, however I’m wearing my immobilizer brace but it’s loosened to a 60 degree bend. I think the brace helps with keeping my leg straight at night although it’s not exactly comfortable.
I’m also concerned with reinjuring my knee, as I have 3 boys and I’m constantly running to a ballgame or school activity. But I’m just going to try to take it easy and not go back to tennis or skiing until my dr. clears me. It stinks to worry about getting bumped or falling at the baseball field. Hopefully we can feel more stable soon.
Keep up the knee hangs and you’ll have full extension soon! These others who have been through it have really encouraged me!
Good luck and take it easy!
Juli
hey guys just a little progress update here. so im doing AMAZING latetly, knee feels fantastic. so today first attempted grabbing rim and got it, then attempted to grab it off a two feet vertical jump and got it too. was really hhappy with this and extrmely pleases with myself. only thing is my knee never hurts while playing basketball, but usually the next morning it kind of bothers me. my doctor said this is normal and gave me a whole scientific explanation, but id ont remeber what he said lol. just thought id share that with you guys
o yea did you guys see those vids i posted on youtube of some jumping i did? trying to get a vif of me playing basketball but its hard cus i dont have a camera and cel phone can only record up to 30 secs
Hi Denise and Juli,
Even if you had the autograft, the risk of re-injury 3 weeks after surgery would be the same. Just concentrate on your PT and do what you can to strengthen your legs. The graft itself is not weak. The problem lies with trying to rush recovery and healing.
Set small goals for yourself and concentrate no more than a week at a time. You will see that as each week passes by, you will feel stronger and more independent and more confident.
The problem with graft failure, is if you were to rush right back to a rigorous sport, were there is a lot of pivoting and lots of stress on the knee, like jumping…etc
I have two little dogs too and I worried about them tripping me up. They learn to stay out of your way, especially if you walk with atleast one crutch. My dogs were weary of it. If they got too close to me while is was walking, I’d make a louder noise with the crutch.
For the first few months, you will be very conscious of how you walk and take the stairs. You will be thinking about proper form…etc. Only now at 8 months can I say that using proper form is becoming second nature. I do 4 flights of stairs with no problem, up or down and I’m not athletic. My knee feels strong.
I only feel a little achy, if I miss a week of strength training.
When you are out in public for the first two months, take a crutch with you, even if you don’t need it. IT’s a visual cue that keeps ppl at a distance. I live in NYC and I was able to walk the crowded streets, take the bus or subway with no problem and no one bumped into me.
Fyi. I’m going to Costa Rica at the end of May, where I will be walking and hiking alot. I will be approx. 9 1/2 months post op then. I’m training now for it. I’m definitely doing all the activities.
Don’t let this recovery get you down or worry about which type of graft you got. Majority of ppl on this board have the allograft and are extremely more athletic than me and I’m doing and feeling great. You will too!
Hi Joanne and Juli!
Thanks for the words of encouragement! I am trying not to let this injury rule my life but it is a bit consuming. I tore my ACL in a tennis match and am used to working out at a Crossfit gym, running and playing tennis so this is a big lesson in less is more! I’ll be venturing off to the ball field with my kids this weekend. My friend who is a PT put things in perspective for me by saying I need to be cautious but I also need to live my life. So, I’m trying to get back to my normal duties without overdoing it.
Julie, keep me posted as you progress. I have finally gotten my leg straight so now onto the bending! I’m on the bike everyday for 30 minutes and doing quad strengthening exercises. I’m doing some errands but having to take breaks at home to ice my knee and rest it.
Joanne, I think you are right as far as taking it one week at a time. I feel kind of like I am pregnant again by counting the weeks! Have a great trip. My neighbor is from Costa Rica and said it is beautiful there.
so im thinking this mught be my last post on this forum. this journey has been so quick, and so glad its pretty much over. ive been playin basketball against others in games for the past two doays, and have played like 10 hours combined in the past two days, maybe more, and feeling great. still prety hesitant to drive on people right now, but im not really worried about that at all. stilll not even 4 months post op, i will get to that mark in 10 days. so wish me luck, and ask questions if you chose, or comment on this progress
Hi All,
Like most of you, I came across this forum here while doing some research on ACL procedures. Anyhow, I apparently tore my ACL playing volleyball back in February, but pushed off seeing the doctor due to thinking I just sprained/twisted something, rather than anything more serious. I didn’t think you could tear your ACL, and be able to be as active as I was afterward. (I played in volleyball tournaments, and a couple baseball games since the injury. Wasn’t able to play at 100%, but never thought I had an ACL tear)
So, finally saw the doctor and had an MRI, and it confirmed the tear. I have surgery scheduled for 3 weeks from now, and I start pre-therapy this week. I’m not sure what many of you have referred to as not having the range of flexibility in the knee necessary for surgery– I have no problem straightening my leg fully, and I can bend it almost all the way back as well, but it hurts when I try to bend it back all the way. Is this just a lucky break in my case?
I’m choosing the allograft, because of the easier rehab, and because I don’t want to damage my remaining good parts. My doctor works on pro athletes, so I figure if he thinks the allograft is the way to go, I’ll trust him.
The comments here have been very helpful so far. I guess I really don’t have any questions at this point, but I’ll be posting updates throughout the process, in hopes that my experiences will help someone else down the road.
Hey — nice to meet you all online.
So many of you are back into your athletic activities quickly after surgery — congratulations!
My left ACL was torn in December (mugging) along with two hip joint labral tears.
The surgery was February 22, and I got an achilles tendon allograft.
At the beginning the knee felt, well, spongy. But since I’ve started to settle, the leg below just doesn’t feel right because my body weight is falling on the outside.
Have any of you experienced feeling the fibula was too big? and then ankle pain and changes in the foot arches? Simply does not feel like my body below the knee. This has me worried for sure
Many of you write about your range of motion increases… well I haven’t had that struggle since my range of motion came back as the swelling went down. But I also don’t have any stability improvement since the surgery, and my hamstrings are k-i-l-l-i-n-g me from walking.
I’ve a PT who has lots of first hand experience since he was in a car accident when only 18, and was in the hospital for six months and it took 18 months more to fully recover.
Ed, good luck with the surgery. I had fairly good range of motion a few days after I tore my ACL so was surprised as well when the MRI came back, except that I did hear a pop when I did it so I knew something was wrong. The first 2 weeks were the hardest for me but I am beginning to get around much better now that it is almost 4 weeks post -op.
Alexa, I haven’t had the same pain as you are talking about except I have noticed arch pain from keeping my leg straight and elevated as much as possible. Now that I am able to bend it a bit more I haven’t noticed the pain as much. I have really tight hamstrings from running so I know what you are talking about. See if you can get a foam roller from your PT and roll out the pain every day. It should help.
Daniel, great job on a quick recovery. Be careful, though. Everyone I know says don’t come back too soon. At least you have your age on your side.
Hey!
I still ice my knee several times a day to keep it from swelling and I’m wearing an elastic sleeve that my dr. gave me under the brace to keep my knee compressed.
It will be four weeks tomorrow that I had my ACL allograft surgery. My knee has almost no swelling. I’m still in my immobilizer brace, so no driving yet, but I am walking without crutches fairly easily. I still use the crutches in public to keep people from hitting my leg, as Joanne suggested!
Physical therapy is going great! 3 days a week but my range of motion is 0-140. My PT says I’m ahead of schedule for a 38 year old mom!
I miss playing tennis and running errands, and I’m sure I’m putting on weight from just sitting around so much! I need to get motivated to do some other exercises that won’t hurt my knee!
I hope everyone else is doing well with their recovery!
Hi all,
I am new to this board, but it has been great to read the stories and experiences. I tore my ACL in my left knee on April 10. I have an appt with an ACL doc on Tuesday (second opinion). I am pretty convinced to get surgery ASAP to repair, but I am curious as to what the recovery period looks like. I work part-time (2 days a week) and chase my 16 month son around the other 5 days a week. What kind of time am I looking at being in bed, on crutches, unable to drive, unable to go up/down the stairs in our house? I want to understand what kind of help I may need and for how long.
Thanks!
Amy
Some 30 day recovery photos are here:
http://www.acl-princess.blogspot.com
I was walking within 4 hours of ACL surgery using crutches and soft foam brace. And, had no help because I live alone and didn’t want to socialize when I wasn’t feeling great.
No ice machine, no leg motion machine. Achilles Allograft with BioTransfixII Arthrex kit)
The people who choose the PTP patella tendon bone Autograft procedure have so much more healing. It was my experience that as the swelling went down weeks 3-4 the range of motion was within 3° degrees of the pre-injury knee. I had 0° extension and 95° flex at 1 week without much exercise and was able to sleep without the brace.
First steps felt… spongy. All that water. And all ligaments stretched a bit. But it calms down and walking on the knee accellerates bone healing. Bones stay healthy by your nutrition and routine. And ACL replacement is a bone engaging repair.
During my ‘week’ where my metabolism was high due to bone work, I drank 2 gal a day of various healthy things, ate spinach, fish, some fruit etc. and watched movies. It was always possible to go to the bathroom and make a snack without crutches. Just wear the brace to protect the knee.
Best part was real shower when stitches are out.
Amy, I think you will be more mobile with your left as far as driving. I tore my right and couldn’t drive comfortably until 3 weeks post op. I have 3 kids and lots of stairs. I could go up and down with the crutches and around the house. The biggest challenge was carrying things. I was down to 1 crutch about 1 1/2 weeks post surgery and off crutches completely 2 weeks post op. It has been over 4 weeks and I am able to get around on flat surfaces fairly easily. Hills take time and I don’t have my regular gate back yet.
It is a slower recovery than I thought even though I had read a lot about it. I guess when you are used to being on the go it makes everything more difficult. I had friends bring meals for 2 1/2 weeks and that was a life saver. Also, I hired a cleaning lady and had someone walk my dog. All of my kids are in school but my youngest needed someone to take him and pick him up every day. My neighbors have been great.
My doctor doesn’t brace so that is the one thing that seems different from my rehab and everyone else on this blog. I’m going to PT twice a week so factor that in and I am riding the bike at the gym on my off days. I had lots of difficulty straightening my leg even though that wasn’t an issue pre-op. Everyone is different so it is hard to gauge yourself against someone else.
Good luck and see if you can line up some help for the first few weeks — especially with a busy little one.
cooling machines….. you can over do them. My PT limits cooling to 10 minutes out of 30 because if you chill the surgery site more than 10 minutes, the body raises heat in response to the longer application of cold.
so, he only uses it ten min on with 20 min rest for maximum reduction of swelling.
More is not better, but more sure is more!
I didn’t have a range of motion machine and I was fine.
Thanks Denise. That is helpful I was worried about being stuck in bed for too long which isn’t much of an option these days.
Hi Everyone,
I have been reading everyones comments hoping that it will help me decide what the best choice is for my 15yr old son. He tore his ACL playing football last year, and unfortunantly is now faced with having this ACL surgery. My biggest fear with doing the Cadaver Graft is of course the possibility for diseases. Yes, of course I keep hearing that the chances of that happening are slim to none, but I dont know if I am willing to take that kind of risk with my only son.
I guess my questions would be:
What kind of testing is done on these dead bodies
How do they determine if they are safe
Can we as the receivers find out information about that individual
Hi Vero,
The grafts don’t carry any risk associated with blood products, so you can’t get an AIDS virus or similar. The main risk is from bacteria and how it’s handled after harvesting. Ask your son’s doctor where they get their grafts from and check into the company’s safety record. My doc used a company in Centennial, CO, and they have a perfect record - no contamination reports of any kind. Sorry, can’t remember the name of it. There are only a few companies in the country that supply the grafts, so it shouldn’t be very hard to look into one.
Hope this helps!
I am a 37 year old female — NEVER been hurt before…
I just had ACL graft surgery 5/6. Glad to report the meniscus and MCL are in tack - there was some question on the MRI.
Post op — I am doing really well. I have to say - nice to have surgery behind me. I had a skiing accident in March, so did rehab for 2 months prior to surgery. I am walking with a full brace and w/o crutches. I will get a hinged brace next week. Started PT today, will go 3 times a week. Off narcotic pain meds after 3 days, and alleve is working just fine. I am a bit sore after being on it more today and PT, but I have to say — I feel pretty OK. I know to take it easy and not over do it…
I was worried about the grafts as well for disease, my surgeon said a risk can be Hepatitis or HIV, but the risk is slim to none, and the cleaning and screening process is quite perfected. My graft came from tissuenet.com. When my surgeon said he would opt for a graft for himself, his wife or daughter, I trusted that, and got over my “weirdness” with it…and I have to say, not having a second surgery to recover from is ideal!
I did not get a range of motion machine, they are called something, like CML, my PT told me today those are usually not used with grafts, more your own tissue.
I also got a full spread of pics and video of the surgery — pretty amazing…and the incisions seem quite small…yah! They no longer filet your knee open…
Today I am happy with it, and glad I have it behind me and can start the recovery period. I am sure it will be a long, painful at times road — but I am looking forward to working hard and getting it behind me…and may opt to NEVER ski again.
Vero, check out tissuenet.com, I just looked again and they have a lot of intersting info — here is a snap shot. Good luck in your research…
Where Do Allografts Come From?
All allografts are obtained by bone and tissue donors. Donors are people who have died in accidents or from sudden illnesses such as heart attack or stroke. Often the gift of bone and soft tissues from a single donor can help many, many recipients.
Every donor is screened extensively before donation. All donated tissue is rigorously tested using the most technologically advanced methods to ensure safety and sterility before release for distribution. All tissues that do not pass these rigorous tests are rejected.
Potential donors with histories of any condition that can affect the quality and long-term performance of the bone and/or tissue are also excluded.
Allograft Safety
With the recent development of T106™, TissueNet’s proprietary sterilization system the odds just got even better!
What are the odds?
• Developing a mental disorder 1 in 4 (annual)
• Dying of heart disease 1 in 6 (lifetime)
• Having your car stolen 1 in 159 (annual)
• Fatal motorcycle accident 1 in 1,000 (annual)
• Fatal running accident 1 in 10,000 (annual)
• Dying from falling out of bed 1 in 513,142 (annual)
• Freezing to death 1 in 780,938 (annual)
• Contracting a virus from an UltraGraft™ less than 1 in 1,000,000 (annual)
Hi All,
I had my allograph ACL reconstruction a week ago. I’ve a question for you all. My lowest incistion, where the anchor is placed, is the only place that gives me pain. It will wake me up at night. In your experience was this a problem? Also, if so, when did you notice an improvement?
Thanks, and good luck to all.
Hi Stephanie and Deb,
Thank you so much for your input, I truly appreciate it. I have a message out to the orthosurgeon to find out what company they get their tissue from so I can do some reasearch on that company. My son on the other hand feels really weird about having other peoples body parts (as he put it) inside him.
I guess at his age I should ultimately leave the decision up to him since he is the one who has to live with it.
Have a wonderful weekend.
Lisa - that is where most of my pain was as well, in the exact spot you pointed out. It’s not uncommon, and you do have to remember the doc took a drill through your bone at that spot.
It will continue to get better.
I am at the three month mark post surgery and back to running a mile a day, almost daily (just started last week).
Thanks, Tim. Do you happen to remember how long it lasted?
I am one week outside of surgery…this time last week I was trying to get out of the recovery center to come home!
Vero, yes, I was a little weirded out for a graft donation, but for me it made more sense. Less recoery time, and a good, strong graft. But yes, I guess if I think about it a lot — I am no longer an original.
And Lisa, yes, my larger incision is more sore as well, and the PT agreed it will continue (gave me no idea when it will subside) — and yes, remember you had a drill hole in your bone…it is bound to be tender. It was suggested to me to take pain meds as needed, especially for sleep — as sleep in super important for healing! Be interesting to compare stories as we go as I am one week out as well.
Take care,
Stephanie
Hi Stephanie,
Yes, it will be interesting to compare. When I had my foot reconstruction (drilled bone as well), it took a very long time for that pain to subside. I am hoing that since I don’t walk on my knees that it will subside sooner. My feet ached whenever I was active for about 1 year.
Stephanie and Lisa, I am 5 weeks out today. The pain is much less intense unless I have a sudden “knee jerk” reaction to something then the pain is intense. I think at about 3 weeks the pain started to ease a good bit and I was never able to take the pain meds. My larger incision just feels like the skin stretches a good bit there when I am doing quad stuff. It isn’t truly painful just a very big stretch feel.
Tim, I can’t wait to hit the 3 month point. I am so ready to run again! It seems like ages to wait but wait I must. Glad you are able to get out and enjoy the weather. I keep telling myself 1 week at a time.
Juli, how are you doing?
Lisa,
I had pain in the area of the large incision, too. It turned out that there was enough scar tissue formed that the scar had actually attached to the shin bone just underneath. After a few treatments by my PT, it was much better. If you have trouble moving the skin over the bone, it may be. Just something to check into. Hope this helps!
Deb,
That is good advise. I will mention the pain to the PT tomorrow
Hey! It’s been 5 weeks since my right knee allograft, and I’m doin great! My knee looks almost normal with very minimal scarring or swelling. It doesn’t hurt unless I’ve been standing up for too long. I’m still icing it after I’ve been to PT or out at my boys’ ballgames for hours. My range of motion is back to normal. My right quad is still a little mushy but I’m working on rebuilding it.
I go back to my dr next week and I hope I can stop wearing my big brace. It’s loosened to let me have an 80 degree bend, but it’s still a pain. AND it’s messing with my tan lines!
also, i’m not driving yet because of wearing the brace and I’m afraid it would stop me from being able to brake quickly. It’s been awful not to drive, but it does make me thank God that my health isn’t any worse and that I WILL be able to drive again soon!
Denise, I’m glad you’re doubt so well, too! I can’t wait to get back to playing tennis and exericising again! I’m having difficulty sleeping. Not sure if it’s because I can’t get comfortable or because of a lack of exercise, but I hope I can sleep better soon.
I’m very glad I had the allograft and am on the road to recovery!
Juli,
That is great news for you. It’s always nice to read about other’s successes.
I went out for a luncheon today with some girlfriends and PT, with 4 different people driving me around today. Oi! It is a pain in the neck, isn’t it?
One thing you said that worries me is that you are still not driving. Is that self-imposed or doctor’s advice? I don’t care about driving long distances, but the the PT and back would sure make my life easier.
I am a fellow tennis fanatic, which is how I tore my ACL in the first place (foot stuck to floor which changing volleying positions). I am gaining weight and not sleeping well,but keep reminding myself that it’ll melt off once I can run again. My PT told me that she thought the focusing a bit more on the core might help because sleeping on my back was stressing my spine. Was that a problem for you as well? Planks are helping.
I hope you are on the courts soon. A fellow player in my league had an ACL replacement 2 years ago, and she runs with the best of them and manages a solid 4.0 performance, so there is definitely hope for us.
Today , only 8 days out from surgery I managed to straighten to 1+ degrees and bend to 94, so I am super jazzed about that. I hope everyone has a wonderful and pain-free weekend!
PS Deb, the pt did confirm a bit of binding on the lowest incision and showed me how to work on it. Thanks again.
Lisa,
it sounds like you’re found great! That’s a great feeling to see those range of motion numbers keep increasing!
I haven’t been back to my dr since my 10 day post op. I’m doing so well that I feel he would have said I could drive if he had removed my brace. However, even though I have my strength back in my leg, I don’t think I can move from the gas to the breaks quickly enough in this big immobilizer brace if I had to stop really quickly. I have a friend who is a PT at a hospital and part of his job is evaluating when patients are ready to resume driving and he told me not to. He said if you have to apply the breaks really hard and fast, that split second hesitation might cause me to wreck. I feel like I could drive if I had to, but I’m not willing to put my 3 boys at risk if I got in a sticky situation.
I do see the dr his week for my 6 week checkup and I feel that since I’m recovering quickly he will put me back in my smaller, pre-op brace and then I can drive. I know there are many elderly and disabled people out there driving who I am much more capable than, but I’ll wait it out a few more days.
My PT has loosened my brace to 100 degrees so it’s much easier to use stairs now! He also OKed me to walk on the treadmill as long as I walk correctly and my kneecap doesn’t hurt. Still no squats because that could affect the tracking of my kneecap. I’ve been doing the NuStep which is kind of like a stationary bike, and the stair master.
He has stopped working on my range of motion with heel slider because I’m back to normal.
Are you guys still having some swelling if you don’t keep your leg elevated? I went to a ballgame an a movie last night and my leg was pretty swollen. I put my embolism stocking back on to sleep in so it’s fine now but just a little anoying.
Have a great weekend!
Juli and Lisa,
I tore my ACL playing tennis, too. I was on the baseline and thought the ball was going to go one way and it went the other. End of story when I twisted. We were winning in a tie break, too! Oh well.
I have been driving since 2 1/2 weeks out because I don’t have a brace. I was very nervous at first but feel fine now. My swelling was never bad but it hasn’t really gone down. I still have to adjust positions while sitting and elevate it when I can to avoid the pain.
Seems like our PTs are different, though. I am doing squats, lunges and the stationary bike. He said I can row next week (6 weeks) and do the elliptical in 7-8 weeks. No running until 12 weeks. I can straighten my leg but can’t bend it all the way yet and my PT said I won’t probably until 3 months — so different than Juli.
Lisa, I keep telling myself the same about my weight. I haven’t gained anything yet but have definitely lost muscle tone. What can you do? I am doing pull ups, push ups, sit ups and ring rows. It is at least something.
Keep me posted as you two progress. Seems so silly to be so focused on my knee!
Hi Juli,
I’m wondering how long your doc is saying you have to wear a huge brace for so long. I am in a mid-thigh to mid-calf brace that allows no bend at all. I am really curious now to see what he does at the 10-day checkup. Six weeks! I already feel bad about asking friends for lifts after 2 weeks. Unfortunately it is a time of PT and doc apointments, so I always feel like I am bumming a ride somewhere. Between that and my sprained back, I’m getting a little frustrated. I sit all day doing little because of the strain the brace puts on my back.
Regarding the swelling, I have had 9 different surgies on knees and sundry. In every case, expecially the feet, I found that all would swell after extended activity. My guess is that the circulation has to be re-established much in the way that nerve pathways do. the one thing I found to be very helpful was shiatsu massage because it focuses heavily on encouraging bloodflow to injured areas, thus reducing swelling. The difference in healing time is remarkable, and I would recommend that anyonewho has had any surgery give it a try.
Our weekend was very nice. We had company over yesterday, so I was on my feetway more than I should have. Today I am sittling still, elevating and incing.
Cheers!
Hi Denise!
I have been doing squats (to a max of 90 degrees) since day 3 post-op. These are from the exerrcises that the surgeon gave to me, so you sure are right about the different approaches.
I am working on the arm bike at the gym when I can, but firgure I can manage the kayak machine pretty soon too. I have lost some weight, but fear it is muscle I am losing. What are ring rows?
It’s alway nice to meet upwith fellow tennis nuts. I tore the ACL onee week prior to USTA play. Grrrr!
Lisa, ring rows are similar to a pull up but you start from the floor. You lye on your back and place your hands in the gymnastic rings that are lowered from a bar to the level that allows your arms to be fully extended when you grab a hold of them. From that position you pull your whole body straight with your heels remaining on the ground. You come up at an angle but your knees and core remain straight. It is a good way to work on getting a pull up. I go to a crossfit gym and that is one of the few exercises I can do there.
Denise,
Sounds like a good exercise, but I don’t have that setup at my gym.
I am so chomping at the bit to get this brace off tomorrow and drive myself around. I can stand on the leg alone for over a minute, am back to 120 degrees and walk around my house just fine without the brace, so I think I’ll be cleared tomorrow. Tomorrow is day 13, so I feel that I am on schedule. My PT complains that her main problem with me is holding me back.
I would like to swim and wonder what others’ experience is with that.
I am at day 12 too, surgery was May 6. My bending is at about 90 degrees. I was told that is as far as I should go as I am still on “graft protection”. Hmmmm. I wish I could bend more! Getting straight is still a challenge too. I was never all the way straight due to left over tissue going into surgery - so I guess that is just going to be harder for me as well.
I just went for my 2nd post op appt tho, and I am in a hinged brace! Thank goodness.
All is well tho…feel pretty good. The surgeon was pleased with my progress as well, just have to work on getting straight more was his only suggestion…yes, I heard you the first 100 times!
Back in two weeks and will continue PT at 3X per week as well. Hopefully I will make a break thru and I can cut back to 2 days a week.
Haven’t tried swimming yet. The PA suggested waiting another week or 10 days before going in public waters…
Best wishes and speedy recovery to all!
Steph
Hi Steph,
Yes, we are only one date apart. My surgery was on May 7th. It’s probably significant to note that I had the meniscus and cartilage cleaned up in a separate surgery on March 29th. My original MRI and physical exam did not show the severed ACL. It wasn’t until the March surgery that anyone knew I needed the second repair. I had a month to heal the menscus and condition prior to the surgery, so I think my recovery may be hastened slightly by that. Anyway, I’ll be cheering for you. It’ll be interesting to compare our experiences.
I just wanted to clarify that i only squat to 90 degrees. If I use my body weight at all, the max is 90. When the PT manipulates the knee when I am lying down, it’s then that i go to 118 degrees.
I am only doing PT 2 times a week. She never mentioned 3X. She did say that she had ACL surgery years ago and went swimming too soon. She ended up with an infection that necessitated another surgery. I think that the standard suggestion is 3 weeks.
Funny about the straightening. I’m at 1 degree, but am happy because my joints all hyperextend. The right knee used to extend 8 degrees past 0, and was very uncomfortable when sleeping and during some exercise. If i never get that 1 degree or more back, I think I’d be just fine with that. How far off are you?
Just to be able to do any kind of cardio again would be heaven, wouldn’t it? Well, that and driving…
Cheers,
Lisa
Hi All,
Had the 10-day post-op appointment today. The surgeon told me I was walking like I’d never had surgery, my flexion was at 126 degrees, and the knee was strong, so I am out of the brace for now and walking normally. When I get back into form, I’ll get molded for a brace for sports.
Cheers,
Lisa
Lisa, that is great! Welcome to freedom! Sounds like you are progressing super fast.
As far as swimming goes I was told freestyle only for now. I haven’t tried it yet since I don’t have access to an indoor pool but once our outdoor pools are warm I’ll try it out. I really just want to run right now — that would be amazing!
Denise,
I am not allowed to swim.
The doc told me to stick to closed-chain activities, where my foot stays in contact with a surface, ie. bike or eliptical. He told me that when kicking, the lower leg coming down in the water would stress the graft site. That’s okay, because I am elated to be able to do any exercise at all.
How are you feeling this week?
Lisa, it is so interesting to hear the different rehab stratgies. I’m 6 weeks out today and that is probably why I could swim if I wanted to. However, I’m not allowed to do the elliptical for another 2 weeks. Sounds like you can do that now.
My PT is pretty much all quad and hamstring strength building with the bike thrown in for 15 minutes. I do like what I am doing in PT because it is challenging — not like running — but it is still something. I feel like each week I am feeling better and more normal.
hi everyone its been 2and a half months post surgey were should I be at. i’m having trouble with my insurance lately ( to cover PT) so i have not been doing PT for the last 2 weeks. I feel like Im falling behind :(.
I can fully extend my leg, I walk normal, I feel great but I know I would be much better if I could continue PT.
I need advice….. thanx in advance.
Hi jaylo,
Well, my doc actually had me ask my PT for a home program at around 6 weeks post op. The PT gave me a lot of diagrams with how many times to do each thing (sets and reps). Granted, I didn’t have all the equipment she did but I do have a stationary bike and I did purchase a set of the exercise bands and tubes. She also had me doing “ladder patterns” on the floor and a lot of floor exercises. So I had plenty to keep me busy and strengthening… at home!
Happy healing!
Diana
Jaylo,
Diana is right! You PT should be able to map out a good month at a time and alternate
“equipment” to do so a well. Don’t be discouraged. Many people don’t even use a therapist.
You can do it!
best,
lisa
hey guys, just wanted to post something real quick and see your opinon. so everytime after a full fay of basketball the next day my knee kills me for like maybe couple hours then pain goes away and i resume with basketball. what do you think of this? btw, im 4 months post op now. my doc says its because my knee is still very weak, and prob is the case as it is small as hell.
Daniel,
I have read many of your posts. It’s wonderful that you feel so great in general, but your body can generate new tissue only so fast. While it understandable that you want to get back into basketball, it sounds like your doctor is trying to get you to dial back a little. i’ve also seen many people tell you that here on this forum.
For what it’s worth, my surgeon told me the only failures he ever sees are in patients who insist on returning to pivoting sports too soon. It takes a full year for the ACL to heal completely. At 4 months post-op, it seems like you are flirting with disaster to be playing full days of basketball. You are trying to be the exception and may get away with it, but then again you may put yourself right back to the drawing board.
Good luck.
Hi everyone,
Unfortuntely, I tore my ACL Plus during an accident ski racing. As a result, I had Allograft ACL Reconstruction about 9 weeks ago, which included the repair of both lateral and medial menisci. In fact, about 25% of my medial meniscus was removed and repaired. My recovery has been great and progressing fairly quickly but I adhere to the exercises prescribed by my PT for the most part. I try to push it a little to test strength and ability and I visit the gym 3-4 times per week. I have a target date of mid December to get back to skiing. As a result, I will follow recovery procedures so i do not take a step backwards or cause damage that will show up in a year or two. As with my doctor’s analogy, I am in the 4th inning and leading 6-0 - we want to win the game so don’t blow it!
I mention this because, I read about some people who talk about getting back to sports with in 4 months which is a gamble. A friend of mine decided to go play soccer with his daughter (5 months post) in a father vs daughter game and the knee gave out. It hurt for a couple of weeks and everything seemed fine. However, about 1 year post he went to play tennis and did a number on this knee and has stopped playing sports (for three years now and is having trouble with his knee). He recently got an MRI and found out that he damaged the Allograft before it had fully revacularized (sp) and now needs surgery again.
So, be patient and careful!
I have over exerted the knee a couple of times due to too much walking, but I often will RICE the knee and get back to normal exercise (that becomes a hint to take it easy). Slow and steady wins the race!
Good luck to everyone here!
Thanx lisa and diana i will sure ask him
Thanx lisa and diana i will for sure ask my PT for it.
Well, I have been sick for 3 weeks, so not a heck of a lot of progreess here.
At one month I am at -3 degrees and 137 degrees. My good knee is at 144, so I am close to normal again. These days I have actually been feeling down and so very tired that I need to remind myself that at least the knee is doing so well.
Where is everyone? I would love to hear how you all are doing.
BTW, is anyone else finding that this site has become excruciatingly slow for typing?
Cheers,
Lisa
Hi Everyone,
I’m back from vacation.
I’m just about 10 months post op now and I’m feeling great. I did a little bit of hiking but made sure I stepped carefully as the trail in the rainforest was steep and slippery at times. My graft has held up well. I have followed doctors orders to a T and have not tried to come back to quickly.
Daniel, I think you’re body is speaking volumes. Cut back a bit and give yourself time to heal. You’re only in high school now. If you plan on playing in college and maybe even pro, don’t mess up your chances now. It’s not worth it. You don’t want a lifetime of knee issues or surgeries.
I know its hard being 16 and not being able to do what you want. But there is a wealth of experience on this site and it seems like your doctor is trying to help you too. Take it easy, so you can actually enjoy the summer.
-Joanne
Hi all,
I had acl surgery on my left knee 4 weeks ago. I tore it in a skiing fall. The doctor recommended an allograft and it has gone smoothly so far, although I still have a fair amount of swelling in the area where my quad meets my knee. I also am walking on my own but with a noticeable limp. My flex is up to 112 degrees (my other knee which had an acl repair years ago is 135) and my extension is 0. I was able to ditch my big brace today, but am wondering whether to keep it on since I still have great difficulty walking down stairs. Did others find that a problem as well at this stage? I also experience a good deal of discomfort under my knee cap when I perform some of my therapy exercises. Is that common too? Thanks.
-William
Hey Joanne Glad to here you are doing well , we had our surgeries around the same time and I too and 10 months post-op, I went to the doctor two weeks ago and he said everything was looking good but the quad are still a little weak. Since that surgery I have had another surgery this time my gallbladder I think I am going to have to collect frequent surgery miles if I go in one more time lol. I started doing Zumba and trying to run on the treadmill a little more and maybe in a few months I will return to karate without the tourniments, I have about 9 months when I start back to get my black belt. Shawna
Hey Shawna, Great to hear from you! It feels like ages ago. I’m so glad you’re doing well. My quads are weak too. It takes so long to get them strong again. No, you’re not allowed any more surgeries for a long while. LOL.
I really does take a while to get back to competitive levels. I’m glad you’re taking it at the right speed. It’s so important to listen to our doctors and our bodies. We all want to be success stories and not have to do this recovery again any time soon.
I’m back in the gym. My friend is getting me into a spinning class this Thursday. But I’m going to take it slow and only do the spinning in the sitting down position as the standing up will be too much on the knee.
-Joanne
Hi William,
If you still have swelling, have you been icing the knee regularly or using a cooling machine, like Berg? It really helps with the swelling. I think your pain is coming from the swelling. I know once the swelling went away, I would only have soreness if I was exercising the leg/knee or if it rained. But not pain. At 4 weeks out, I have practically no swelling. But I used the cooling machine for the 1st 14 days after surgery.
I hated the brace and the sooner I could be done with it the better. But How strong is your other leg? I only had to do 4 steps to get out of my house. So for me I just took them really slow. I still needed one crutch at 4 weeks out for steps. You are probably limping because of the swelling too. Do you still use crutches? My doctor had told me to use at least one crutch until I could walk without a limp.
Maybe call your dr if you are experiencing a lot of pain or at least your physical therapist.
Good luck and let us know how you’re doing and what the dr says.
-Joanne
Hey Lisa,
It’s so easy to feel down during this recovery. The more independent you feel and back to your regular routine, the feeling down should dissipate. Call up family or get your girlfriends over. Make it movie night. Sometimes you need to get out of the house and move around a bit. Slowly of course.
You’re doing well with range of motion. Keep it up!
How are you feeling today?
I torn my ACL in Feb. playing basketball, but I ran track without surgery. It is time for surgery now but we car torn between a cadaver or my hamstring. Help quickly
An’drea
If you plan to play basketball again you should investigate failure rates with young athletes who wish to return to pivoting, jumping sports when using allograft vs. autograft. My daughter was talked into allograft, is a basketball player and we had to do a revision surgery due to fraying, and failure of the graft. I strongly suggest that you look into an orthopaedic that specializes in knees, Dr. Pat Smith in Columbia, Missouri is at the top of his field. He is the team ortho for Univ of Missouri and specializes in a surgery using a double bundle technique. He works with athlletes and understands those wishing to return to explosive athletic type activities. We are in Ohio and drove 9 hours for her surgery, distance is no factor if you wish to find a competent surgeon who works with athletes. I have a close friend in coaching who had a similar experience with an allograft surgery for her daughter who is a basketball player. She had graft failure and had to have revision. Both now have patellar tendon autograft. The vast majority of major college athletes that have ACL reconstruct and are in explosive sports choose autograft type surgery. Do your home work-you want to only have it done once!
Greg
Hey Joanne. Thanks for responding. I used a cryocuff religiously for the first 2 weeks. The coolness against my knee really helped. I am walking mostly with a cane now. I went from 2 crutches to 1 at about 2 weeks and moved on to a cane at week 3. I can walk slowly without the cane but I use it as added support and to make people aware of my leg. I work in NYC and folks get po’d if one moves slowly on the street. I see my dr next week so I will follow up on the swelling/pain under the kneecap. My therapist doesn’t seem concerned so I guess that is good. I had acl surgery on my other knee 20 years ago and though I am way ahead of where I was last time, I guess I was unrealistically expecting to be farher along. Do you still use the ice machine?
Al
Joanne - another question. What type of exercises do you do during your free time at home? Thanks.
William
Hi William,
I know what you mean. I live NYC too and commuting from Brooklyn was rough. I took a crutch with me on the bus just to keep ppl away.
Did your DR give you a CPM machine? I was told to use to use until the insurance takes it away which ended up being like 12 days. It helped keep the leg moving and the inflammation away from the knee and also helped me with my range of motion.
I do a lot of exercises to strengthen quads. I use the stationary bike and pilates reformer at the gym, plus the seated leg press. I also walk sideways and backwards on the treadmill. This is what my pt had me doing and I continue to do. I do calf raises, sitting squats against the wall, leg lifts…etc . I try to take the steps up where ever I can…subway, work..etc
I don’t do any jumping exercises. I make sure I step purposefully and try to be careful and avoid pivoting movements. I’m not taking any chances, even at 10 months out.
No I didn’t feel I needed the ice machine after a month. I used it religiously for like 12 days and then sporadically for another two weeks. If I were you and you still have the machine, then keep using it, until the swelling goes down. Everyone is different. I was able to walk with out a limp quite quickly. But then my inflammation was little to nothing after 10 -12 days.
-Joanne
Relatively speaking, it’s good to hear that I’m not the only one with a weak(er) quad. I’m now at 11.5 months out. I thought it might just be the way my body is, or, perish the thought(!), my age. haha. I’ve been doing home PT religiously (calf raises, wall squats, stair heel touches, stationary bike, leg extensions with weight machine, leg lifts, etc.) but still that weak(er) quad. Still have a wee bit of internal swelling in the knee but PT helps with that. I can sure tell when I’ve missed a day.
On a side note, I wonder if Henry knew what he started when he began this blog? It’s now at 983 comments and counting.
Safe, quick healing everyone,
Diana
I went with an allograft back on Sept. 23rd, 2009 after blowing out my ACL playing soccer (landed badly & the knee went *pop*). I played in my first game back last Sunday, 8.5 months after surgery, and so far, so good. I’m wearing my Donjoy Defiance III brace, and did have some soreness of the knee after the game, but nothing too serious yet. I’ll let everyone know when I tear it again, as I quite enjoy a good pity party. Wish me luck!
Hi Joanne - I used the cpm machine until the insurance company stopped paying for it, 2 weeks post-op. I still use the cryocuff at night. I find it helps me sleep, a problem that I have been experiencing for the first time ever. I fall alseep as usual but find myself waking up multiple times a night now. I think discomfort in my knee must be the cause. Has anyone else experienced that problem? My therapist said today that the pain under my kneecap is related to my weak quad> I am putting pressure on the pattella tendon, but it should go away as my quad regains its strength. I appreciate the list of exercises. I am primarily doing squats (both with/without a wal) leg raises, toe raises and stairs at home. I see the dr next week so I am looking forward to seeing what he thinks about my progess.
William
Hey everyone,
Had a question and would love some advice….
I tore my ACL in May playing baseball and will be having surgery next Thursday. However, I cant decide on whether to use part of my hamstring or the patella tendon for the surgery.
I am 25 years old and my goal is to be a police officer next April or July 2011. My only goal and concern is to get my knee as close to 100% as I can so I can get into the police academy and have a successful career. I am willing to give up on sports from here on out to avoid this from happening again and focus on my police career.
Any advice on whether using either the hamstring or the patella tendon would make it stronger in the long run would be appreciated big time…..My email is keen.robert@gmail.com
Thanks so much.
I tore my ACL doing martial arts on 5/24 (confirmed by MRI 4 days later). I am 36 years old and have had no previous knee issues. My surgery is scheduled for 6/24. I opted for allograft due to the quicker recovery time (knowing that the rehab time is a bit longer due to the longer time for the body to remodel the allograft tissue). I am starting a new job in July (was supposed to be July 1), working 3-4 days a week (8 hours each day). Due to the surgery, I pushed back my start date to July 12th. There is some walking with this job, but no lifting/heavy work. AM I returning to work too soon? I intend to bring my crutches for when I get tired. My surgeon seemed to think it would be ok, but my PT has freaked me out a bit. Any advice would be seriously appreciated! Thanks!
To Tara: Hopefully you’ll have no menesical tear, b/c that will put you on crutches for 5-7 weeks after surgery. My MRI clearly showed my ACL tear, but my surgeon couldn’t see my meniscal tear until he had my knee opened up. Assuming you’re just going to need the ACL repair, you should be able to get around fairly well 18-19 days after surgery. Keep us posted.
Ok,
I have a weird question for all of you. My knee is great afer 5 weeks, but it squeaks when I bend it, and this cracks me up. I feel like I need a lube job. Do any of you have this after affect?
P.S. Tara, I had a torn meniscus in both knees and it set me back only 2 weeks. Everyone is different, so it doesn’t automatically mean weeks of crutches. It really depends on the size of the tear, your age, your physical condition, etc. etc.
Cheers,
Lisa
I managed to push my start date back on my new job by another week - that will give me 3.5 weeks post-op. I will keep you updated
Hey everyone,
I had my ACL surgery yesterday and went with the autograft using my patella tendon. The pain medication helps with the soreness and its in a brace with ace bandages untill I see the doctor on Monday.
The CPM machine arrived today and I did 2 hours on it in the morning and will do another 2 hours tonight.
On the road to a long long recovery but I’m up for it and reading all your posts and stories have given me some confidence and raised my spirts as I’ve been feeling pretty crummy since the surgery.
Hi Robert,
Just remember that you will always be improving from this point on. The pain is healing pain, your strength will come back, and the worst is in your past.
Cheers,
Lisa
Thanks for your support Lisa,
I had another question about whats the best way to sleep at night after the surgery?
I keep the brace on all day except when using the CPM machine but when I sleep at night is it ok to have the leg on its side on a pillow to sleep or should i keep ur straight while layning on my back?
Thanks again Lisa.
My doc allowed me to sleep without the brace, but I kept it on for a little bit b/c the anchor sit ached soo much with pressure.
So, what I did was lie on my right side and throw my leg over it onto a pillow b/c my right knee was affected. That way I could keep it straight and not strain my back. I’d do the opposite side for the left leg.
Sleeping on my back just strained my back since my leg was sticking straight out.
Thanks Lisa,
I am only 2 days post-op so im not that far into the recovery process as everyone else.
I went with the autograft surgery usuing the patella tendon and the pain has gone down a bit since yesterday but I’m still on crutches and started using the CPM machine yesterday. I am up to 40 degrees with no pain and will be going up until I get to 90.
When did you tear your ACL and what kind of surgery did you have? How far along are you in the recovery phase?
Hi Robert,
I was playing tennis on March 16th and felt some pain and instability in the right knee. At the end of the month I had MRI’s done on both knees, but it only indicated a torn meniscus in both knees. On March 28 I had surgery to repair them, and only then was the ACL damage visible. On May 7 I had surgery to repair that, so I did rehab on the meniscii for a month.
I opted for an allograph and will be very careful for this coming year. I am 5 weeks out now and feeling very good. My PT complains that it’s hard to hold me back whereas with most it’s hard to get them to do exercises. So far so good though. I pretty much have all mobility back and only a slight tenderness at the anchor site.
Glad to hear that your surgery went well!
Lisa,
I was playing baseball on May 5th and coming in on a ball just felt a flat out “pop” and twist in my left knee. I had to wait until Thursday thr 17th to have the surgery for the swelling to go down and to get some range of motion in the knee. I’m using the CPM machine and up to 60-65 degrees on it.
I see the doctor tomorrow morning and he will remove and replace the bandages and tell me when i can start physical therapy.
I dont have any pain except for some strange reason when i go to get out of bed or off the couch after using the CPM machine when i lift the leg. Its a brief sharp pain up my shin to the knee and it feels like my legs weighs 50 pounds, but over time i’m sure that will go away.
Keep me posted on how your doing.
I am going in 3 days for my ACL reconstruction. I am dreading the surgery, but looking forward to being able to do things again without worrying so much about knee stability (I know it is a long road ahead of me, but I am a goal setter…). ANYWAY, I have some questions for those in the post-op period. I do not know if my doctor is ordering a CPM for me (my pre-op appt is Wednesday). I having been reading some scientific literature, and I came across a systematic review which found no significant difference 6 weeks out in flexibility or range of motion for people who used and did not use a CPM post-op. Is there anyone out there who did NOT use a CPM? Are those of you who are further post-op and allowed to return to activity using bracing for “high-risk” sports? (Again, the literature is mixed on that).
Thanks! Tara
Hi Tara, I am about 6 weeks post op. I did not use a CPM machine, but I also used a cadaver, so from what I can tell is if you use a cadaver you do not use a CPM machine. You will be happy to have the surgery over…I thought about waiting…but I am glad I did not wait more (I waited 2 months after my accident to do rehab before surgery). I had it on a TH and by TU I was up pretty normally, and started PT. I wore a straight brace for about 2 weeks, and was able to drive etc as it is my left knee.
I am feeling pretty strong and moving along in PT, supposedly I am a couple weeks ahead of schedule…I think I still fear my knee falling out, or hurting…so I don’t push my activity much at this point. I think a lot of it is mental too…the fear…
Good luck on your surgery and recovery…
Stephanie
Hi Tara,
I will be 9 months post-op on June 23rd after tearing my ACL while playing soccer. I am 27 years old and went with an allograft. After surgery I did not use a CPM AND was prescribed no post-op brace. I did physical therapy twice a week for 5 months, ending this past February. I’ve continued on with my own “therapy” doing leg days twice a week in the gym.
I’ve come back to playing soccer and am 5 games deep so far. I wear a custom DonJoy Defiance III carbon fiber brace that I was provided by my doctor & insurance. I play in two leagues with games every Sunday & Monday. By Monday night, my knee is pretty sore, but feels pretty good considering the seriousness of an ACL tear. Mentally, I am scarred & have definitely lost a step in soccer, but I am becoming more aggressive with each game. I’ve also read the research on braces & I know that some docs say there is no advantage to them other than the mental advantage. I’m in the “It Can’t Hurt” camp, and will wear it for at least a year. I hope this helps!
Hey Sean (And everyone)
I had a question for you since we seem to be in the same siutation. Im 25 and tore my ACL and both meniscus playing baseball in May and just had my surgery 6 days ago on Thursday.
My doctor suggested I go with the autograft surgery using my patella tendon. Since I did so much damage to my knee my doctor said I cant put any weight on it for 6 weeks although I have already started physical therapy and am up to 85 degrees on the CPM machine.
My goal isnt necessarlily to return to sports like you have, but rather to get into the police department next April or July 2011 where I live. Sports and the police department are kind of similar since both involve alot of running, jumping, bending, turning , etc…
How long did it take you to see/feel some progress in the knee and get back to walking normally? When i do physical therapy i just get worried that when i do the ankle slides exercise the knee is going to burst or pop or break even though they assured me it wont. I dont want to push it too fast but I also dont want to take it too slow either.
The last 6 days have been an emotional wreck as I go back and forth thinking that in the long run I’ll be fine and able to make it in the police department to some days I think this will never get better and I’ll live the rest of my life with a limp or pain.
People say the first 2 weeks are the worst and im starting to really believe it. Any help/advice I’d really appreciate it.
I had allograft and used a CPM.
The CPM machine is up to your doctor/insurance. It is usually not ordered if you just have a meniscus tear. But it doesn’t matter if you chose allograft or autograft, many surgeons recommend it for ACL.
I highly recommend it, as I got to max range of motion within 8 days post-op. I had a meniscus tear, as well as ACL and damage to my knee with debris and bone spurs that had to be shaved down. I’m 10 months post op and feel great!
I also recommend using a cooling machine, that you can wear 24/7. The one I used was Kodiak Berg. There are many different ones. I had little to no inflammation by the time I started PT 10 days post op.
My surgeon, had me use CPM for 2 weeks and every time I reached a new level on the machine, he told me to keep my knee in that level for up to 15 minutes. It helps to let the inflammation come away from the knee and it’s a good stretch.
Robert, don’t lose hope.
The first two weeks are hell. But it does get better. Inflammation = pain. So do what you can to get that down. If you need to take Allieve, take it. That with the cooling machine and CPM helps alot.
I used to sleep thru the night with the CPM machine going. Granted I would wake up after awhile and stop the machine, but I tried to keep it elevated and the CPM helped with that. It didn’t bother me to sleep on my back.
After surgery, its hard not to worry about re-injury and thinking about every step we take. Go slow with PT and just do what they say. I followed my dr and pt’s orders to a T. I didn’t have the restriction you have with not putting weight for 6 wks, so it may take you a little longer. BUT don’t let that get you down, it just means you need more healing time. I would do what ever exercise they give you. For me, I was told to strengthen my quads as much as I can.
My doc only had me wear the brace if I was up and moving about, but not needed for sleeping or on the couch. I was able to ditch the brace inside after 10 days, completely after 3 weeks. I got down to 1 crutch at about 14 days post op and then completely after 1 month. I walked with no limp 3 weeks post op.
As I’ve posted many times previously, I’m 40 yrs old and I’m not an athlete. I’m getting fit since the surgery. If I can do it, then anyone can. BUT, I can’t consider myself fully healed at 10 months. I’m not and when I over do it or slack off on my strength training, my knees let me know by aching a little. No pain just soreness.
Robert, you’re are going to be one kick-a$$ cop. Don’t even doubt it. Set smaller weekly goals for yourself. Don’t think about the finish line, now at 1 week post-op. You’re just going to make yourself nuts. You need to set yourself up for success. Whether you chose allo=graft or auto-graft, recovery/healing time is a year. Everyone has to accept that fact. It’s just what is.
Good luck and keep posting.
-Joanne
Hi Robert,
As Joanne said, you’re going to be just fine by April of 2011. You’ll be 9.5 months out of surgery, which is PLENTY of time for your recovery. I, like you, had a pretty serious medial meniscus tear, so I was on crutches for 6 weeks after surgery as well. I had a pretty serious limp the first day I was finally able to walk again without crutches, but that went away very quickly (in a week or so). By the 3 month mark, I was able to jog for short distances with only minimal pain. By the 6 month mark, I felt I was ready to return to sports, but I figured I’d wait just to play it safe. Today is my 9 month surgery anniversary, and I am very happy with how my knee feels. It’s not perfect, and who knows if it every will be, but I am able to play at a competitive level. You will be able to do the police academy realistically after the 6-7 month mark.
Make sure you go to physical therapy regularly, and do exactly what your PT tells you to do. When I was in your spot, doing the heel slides, I also felt like my knee was going to get re-injured, or I was going to reopen my incisions. It’s not going to happen. My favorite stretch was with the exercise bike. I would rock the pedals back & forth slowly to stretch my knee. After a while, I was able to do a full rotation on the pedals, and the stretch would make my knee feel much better when I was done.
Like Joanne said, just take this one day at a time. It’s shocking how fast the time goes, and before you know it, you’ll be feeling more and more normal. The worst part for my was around 4 months, b/c I was feeling like my rate of progress was slowing, and my knee still wasn’t quite where I wanted it to be. I just continued to work it out at the gym/PT, and sure enough, by the 6 month mark, it was feeling significantly better. Good luck with the PT, and know that you’re going to be fine.
Sean and Joanne,
Thanks for the encouraging words. This site has helped out a ton to see how people have progressed over the months. I’ll keep up the PT at the doctors and at home and follow it as they say. Hopefully each day and week will get better. I look foward to hearing from you both to see how your doing with recovery.
Keep in touch.
Robert - just think that you are getting better every day b/c it is true. I am 6 weeks post-op and am feeling better than I anticipated. I am 50 yrs and had an allograft. I used the cpm machine for 2 weeks, a brace for 4 weeks and have been walking w/o crutches or a cane since week 4. I could have gone w/o any assistance after week 3 but I work in a city and wanted others to know that I was injured. I need about 10 more degrees to return the knee to full range of motion (i had some significant swelling down to my ankle immediately after the surgery which set me back for a week) and merely feel tightness (not pain) in my knee. My therapist repeatedly tells me I am ahead of schedule so I generally feel pretty good. My biggest gripe is I don’t sleep well since the surgery. I wake up numerous times a night. Recently, I have found sleeping on my side and placing pillows below, between and above both knees has helped. I had acl surgery on my other knee when I was 29, using an autofgraft. I have had no problems with that knee over the years. I’m expecting the same to be true after my most recent surgery, especially since the surgery is much less invasive these days. Keep true to your therapy regime and you will feel physically and mentally better.
William
Hey William, Sean and Joanne and everyone else
First off, again I really appreciate all the encouragement and advice you have all given.
I see the doctor on Monday to get my stitches out and I have been going to physical therapy 3 times a week (Mon, Wed, Fri) and up to 105 degrees on the CPM Machine which I use two times a day. On Tues, Thurs. amd the weekends I do the exercises at home.
The swelling has gone down a good amount but there is still some bruising numbness around the knee where the incision is. Is this still normal for numbness a week and a half post-op?
Any way how are you guys and everyone else making out with your rehab?
Hey Robert,
You will feel so much better when the stitches are out. If you still have a heavy bandage on top of that, that can add to the numbness/soreness at your incision sites. I would just let the doctor know when you see him. But yes its normal, especially since your only like 7 days post-op. There’s so many layers of skin and tissue that needs to heal.
When I would go to the PT, they would rub the incision spots to help break up any scar tissue and/or keep it from forming. They told me to massage the incision sites often to prevent this too. But I started PT 10 days post -op. Some doctors recommend starting PT right away.
Are you only allowed to use the CPM 2x per day? I would use it more than that, like an hour on, hour off.
But see what your doctor says. I felt it help my knee from feeling stiff and was able to move more.
-Joanne
The numbness in my leg, about the size of a silver dollar just below the oustide of my knee cap, has not gone away. Apparently the incision can sever a nerve, leaving the spot numb. It weirded me out at first, but you definitely get used to it.
Not to discourage anyone in their recoveries, but I tweaked my knee last night while playing soccer. I’m going to see my PT tomorrow morning bright & early to see if “tweaked” is the right word, or if “re-tore” is a more appropriate description. This time wasn’t like the last time though, so I’m thinking (& hoping) that my ACL is in tact. I’ll keep you all posted.
Hey Sean, Joanne and William
Just got back from the doctor and he removed the stitches and took an x-ray. He said everything looked great and that I’m progressing very well. He said i would have that numbness about the size of a silver dollar forever but
Hey Sean, Joanne and William
Just got back from the doctor and he removed the stitches and took an x-ray. He said everything looked great and that I’m progressing very well. He said i would have that numbness about the size of a quarter forever but I guess in the grand scheme of things its not so bad.
Sean- Hope everything works out for you and its just a tweak and nothing more. Let me know how it goes.
Hows everyone else doing?
Hello to all. I’m new to this board, and so happy to have found
I ruptured my acl while working wih my trainer. She was having me do some drills running sideways while jumping into a square and twisting right and then left. Did not hear a pop, but did sense some kind of pulling sensation. After initial pain subsided, went on to do stretching with her and then did 30 minutes on the stair climbing machine. As the day progressed my knee began to swell until I was in a lot of pain and could not bear any weight on it. Eventually had an MRI which showed complete rupture of acl and torn meniscus. Scheduled for surgery 7/10 and now am very confused and worried. Dr. wants to do allograft, and despite understanding the risks of disease are very low and success is high as well as an easier surgery and recovery, I just do not feel comfortable with this. I have an anxiety and panic disorder, and worry that I will be nervous and overly anxious. It is hard for me to admit that I am not comfortable with the allograft as I know it is a safe and sound choice. My only reason for not using it is this sense of not being comfortable with it. If not using allograft doctor will use patellar autograph. Any feedback or suggestions to help me make a final decision? I keep going back and forth from one to the other. I would deeply appreciate any advice you may have to offer. Thank you!
Hi Sandra,
I tore my ACL, both meniscus, and cartilage in May 2010 and just had my surgery on June 17th. I used the autograft and used my patella tendon. I am 25, active and wishing to become a police officer so i wanted to use the transplant because of less pain and quicker recovery time.
But after ALOT of research and talking to my doctor, I was convinced to go with the autograft surgery using my patealla tendon. I wasnt that worried about getting a disease but obviously the risk is still there, even though its slight. I was more worried that my body might reject the transplant or that in the long run it would become loose.
I am not saying that using the patella tendon is the best method as every situation and person is different. There is info out there to support both procedures. But for me: Young, healthy, active and planning to be a cop it made the most sense to use the patella tendon.
If your uncomfortable with the transplant then you probably shouldnt go thru with it. No sense in having surgery and then having to worry day and night ontop of trying to get yourself physically healthy too.
I am very happy that i went with the autograft surgery. Even though I am less than 2 weeks post-op and i dont know what will happen in the long run, ive progressed very well since starting phyisical therapy.
Best of luck and if you need anything else feel free to ask me or anyone on this site. Eevryone is great and happy to help you out. We’re all pulling for eachother.
Thank you so much for your response to my post Robert. I can not adequately express my appreciation for your thoughtful, informative and helpful response. You have helped me so much in realizing that if I am uncomfortable with the allograft then I should pass on it. It doesn’t matter what my reasons are and I shouldn’t feel a need to justify my choice. You are so right about not needing the worrying on top of recovering from the surgery.
Please keep us posted on your progress. I wish you the best and am sure you will have a great recovery with your positive attitude and motivation to become a peace officer. By the way, my husband is a cop, too!
Thanks again for your help. I really appreciate your response.
Hi Sandra,
Welcome to the club!
Here’s my two cents. As far as your body rejecting the allograft, according to my surgeon he said that rejection of the allograft is probably like less than 1 % if at all, as the tendon itself is dead. It’s not live tissue or a live organ transplant, where rejection is a serious concern. The tendon from the allograft merely acts as “scaffolding.”
For me, the patella tendon or hamstring tendon was not an option as my surgeon felt that they weren’t going to hold up. So the allograft was the way to go and I have no regrets. At first, when he told me about the cadaver tendon, just the word alone creeped me out. But I got over it.
You have to really go with your surgeon’s recommendation and ask why he didn’t recommend using your own.. Why did they feel the allograft in your case was a better option? Everyone is different and as Robert said you also to be comfortable with the decision.
The best advice I can give you is that what ever your choice, make sure your surgeon is top notch and has done a lot of the type of surgeries you choose. If you are uncomfortable with his/her answers than you can always seek a second opinion.
Also make sure you have an excellent physical therapist, buy/rent a cooling machine and if your insurance covers it, get a CPM machine (Continuous Passive Motion).
Plus, I would ditch the gym trainer. Sounds like they didn’t give you the right exercises to do or maybe not watching if you were using correct form. Are you in competitive sports?
Good luck and as Robert said we are all pulling for each other. Let us know what you decide and
keep posting.
-Joanne
Hi all, I am just 7 weeks post surgery. As some of you may know I had a skiing accident in March, did rehab for two months, then had surgery May 6. I opted for a cadaver, (1)because my surgeon recommended it, (2) he said “if it were my daughter or wife that is what I would use.” and (3) easier recovery.
I feel great. I so still have some soreness, stiff may be a better word — especially after being still for a period of time, i.e. sleeping, sitting, etc. Also my quads are still quite weak. I still have a hard time getting fully extended mainly when I try to lift my leg from a sitting position. For example, sitting on the PT bench, knees over the side, and lifting from a bent knee to a extended knee. Still get some tightness, and I think some of that has to do with the fact I never was fully extended pre surgery due to having part of the torn ACL tendon blocking behind my knee joint. So, still working hard, MUCH MUCH better — but still not 100% yet. I do my regular PT exercises and use the bike, but no other real exercises yet.
I am 37, not a pro athlete, do not play club sports (soccer, basketball, softball etc) but active with two young kids, and do exercise regularly. I like to hike, play “pick up” games with my kids, swim, golf, beach, etc.
I have heard a couple things re: patella tendon for women, I have a friend that did hers a year ago with a patella, and she said she is not sure she would still go the same route, meaning she may be more likely to considering a cadaver, she seems to remember it being a hard recovery. Another friend that used a cadaver said to NEVER let anyone take your patella tendon. I am not sure her reasoning, but that was her advise to me.
My surgeon did say another good thing about the cadaver is you know what you are getting…they literally order per your body size, type, etc. He said sometimes with a harvest, or auto graft the tendon is not as large or strong (thick?) as you would have hoped for once you get in there. He orders from ONE place in the country, they guarantee their “clean” rate 100%! http://tissuenet.com/
I too was weirded out with the cadaver - just the nature of it….but then once I realized your body could reject any implant, your own, or one from someone else, and could still be infected and got a handle on the risk, almost none, of HIV or Hepatitis — I was good…and did I mention the recovery is easier…I was all about getting back to 100% with as little issues as I could. I had surgery TH and was back driving, taking the kids to their sports, etc by Tuesday.
What I do know is everyone has an opinion, and you have to do what you feel good about as a lot of it is mental too. Best luck, I know there is a lot to think about. I too would seeka lot of opinions, and mine was more about surgery or no surgery — but I am SO glad I did it and it is behind me and I am on the way to being back to 100%!
Good luck, you know what is right for you…just embrace it.
Stephanie
Hello Everyone,
I am excited to report that I will be rejoining you all in the fabulous world of ACL recovery. Just got back from seeing my PT from my last ACL repair, and she’s giving me a 70% probability that I’ve retorn the graft. I will be getting an MRI later this week to confirm.
I’ve decided that if the MRI confirms the tear, which appeared pretty obvious while my PT was tugging on my calf & my shin slid forward with ease, I won’t be getting surgery until this Fall. I’m going to Cancun in August and do not want to be on crutches for that. My legs are strong, and this most recent tear didn’t result in much swelling or pain, so I’m already walking without a limp.
Anyway, good times ahead, and I’ll be in touch.
Morning everyone,
First off: Sean, I’m real sorry about the news. I hope it all works out whatever you decide to do. Keep us posted. I was in Cancun in January and loved it so enjoy it.
Second: Sandra,
Joanne is right that getting a second opinion is a smart thing to do if your uncomfortable with the procedure your doctor reccommends. I saw one doctor who was very honest and staright forward with me who said he would prefer another surgeon he knows prefrom my surgery because he has much more experience with the autograft patella tendon surgery.
Do as much research as you can on here talking to people and online. I have tons of links to websites from medical journals and athletic websites that give great info on each specific surgery and what they entail short-term and long-term. Let me know if you would like them.
As for me I am just about 3-4 weeks away from being able to walk and off the crutches. Until then im just sticking with going to Physical therapy 3 times a week and when im not there i do the excersises at home so im busy every day and feeling better. Sleep is the only thing that is a pain as I havent been able to sleep for more than 45min at a time.
Hows everyone else?
Hi Robert and others. I really enjoy the advice/insights/encouragement provided by everyone here as well as following everyone’s progress. It definitely helps knowing that I can reach out to others who are going through what I am.
Sean - sorry to hear about your injury.
I am now 7 weeks post-op. I am up to 127 degrees flex - the last 10 or so degrees to go are proving a bit difficult. I feel like I am hitting a wall in terms of progress. The first 6 or so weeks I felt like I was improving daily…not so anymore. My biggest gripe remains my sleeping. Robert - like you, I can’t seem to sleep for extended periods. I am up multiple times a night. Should I expect that to improve shortly, if anyone knows? I feel like I am back to sleeping like when my kids were infants.
Interestingly, I didn’t have this issue when I had my other acl surgery. I guess it goes to show that no two surgeries are alike.
Continued good luck to all.
-William
William,
Ive heard over time the sleeping gets better. I have to be in the brace for another 3-4 weeks until im cleared to put pressure on my leg so hopefully then ill be able to sleep. I have maxed out the CPM machine and am up to 115 degrees on it as of last night. How long did you have to use your CPM machine for if in fact you used one?
Hey Sean sorry to hear you re-injured your acl. Have fun in Cancun though. It’s beautiful there.
Robert & William,
I only had trouble sleeping when I had the CPM machine going thru the night. Try taking Alieve before you go to bed. It helps with the pain and inflammation. I didn’t have to sleep with a brace though, only the ace bandage and the cooling machine pad.
Robert, even though I had maxed out, I still used the CPM machine until I had to give it back. It keeps your leg muscles from getting stiff. I felt it was a nice stretch too. It’s boring as hell but if your watching a movie, you can have that going and not even think about.
I’m doing well. I joined a gym and trying to get my quads strong. I did a spin class, which wasnt too bad. I just didn’t do the standing up part as the instructor told me to hold off until I’ve been spinning for a week or two. So far so good.
-Joanne
Hey Joanne,
Glad to hear your back to at he gym.
What exactly is the cooling machine you used because my doctor never mentonioned using one but ive seen alot of people on here have used one?
Hi Robert,
The one I used is called Breg Kodiak. The only downside is it takes a lot of ice.
http://www.breg.com
You have to get it thru a medical supply company. My insurance didn’t cover it. The medical supply place also had a cooling machine that just took water that you can rent.
Hey Joanne,
I wasnt able to find the machine you were talking about. I just found alot of different braces which looked pretty usefull actually. Maybe its just me that I cant find it.
Robert,
Try this link:
http://www.breg.com/cold-therapy/default.html
Thanks Joanne, I am going to look into it.
Sean…what exactly did you do to re-injury your knee? Were you running, jumping, fell down, etc…?
Hi Robert,
My potential re-tear was pretty lame actually. I was dribbling the ball down the field, and got stopped by a defender, which ended in a “kicking frenzy” with both of us trying to regain control of the ball (this is indoor soccer, so we were kind of trapped up against a wall). Our legs connected with each other, although it wasn’t anything too crazy, and I felt a sharp pain in the back of my knee. If it is retorn, and my PT is pretty sure that it is (MRI this Friday), I’m pretty disappointed w/ my cadaver graft’s strength. I really don’t think the collision warrented a re-tear. Oddly, my knee feels nearly normal today - no swelling, no instability, only mild pain. This was definitely an “easier” injury than the first time where my knee was swollen & wouldn’t tolerate weight bearing.
As far as the ice machines go, they are a god send. I bought a Breg Polar Car machine on craigslist brand new from a guy who received one for his surgery, but didn’t use it b/c he had access to better machines through his school (he was a college football strength trainer). It was worth every penny.
Rough break Sean. Sorry again.
I meant to ask you and anyone else thats fully recovered from surgery if you wear a brace while doing physical activity or not?
Ive heard that theres no proof either way whether or not wearing a brace reduces the risk of another injury but athletes tend to wear them cause they feel better anyway.
I was wearing my custom DonJoy Defiance III brace. The only good thing I can say about it is that they are going to have to pay $1,000 towards my next surgery b/c of their “ACL Guarantee”. Other than that, I can’t say it provided me much protection.
Hi Sean,
Really sorry to hear the bad news. A few questions regarding your potential reinjury:
How many months are you post surgery?
Do you know which type of allograft you had? (Personally I had posterior tibialus).
I am currently at the five month mark post surgery and doing well, but I’ve not returned to any sports related activity yet. Hope the MRI doesn’t reveal worse case scenario for you!
Hi Robert. I used a cpm machine for 2 weeks post-op before the insurance company took it back. I did 2, 2 hours sessions a day. I tried to use it when I slept but it was too uncomfortable. Although my flex is up to 127 degrees, I still have some difficulties walking downstairs. Walking upstairs is no problem. I also have this darn limp, and feel pressure below my kneecap. Can’t wait for that to go away…hopefully soon.
Joanne - thanks for the advice about using Alleve. I have tried some muscle relaxants but they haven’t done the trick and usually leave me feeling a bit hungover in the morning.
Robert - I used a custom brace for approx 2 years after my first acl surgery whenever I played sports, skiied, etc.. I was worried that I would hurt my knee again w/o one. After I gained more confidence in the knee, I discarded it and never looked back. I don’t anticipate using one after this surgery b/c my other knee held up well after that surgery w/o one. Plus, it was honestly a pain wearing it….I couldn’t cut on my ski turns with it on and it was a drag carrying it around with me. I agree with Sean that the brace will not stop another injury. I would wear one if it makes you feel more secure.
Hi everyone - just an update. My computer is upstairs, and I have been pretty much avoiding stairs. I can read the posts on my cell, but I cannot respond. I am now 6 days post-op. I saw my doc today - sticthes were removed. He said that I am actually doing quite well, better than he expected, for this stafe. I had an allograft acl reconstruction and lateral meniscus repair. I did not get a CPM machine - my doc said that it is difficult to get them approved in my location, and the outcome is pretty much the same. I have attained about 60 degrees flexion on my own (can start PT tomorrow and start weight bearing). I will be GLAD to get off crutches.
I, too, have a numb spot on my knee (medial part). My ortho said that the nerves that innovate the skin run medially and under the knee cap - they usually regenerate (he said). They are often severed with the surgery.
Sleeping is my downfall right now - I just CANNOT do it for more than 2 hours at a time - and then my back starts hurting something fierce. I tried lying on my side -then my knee hurts. I know that some people have had suggestions - just not working for me. Any other ideas?
Good luck to everyone!
Tara
Hi Tim,
My 9 month surgery anniversary was June 23rd. I hurt my knee this past Sunday, June 27th. I had the posterior tibialus as well. My doc claimed it was from a 15 year old male, so it was supposed to be very strong. Obviously, assuming my knee is re-torn, it was not. The kicker is that my knee felt very strong by the time I went back to soccer, and the play that injured it didn’t seem so serious that my knee should’ve re-torn. I would consider myself in great shape, playing sports all my life & lifting weights consistently for the past 9 years, so the re-tear wasn’t b/c I’m out of shape. I will say that my body isn’t meant for soccer. I am 6′3″, 205lbs, which is hardly the typical soccer body. Maybe my height gives a mechanical disadvantage to my knees, making the stresses on them greater than a shorter player. Don’t let me dissuade you from returning to sports though. I know that others have had great success in their return. Just be mentally prepared for the worst.
Hey Tara,
Tomorrow is my 2 week post-op “anniversary” if you want to call it that and I havent had a good nights sleep yet. I am non-weight bearing until the end of July and on crutches till then so I envy you. I tore my ACL, both meniscus, and cartilage and went with the autograft surgery using my patella tendon. My doctor suggested it because of my age (25) and that he has seen the most sucess with that type of proceudre so I figured he knows best.
I wear a brace 24/7 aside from when using the CPM machine and doing physical therapy. I toss and turn all night with the brace on and cant get comfortable but time has been going by pretty quickly and before you know it ill be walking and sleeping better as will you.
Kepp us updated on your progress.
I guess I should be grateful that I sleep fairly well. I will wake up with some stiffness if I try to stretch out too much, but all in all I am OK. However in the early days I would take pain meds (percocet) to allow me to sleep. Luckily it did not make me feel “hung over” in the AM, and I figured sleep was important to the healing process…as did my doctor and PT confirm rest is a way to allow the body to heal. No need to be in pain, soreness from PT is different from pain…and sleep deprivation and I don’t do well together…
Back from more PT today. My quad still does not want to fire that well! I told my PT this is getting old…he told me in a year I will have forgotten all about him! I sure hope so — like him and all, but I am tired of going there 3 X a week for close to 2 hours. Who has time for this! ?
Glad we are all healing well for the most part…I am hoping Sean’s is not a re-tear… Do keep us posted. I do know we had 4 BIG dogs running around the culde sac today chasing each other this afternoon and I was hiding behind my neighbor as all I could imagine is one of them running into me and taking me out. I could feel the pain just thinking about it. I got home as soon as I could!
Sean,
How does this experience affect your choice of graft for the revision surgery??
Greg
Hey Sean,
I hate to say it but, isn’t 9 months post op too soon to go back to competitive sports, especially fast pivoting type like soccer?
I was always told that it’s 1 year recovery for allo graft and autograft. Did your dr clear you to play or were you just getting stir crazy?
I hope for your sake its just a spain or something like that.
Let us know what happens.
-Joanne
Hey Stephanie,
Good to hear your doing well. I actually miss PT. I would get a massage for 40 minutes and then I would go exercise. Oh I loved my massage, it made my knee feel so limber. Hey for a $15 co-pay, it was all good. Lol.
Hey Tara,
The knee pain should get better as each day goes by. I would save up my pain killers and use them at night in the first 5 - 6 days. Once done with that I just took Allieve at night.
Try putting a pillow under your knee. I was able to sleep somewhat on my side with the pillow.
Hang in there.
Hi Greg,
Potentially re-tearing the allograft definitely has me thinking about which direction I’ll go for the next surgery. I like the idea of not harvesting one of my own healthy ligaments, but I would also prefer to not do this surgery a third time, assuming the allografts truely are a weaker option. I’m taking this one step at a time, w/ the MRI tomorrow as the first step.
Hi Joanne,
There are plenty of differing opinions out there as far as when one can “safely” return to cutting sports. I’ve read studies that have shown no difference in re-tear rates from those that returned at the 4-6 month marks, and those that’ve returned to the 9-12 month marks. At nine months, my quads were stronger than ever, and my legs felt great. I knew going back to soccer was a risk, but it was a risk that I was willing to take. I’m not sure waiting 3 more months would’ve changed anything, but who knows.
Hi All,
Sorry to have dropped off the radar. We have had events, funerals, guests from out of town, etc. etc. so my time on the pc is limited. It’s 8:00 am, and my guests were up very late last night, so I thought I would catch up a little with you all.
Sean, I have undergone 6 procedures on my knees, and really want this ACL replacement to be my last before I have to succumb to artificial knee replacement. My ortho has told me that is a question of when and not if, but I digress. I can empathize with you re the new tear. It’s not so much the surgery itself as the starting back from square one. I am truly sorry that you are looking at another go round. I am afraid of playing tennis again because of this possibility, even though my surgeon tells me not to worry. Yesterday, at 8 weeks out, I went kayaking for a couple of hours and felt so alive again. I sat there afterward, thinking that maybe I would stick to non-pivoting activities. I just don’t know. What did your surgeon say about the injury? Did he feel it was a fluke? I know that my surgeon had his autograft ACL repair burst during a surgery he was performing, so I’m guessing that sometimes it is just bad luck. Do you think you will go back to soccer?
Regarding allografts vs. autografts: My PT and I were discussing the issue. She had a hamstring autograft years ago and still does not have 100% strength in her hamstring. This is a woman who trains religiously, rock climbs, cycles, etc. etc. Her opinion is that women do not do as well as men with autografts in general. She has some theory that involves our hips and stance that is far too technical for me. The long and short of it is this – she said she would go back and choose allograph if she had it to do all over again. Sandra, I agree with others in that your own personal choice has to be arrived at though conversations with your surgeon who is able to see your physique and the damage done. All we have is studies and personal anecdotes.
These days I am back to full flexibility at 144 degrees in both knees. I have been preparing to jump by launching myself backwards on the leg press machine at the PT’s clinic. It’s fun to fly backwards and land on the board…kind of like jumping while lying down. I am balancing a lot on balls and started doing lunges, so it’s coming along. At any rate, I am happy with where I am at 8 weeks and will be even happier when I am cycling outside. I have the okay to do so as long as it’s a low-peak time and flat, so when my company leaves, I will start that.
So glad to hear that most of you are doing well! I apologize for the length of this post.
Cheers!
Hi Lisa,
I’m hanging my cleats up for good this time. I’m definitely not looking to do this a third time, so I think my days of cutting sports is over. Oddly, my knee feels pretty normal right now. I guess the MRI will tell if it’s retorn or not, although my PT says that if it’s not retorn, the graft must have stretched or come loose b/c of my leg’s laxity. I haven’t talked a surgeon yet. I am going to schedule that appointment today for hopefully next week, so that he can take a look at the MRI results. I’m thinking that I don’t have a meniscus tear this time, b/c there is literally no swelling in my knee, so at least I won’t be on crutches for 6 weeks this time. THAT was the worst part of the entire ordeal. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t enjoy the PT part of this.
Hi All,
I haven’t been on in a while, but that’s because I’m back outdoors! June 11 was my one-year anniversary of my allograft replacement, and I couldn’t be happier with the results. 7 months after, I was cleared for everything except what I really wanted to do: skiing and tennis. Then at 9 1/2 months, I was cleared for those too. I started slowly (ski season was basically over by then) on the court and now I’m feeling 100%. I’ve been playing doubles, so less stress than singles, but will start that soon.
My best advice is to get those leg exercises on. I can tell my left quad (surgery side) is not yet as strong as the right, but it’s close. My PT told me that getting those muscles back to normal is key to protecting the graft, no matter which you chose. I went with the allograft b/c of my age - I’m 49 but still very active (I feel like I’m in my 30s). After a lot of research I discovered that the general rule is any woman over 35 should get the allograft, b/c ‘older’ women with hamstring grafts tend to reinjure more often due to overdevelopment of their quads. Go figure.
I knew when I got it that it would take longer for the allograft to ‘mesh’ with my body, but there was never any evidence that the graft itself would be weaker than an autograft. I’m just happy I can get back outside for just about anything I want now. The only problem I have is walking down steep slopes(puts extra pressure on the knee), and we have quite a few of those here in the Rockies. It’s not so much unstable, but I’m extra careful b/c it feels a little weird at those times.
Thanks to all of you for your support and encouragement!
Sean,
I ask only because my daughter had acl allograft and had fraying of the graft, a friend of mine who has a daughter with allograft also tore hers. The problem with soft tissue grafts is the ability to heal into the tunnel where it is attached. Did your graft tear, or did it pull out of the tunnel?? All three of my daughters’ have had acl surgery as well as myself. I have learned through our experiences and my experience as a high school coach, that bone to bone grafts are best for the active athletes. The trend today is for orthos to push allografts, trends are not always the right way to go. Statistics show the failure rate for the athletes that participate in explosive type athletics is much higher with allo vs auto. The location of the graft is also crucial, the person on the cutting edge of this procedure is Dr. Pat Smith in Columbia, Mo(mizzou team MD).
Best of Luck with your revision.
Greg
Hey Greg,
I’ll let you know what I found out after my MRI. I’m getting the MRI tomorrow morning @ 10:00am, and will try to meet with a surgeon next week to review the pictures. There was literally no swelling when I did this - just pain. I would think that if I retore the graft, that my knee would swell like it did the first time. If the thing just came undone at the bone, that will be a pisser. I’ll keep everyone posted when I have more information.
Thanks for your info on your graft type, Sean. As someone who has gone through two ACL repairs, we all feel your pain of the thought of having to go through a third. Hoping for the best for you.
Regarding autograft vs allograft, I have had both. I had the patella tendon Auto back in ‘95 on my left knee when I was 18. I had the allograft on my right knee 5 months ago.
The knee that had the autograft has never felt ‘normal’ again. I have a slight bit of pain when running along the spot where they harvested the tendon, and I also have a slight bit of weakness in the same area. I did a bunch of PT and workout, so I am not certain why I still have weakness. Perhaps it was because I had the tendon harvested when I was 18 and still growing? I don’t know. There is small residual pain when running, but nothing I can’t handle.
After five months with the allograft, my knee feels great and better than my ‘good’ knee. Having said that, hearing stories of re-tearing is a little bit nerve wracking, but it also happens to folks with autograft, although perhaps at a smaller rate.
I probably wont return to playing soccer again, or other sharp cutting sports. Basketball, yes, but I’ll just have to try and be careful (I tore the most recent ACL playing hoops).
Hi Sean,
I hope you received good news. Was thinking of you this morning.
Best,
Lisa
hi guys,
now after reading some some of these last posts, its nerve wracking to hear about re-tearing your acl. I cant even imagine going through this for a second time> so my respect and good luck.
I’m 4months post op today and my knee feels great.. thank God. Im 29 and i had autograph patellar tendon. Im really happy with my outcome. I am now jogging and i still do leg stregthing excercises. My only concern is my scar.:( Do any of you know of a tfreatment to get rid of scars? my patellar tendon scar is right below my knee cap and its about two inches long and it just looks ugly and red. nedd help!!
Jaylo,
I use Mederma cream 3x a day. You can buy it in any drugstore. I had foot surgery years ago with 3 inch scars that are barely visible. The trick is using it religiously.
Best,
Hey Everyone,
Had a question for anyone who might know….
Tearing an ACL is bad enough but how much worse is it to tear an ACL and both your meniscus? (I fall under that category)
Does it make the rehab and recover time that much longer or would it be the general 6-9 months either way for a full recovery?
Thanks for any help and have a great holiday weekend.
Hi Robert,
I know that everyone is different, but I also tore the meniscus in both, and really have not found it to be a problem for me at all. My educated guess would be that it depends on the extent of the tearing. My left had a small tear, my right had a moderate tear with severe cartilage damage with a complete rupture of the ACL. (To paraphrase my surgeon, my knee was a bloody mess and one day I’ll need an artifical knee (I am 48 and he is predicting I’ll last until 70 if I avoid marathons).
As for the rehab, I only used crutches one day when I had the meniscus repair. The ACL tear was NOT fixed at the same time b/c it was not detected via MRI/exam. Robert, I rehabbed my knees for 3.5 weeks before I went in for the ACL repair. Truthfully, I was strong enough to do it after 2.5 weeks but we wanted to make sure the swelling was down. After the second surgery, I used crutches for 3 days and threw them into the garage afterward, but wore an immobilizing brace for 13 days (7 days all the time and the rest of the time only outside.)
I guess you could say that it put my recovery back about 3-4 weeks BUT now I am on schedule in some ways and ahead of schedule in others. I am riding the stationary bike for an hour at a time at level 10, doing leg presses, one leg squats, and have been okayed by the PT to ride outsde on flatter trails during offpeak hours. On Saturday i did a mild hike in a state park.
Please do not stress out too much over the meniscus damage because it is rather typical to have some meniscal damage with an ACL injury. Listed to your PT and surgeonf, be religious in your routines, and don’t overdo it. I keep my bands, discs, ankle weights, etc. near the tv and use em during commmercials. You can dictate how well and how quickly you recuperate to a great extent, Robert! Don’t psych yourself out there, guy.
Best, Lisa
Hey Lisa
My doctor said i did alot of damage but the surgery went well and that i should recover with the PT and time. The thing that sucks the most is I am non-weight bearing until the end of July so i cant ditch the crutches just yet.
I have basically given up the idea of playing baseball again because I need to be 100% or as close to it if i want to make the police dept next year. I need to be able to run and jump to pass the physical exam so thankfully theres no pivoting or twisting actions.
Robert,
I had both ACL and meniscus repaired in my surgery. My knee was a mess too and the dr told me that he bought me time before needing full knee replacement. I just need to do my part and get as fit as possible and like Lisa, probably bought myself 20 years before needing knee replacement.
You’ll definitely be ready for your police exam next year. I would do as Lisa advised and also just keep away from pivoting sports until you pass the police exam and then you should be a year post op and fully recovered.
We can’t rush biology. Recovery takes what it takes. Stop looking at the calendar. You will recover, just concentrate on the here and now and what you need to do today. As Lisa said don’t psych yourself out.
I think in your situation, it’s not being able to put weight on it and you feel like it’s holding your recovery back. But you’re giving your knee time to heal and the inflammation to go away and once you do put weight on it, you’ll see how quickly you’ll recover.
Hang in there!
Hey Joanne,
Thanks again for the support. Im feeling better and better physically every single day and this thursday will be 3 weeks since the surgery. Emotionally i am a roller coaster. Sometimes I think ill never get over this and have to walk like im on eggshells the rest of my life and other times im confident that in 6 months time ill be fine and as close to 100% as i can be.
Trying to set small goals and not look 6 months ahead will keep me sane.
No worries. That’s what we’re here for.
We all have those same concerns and it wasn’t until I reached about 6 weeks post op that I realized I’d be ok and that all that worrying was wasted energy.
But it takes a while to get back to not having to think about every step you take, how you’ll get up and down the stairs..etc. ( up with the good knee, down with the bad).lol.
I think its harder for those trying to get back to competitive sports. My goals were more basic: walking without a limp, being independent again and not having any pain. And I got all that back plus a great will to be as fit as I can.
I actually miss when I don’t exercise, which wasn’t how I was prior to injury. So this whole injury/surgery/recovery process in a weird sense has been a positive things for me. Go figure!
How was your 4th?
The 4th was alright it was about 100 degrees here in NY so I stand in alot cause walking around with the cruthces in the is like a hardcore workout.
Tomorrow is actually the day I would have been sworn into the police academy so just been going thru the “what if’s” and “if only” in my head but hopefullly next year this time I wont have to worry about that.
Been doing physical therapy at home all weekend and go back on Wed morning.
How was yours and everybody eleses 4th?
Mine was ok. Been studying for cpa exam. Its so boring. I live in NYC too. Yes, today was a scorcher.
I hated those crutches, brace even more. When you get rid of the brace and down to 1 crutch, it will be a great feeling. You’re almost there. The 1 month mark is a good milestone.
That’s rough about tomorrow. No what ifs, you were just living your life like the rest of us, when injury happened.
You will definitely be ready next year!
Yes, down to one crutch will be a milestone that I am looking forward too.
My mom went out for the day this afternoon so I went to the kitchen to make a sandwhich for lunch. Only problem was when I put it on the plate i realized i couldnt carry it back to the couch or the nearest table with both crutches so I had to eat it standing up on one leg at the counter.
I will be happy to see them go.
hey guys check out my new progress, i postred a video of. never was able to dunk before, and i will be at 6 months post op in 5 days, check it out and let me know what you think
http://www.youtube.com/user/dschnizzle24#p/u
Daniel,
Nice clip and its very refreshing to see how you came looking strong 6 months after your surgery. What type of ACL surgery did you have…allograft or autograft?
it was an allograft i had from the achilles tendon i think.
Hope everyone had an nice 4th
I have a few questions - when did you loe the immobilizer for sleeping? My doc said I need to still sleep in it (he okayed me wearing my pre-op brace during the day). The immobilizer is so heavy it is just a killer on my back. My PT told me that “most people just give up using the immobilizer at night anyway, and he has seen no problems”. I would love to listen to my PT, but I don’t want to screw anything up.
Also, when did people go down to one crutch? My 2-weeks post-op “anniversary” will be on thursday. I did have an allograft. I have been trying the one-crutch thing today and feel pretty stable, but again< I don’t want to push things too fast and screw things up.
Thanks!
Tara
Hey Tara,
Tomorrow i will be 3 weeks post-op with autograft patella tendon surgery. I wear a brace 24/7 except to shower and for physical therapy. I am seeing my doctor on Monday morning and he said he was going to see how my knee looked/felt to determine whether or not i can ditch the brace….Still non-weight bearing till the end of July.
Today was a great day at PT though. Finally able to do leg lifts and hamstring strecthes without the brace on. Lat week it was impossible to do leg lifts with or without the brace and today I was able to do both. Also maybe getting rid of the CPM machine this week as well….
Hows everyone else doing?
So good news for me. I spoke w/ my surgeon yesterday, and he said the MRI shows that my allograft is intact. He said that posterior knee pain is hard to diagnose because there are quite a few muscles & tendons back there, but he is thinking that I may have strained my hamstring behind my knee.
Not having to do this surgery again (yet…) is quite a relief. I’m going to spend this summer strength training my legs and return to soccer in the Fall to further tempt my fate. I hope everyone else is doing well with their recoveries!
Great news Sean! As someone who also has a posterior tibialus allograft, double good news! Hope your knee feels better soon.
Sounds good Sean, thankfully it wasnt torn again.
I’m done with the CPM machine, have about 105 degrees flexation after PT today, and hopefully will be losing the brace on Monday morning when I go see the doctor.
I had ACL surgery almost exactly a year ago. I contracted a very serious infection and long story short i had 7 surgeries total and was in the hospital for weeks in August and again in November. They had to remove the ACL. I am re-implanting July 20th. I was wondering if anyone had a similar experience and could give me some advice? I was also wondering if anyone had any general information on what I can do prior to surgery and after surgery that might help my recovery (eating/not eating certain things, certain activities, etc) I don’t know what to expect in terms of the healing time because I never actually healed. Any insight would be greatly appreciated!
Hey Emily,
Very sorry to hear about that. I hope everything works out for the best. I havent had to go throgh anything like that, however, I can give you some info on excersizes you can do pre and post surgery.
I tore my ACL and both meniscus in May of this year and had surgery 3 weeks ago. I had to do physical therapy before the surgery because my knee was too stiff to operate on and i had to reduce the swelling. I did lots of leg lifts, ankle pumps, ankle slides, rode a stationary bike (if your able to) and did excersises to strengthen my quad and hamstrings. Also lots of ice help reduced swelling. Try and keep it elevated at heart level as much as you can.
Everyone and every injury is different so this may or may not be best for you. Run it by your doctor or physical therapist.
If you’d like, I have a bunch of links to websites that have great info on things to do pre-suregry and after.
Any questions feel free to ask.
Hi Emily,
Very sorry to hear about your situation.
I havent gone through what you have, however, I can try and help you out with what you can do before and after surgery.
I tore my ACL and both meniscus in May of this year and had autograft surgery 3 weeks ago. Before the surgery I had to do physical therapy because my knee was too stiff and swolen to operate on. I did lots of leg lifts, ankle pumps, ankle slides, rode a stationary bike, and did excersies to strengthen my quads and hamstrings. I also iced my knee a few times a day to reduce swelling.
Every situation is different and every injury is different so ask your doctor or physical therapist first because these excersies may not work best for you.
If you’d like, I have a bunch of links to websites that have great info on ACXL injuries and surgeries and excersises you can do.
Feel free to ask anything.
Robert
Sorry for the double response….computer froze and wasnt sure it went thru.
Robert–
Thanks so much! Those links would be awesome! I’m pretty strong at this point ( I even can run) but I want to be as strong/healthy as possible before surgery. How are you feeling 3 weeks post surgery? Are you still using crutches?
Thanks again!
Emily-
Yes, I’m still on crutches for about another 3 weeks till the end of July. I did so much damage on the knee the doctor told me i was going to be non-weight bearing for 6 weeks. I feel better each day and notice slight improvements with the physical therapy. I used a CPM machine for 3 weeks and am now done with it. I’ll post the links below. Some of the info you may already know at this point but I found it pretty usefull before and after my surgery:
Emily-
For some reason I cant post the links on here without the site freezing up on me. If you want I can email them to you and they will work that way.
Keen.robert@gmail.com is my email feel free to shoot me an email and I’ll send you those links.
I cant say how happy I am to find this blog. I am undergoing a ACL Reconsruction on 7/14 along with repair of my middle meniscus for a large bucket handle tear. I have lived with a ACL tear for the past 10 years, but a meniscus tear 3 weeks back has left me immobile. I am still not decided on Allograft Vs Autograft and reading so much on this blog has given me some good thoughts today. I feel more confident to face the surgery now reading after so many people recovering in true….
I have a question though..I am freaked about a gum infection in my teeth that I just recovered from this week and my ortho says I shuld be clear of any possible infections in mouth before the surgery. Hope it all goes well…
Hey everyone,
Got good news at the doctors today…The doctor cleared me to ditch the brace and I can start walking next Monday. Losing the brace feels like a milestone accomplishment as I will finally be able to sleep at night. Next week I start slight weight-bearing walking with help of the crutches and then down to one crutch and then maybe a cane.
Emily- Do you still need those links i was going to send you? I havent heard from you since last week.
Also had a question for anyone who might know the answer.
Since i tore cartilage also, I heard alot of people say i should take glucosamine to help regenerate cartilage growth. Anyone know about this?
Also what is a good cream or lotion to use to help get rid of the scars?
How is everyone been doing?
Folks, I need some guidance on how many days help I may need at home after a meniscus repair and ACL Reconstruction(I am leaning towards autograft). I am otherwise a healthy 34 year old Mom with a energetic 4 year old .
Hey aps,
I am 3 and a half weeks post-op on autograft acl surgery.
It really depends on how bad the damage was on your knee. I know some people who were able to walk out of the hospital with just a cane, but i was told no walking for 6 weeks. I’d say at least a few weeks if your going to be on crutches and in a brace. You might not be able to drive either depending on which knee it is. If you are using a CPM machine after the surgery you may need help with that as well.
I did pretty bad damage to my knee so I am on crutches for another 2 weeks. I need help with carrying anything like food to and from the couch. But i have been able to start driving today and can get up and down stairs now with the crutches. Hope that helps.
Hi Robert,
That’s great news about the brace! Good riddance to it!
It doesn’t hurt to take the glucosamine.
As far as scar cream, I didn’t put any. I just massaged the incisions, as my PT told me too and my main scar which was 2 inches after surgery has diminished and faded alot. The ones on the knee itself are small little bumps. It’s important to not let the scar tissue form underneath, that’s what creates a bigger bump in the scar. My main scar on my shin is flat an only slight discoloration. No scar tissue. I think it also depends on the surgeon’s skills.
The only scar cream, I know of is Mederma. I haven’t used it.
Hi Aps,
Good luck surgery on Wednesday!.
I had my sister stay with me for the first 6 days. She also helped me take care of my dogs too. I would say your first 4-10 days are probably the roughest.
I would try to secure at least 7-10 days for someone to help you out, esp since you have a 4 year old. You will take longer to heal with an autograft,as you need to heal two surgery sites. I had allograft and was only sidelined completely helpless for 3-4 days, but each day got better and better after that.
It also helps to have someone do your food shopping, laundry and cleaning for at least two weeks.
Make sure you address any inflammation and get a cooling pad. It’s really helps.
Good luck with surgery. Let us know how you’re doing.
Thanks Robert and Joanne for the information on help needed post op.
My doctor said I could take time till I enter the operation theater to decide on allograft or autograft and I am getting more and more confused. While the fast healing in allograft is tempting, I am worried if its OK in the longterm.
Hi Aps,
Alot of people on here have trouble deciding between allograft and autograft. I was one of them who went back and forth going between the pros and cons of each.
It really depends on you and how comfortable you feel. There is a slight, very slight risk of infection with using a transplant for allograft and some people don’t want to take that risk. I was one of them. The doctor also said because of my age (25) and that i will hopefully be a police officer next year that the autograft would be best for me, but again everyones situation is different. There was more pain with the autograft using the patella tendon but it was only for a week and got better and better each day and i am happy i went with that option for now.
Hi everyone…good to see so many people doing well
I just saw my ortho today - I will be 3 weeks post-op on Thursday. He is pleased with my progress - I have been down to one crutch for the past week - he thinks that I will be down to a cane withing a day or two. I was given the ok to drive today - WOOHOO! I HATED not being able to drive!
I went with the allorgeraft due to the quicker recovery time (but the rehab/revasculaization period is longer).
Aps - re: how long to have help: - if you go allograft route, I still needed help for about a week and a half (but I have a 4 and a 2 year old - if it was just the 4 year old, I would have been fine at a week). My limiting factor was pain for the frist 2-3 days. However, since I was not allowed to weight bear for the first week (due to meniscus repair), I could not chase after my 2 year old or prepare the kids’ meals…Good luck to you
Hi Tara and Roberts, Thanks again.
Mentally, I am more inclined towards autograft and doctor left it to my discretion, but he did say that platellar tendon could be difficult to harvest as they can take only 1/3rd of available and me being of very short height(4′11″), the length of available platellar tendon could be very less , so not sure if this would result in any other problems.
At this point, allograft looks the easier option, but I am perpetually worried about infections and strength at a later stage(I am only 34 now and looking forward to many active years ahead).so the confusion continues…till I actually go under the knife tommorow.
Aps
I too had an old ACL injury that wasn’t fixed (didn’t know it until this happened). Last June I fell and had a medial menicus bucket handle tear. The dr. didn’t know if he was going to fix it (6 weeks non-weightbearing) or remove it (two days no walking) at the time of surgery, so much swelling and the meniscus had folded up on itself and was lodged up in my knee and locked it so the mri couldn’t get as clear a picture as was needed to fully diagnose my condition. Thankfully the tear was in a place (red zone) that was fixable, which meant stitches then non-weight bearing for 6 weeks. He also found that I had no ACL, my injury back in 1978 was worse than the dr.’s back then diagnosed. It did not keep me from playing softball, volleyball and basketball though.
For Robert too: I had problems with scar tissue around the scar, I wasn’t told to massage the wounds to keep it from happening. Be sure to do that, massage the wounds/scars otherwise you could add several months of rehab to the sched.
If you are non-weight bearing for 6 weeks try and get stuff together today to make it easier for you, get a box with everything you might need so it’s right at hand, not in the bathroom or upstairs, etc. where you can’t get it. Computer, bills, kleenex, stamps, pen, paper, cough drops, medications, etc. The first couple of days are definitely the worst and gets better every day after that. My husband took Wed-Fri off and by Monday had me pretty well situated. Ok, it’s tough not to be able to carry anything, so try and have stuff at hand, makes it a lot easier. I used a small reusable grocery bag and slung it over the crutch under my arm and that worked great for carrying stuff around, especially when I went to PT.
I can tell you the day I went to once crutch and I could carry my own coffee was Fantastic, even if there was a trail of coffee behind me!
I am still contemplating getting the ACL reconstruction, but I figure I went 30 years without one, why change it now.
Good luck with your surgery and I hope the answers to your questions come to you soon. Don’t stress, make the decision and we’ll see you back here in a couple of days.
Hey Aps– Good luck on the surgery tomorrow and let us know how it went and how your feeling.
Joanne- I am going to look into the mederma and glucosamine.
Laurie- i am going to start massaging the knee from now on. When i massage it do i just use my bare hands and massage it slowly or do you use some sort of lotion or something specific?
Also had another question for anyone who may have experienced this.
I have noticed that when i do seated leg lifts I sometimes get this werid feeling in my knee. It’s not painfull at all but it feels like the knee is squeaking or clicking slighty when i lift it up. It doesnt hurt thankfully just feels werid. Is this possibly due to the swelling still in my knee since I am only 3 weeks post-op? Or something I should be concerened with?
Thanks for any help
Aps - Good luck on surgery. The chance of infection from allograft is minimal. I have a friend who’s diabetic and had the allograft, he’s 14 months post op and no issues. Ultimately you have to feel comfortable. Good luck!
Robert- you just massage the scars in a circular motion, several times a day, like 5x. I would also apply some pressure on scars and then massage it. But you can’t do this during your first week post op. I would ask you dr or pt, just to be on the safe side. Your incisions need to fuse first. And the clicking could be bone on bone friction or your new acl falling into its proper place, probably the latter.
Laurie - Glad to hear you’re doing so well. Yes, holding that cup coffee was such an achievement! I smiled when I read your comment. It felt so good to bring my own coffee and meal to the table.
Tara - Congratulations on being able to drive again and soon you’ll be able to ditch those crutches! Yes!
Thanks Joanne, Laurie and Roberts.
Just one thing I noticed late tonight was a severe swelling in the knee , the kind of swelling that was never there for the past 1 month from the time of injury. I was fine during pre op also last week. Do you guys think its a cause of concern and will affect the surgery in anyway ?
Hey Robert - Where is your click? I had, and still have, a click on the outside front of my knee, just outside my patella. My PT said that my IT Band tightened up from surgery, and the click while doing squats/leg press/etc is the IT band sliding over the bones of the knee. I spent about 5 minutes every PT session rolling the IT Band back & forth over a foam roller to loosen the tendon. The click became quite a bit less severe, but is still there today. I guess it’s just one of those things that you have to get used to.
Robert
I agree with Joanne in that you just massage the scars in a circular motion, gently at first several times a day to keep scar tissue from forming. Ask your PT how to do it properly if they think you might have a problem with it.
My incisions healed then they accumulated scar tissue and when rubbed didn’t move. My PT did very minor massages and didn’t direct me to do this, thus the problem. I then had to do deep tissue massages with a cream and eventually they were freed up and have no issue with it today.
But then again, I had my tonsils removed a second time after one grew back and was asked if I wanted to be a live organ donor! (luckily the Dr. was joking!) Maybe my body just likes to produce excess stuff!
Joanne: Good to be doing so good! And might I say, you rock with the advice on this site!
Hey Sean, the click/squeaking is on the left side of my left knee just to the left and below the kneecap. It only happens when I do the seated leg lifts and thankfully its not painfull. Ironically, this morning when doing my exercises it didnt happen but it sort of comes and goes randomly. I will ask PT tomorrow what the story with that is.
Laurie- I will also ask PT about the massaging tomorrow and see how they suggest I do it.
Also going to ask themn about mederma for the scar and glucosamine for helping regenerate some cartilage.
Thankfully on Monday the doctor said i can ditch the brace and yesterday was my first day driving. He said next week i can begin walking with aide of the crutches then gradually down to one crutch then perhaps a cane. Very excited for the next few weeks.
Thanks again for the info ill keep you posted after PT tomorrow.
Thanks Laurie! I had a great team (surgeon/PT), plus this site has given me tons of info. I don’t think Henry knew what he started, 1,000 posts and counting!
I wish he and others who are 1yr+ post op would post and let us know how they are doing and how their grafts are holding up.
It could be a good thing we havent heard from them….Maybe they havent updated us cause they are back to normal and out running, biking, hiking while we’re healing up stuck inside…Just trying to think positively from now on lol.
Hi All
Had Allograft ACL and Meniscus repair yday. Just like Laurie has mentioned in her case, the Dr decided to stitch back the meniscus rather than cut it , but says there is only a 60% chance of recovery for meniscus. No weight bearing for 6 weeks. Right now, the pain is horrible and I am unable to stand from sitting position and sit after standing. Brace is fixed at 20 degress. I am on cold water theraphy and codone at 500 mg every 3 hrs. any other suggestions to overcome this pain ? how long will it be so bad ? this pain and dependency is depressing me more than ever. Oh..when will I be up for my cup of coffee on my own !!!
Hey Aps,
I wont sugar-coat it but the first week is going to be bad. Painfull, tough to sleep, and uncomfortable. It will get better though. I was non-weight bearing for 6 weeks as well but next week will be my 5th week post-op and the doctor said I can already get rid of the brace and start to try walking next week.
When your on the couch or bed keep a pillow under your foot and ankle NOT under your knee. The pain for me went away after a week and it just became uncomfortable to sleep in the brace.
If they start you out on physical therapy soon you wont be able to do much at first but you will see every day little improvements. I feel great after PT as it really gets the blood flowing and loosens up the knee/leg since it usually was in a brace and on the couch 24/7.
Lots of ice for pain and swelling will help. Try and keep it elevated at heart level as much as possible. Even if your just sitting on the couch reading or watching TV try to do some ankle pumps to get the blood flowing andsome motion in the foot and leg.
It will suck for a week or two but trust me it will get better. I am still a long long way away but i really do feel better each day and next week when i can start walking will be a relief.
Keep us updated and let me know if you need anything else.
Thanks Robert for the details, But I am not clear on how to support the ankle with a pillow. Right now, I am keeping a pillow under my knee. Tried supporting the ankle , but its difficult and painful due to the angle at which the brace is set. Am I doing it any wrong ?
Also, wanted to know if you were prescribed any antibiotics after the surgery or just the painkillers. I am given only painkillers while my discharge papers mention antibiotic also,so was wondering If I missed anything
From everything i heard and read you should keep a pillow under the unkle or lower part of your calf not under the knee, but you should ask your doctor to see what he/she says.
I was prescribed percocet and strong asprin which i took once every 4 hrs. I only needed the percocet for about a week and a half and I had autograft surgery from the patella tendon which is supposed to be the most painfull of the surgeries. The asrpin I took for about 2 weeks and now i am off everything.
Robert is 100% correct. You’re not supposed to keep a pillow under the knee. Placing the pillow under the calf or ankle is going to be less comfortable, but will promote leg extension, which should be your largest concern immediately after surgery. If putting the pillow under the foot is too painful for your knee right now, then just rest the leg on a flat surface, but do not put that pillow behind/under the knee.
Robert - I’m glad to hear that you’re going to be walking soon. I was on crutches for 6 weeks after surgery as well, and that was the worst part by a long shot. Once you’re walking again, you’re going to feel like a new man. I had a pretty crazy limp for a few days after getting off the crutches, as well as strange “pins & needls” type feeling in my foot while weight bearing, but it went away quickly. Walking really is a luxury that most people take for granted.
Aps - Also, talk to your doctor, but I’m not sure how necessary the post-surgical braces are. I was not prescribed a brace after surgery, and my knee has turned out fine. It seems to me that the brace is actually going to slow you down, b/c you can’t work on extension from the get-go. I’d check wtih your doc to see if you can lose it, given that it doesn’t sound very comfortable.
Aps:
Hi. Hope you are feeling better today. I wore my brace up until my first post-op Dr. appointment. I wasn’t allowed to bend my knee more then 90° that first six weeks to protect the meniscus from being “squished” until it had time to heal, also the reason for non-weight bearing. I agree with Robert and Sean, don’t put the pillow under the knee, go straight leg as often as you.
The first week is the toughest. I am a year out now and still have some issues, but mostly my fault. I can’t completely remember now what it was like then. My husband says it was bad. Time is a great healer so try and bear the discomfort these first couple of days and then every day after you will have small, but measurable triumphs!
I used Vicodin and bayer asprin (to keep blood clots from forming) . Didn’t you have a tooth infection before? Maybe that’s why the orders state antibiotics. I’d call your dr. and ask if you are supposed to be on them, that’s something you might not want to put off.
Sean: You are so right about taking walking for granted!
Thanks Laurie, Sean and Robert, I am better today, went again to doc yday for first post op, they just checked the wound and removed extra bandages.
i checked on medicines and vicodin is the only thing to go
My brace is set at 20 degrees and Doc says its to protect my meniscus. so with this angle, i am not able to elevate my foot or ankle. any idea on how i can do it ? where exactly should i push my pillow? will an ordinary pillow work ?
also, what wuld be a safe day ,I mean after how many days can i take a bath ? my stitches r going to be removed on 7/27, but i think i will stink if i survive on sponge bath till then
still having trouble getting up from bed and couch, hurts like hell when i try to stand or sit, starting PT from Monday 7/19 thats the progress as of today,,,,and ofcourse, continuing giving a very bad time to my husband ! ..
Hey Aps,
I laid on the couch during the first week or 2 and just kept my legs out with a regular pillow under the ankle/calf.
When it comes to showering and a bath that was torture for me. 5 days after the surgery i wanted to take a shower but was told i couldnt untill the stitches were out. I said screw it and literally put a giant hefty bag over my left leg, held onto the metal bar in the shower and hoped in on one leg and took a shower. I felt like a million bucks after it. However, it was probably not a smart idea when you think about trying to get into a bathtub or shower on one leg (unless you have a walk in shower then you might be ok as long as you can hang onto something) I took a risk in sake of feeling clean. I still shower everyday but have to hold on and hop into the tub as i still cannot weight bear until next week.
If you have a walk in shower id say go for it as long as you cover up the stiches very well. Otherwise its another part of the surgery and recovery process that sucks.
It takes me literally 45 minutes between turning the water on, getting in and standing on one leg, drying off, hanging up the towels, then getting dressed again.
Good luck and just be carefull if you decidce to go thru with it and good luck at PT.
yes Robert,I think I will make a dash for shower in a day or two:)
Laurie, were u using the brace 24*7 for the first 6 weeks or was it off and on ?
Aps - I used the brace 24/7 up until first post=op dr app’t. Then I wore it at night for another 2 weeks in bed at night as I have a terrible habit of tossing and turning, I was afraid I’d wrench the knee while half asleep. My dr. told me I could ditch it I think on the next visit, I’ll go back and check on that. (I always took a mini voice recorder with me so I could replay everything the dr. said to do. I also had my husband use it after surgery so I could hear what the surgeon had to say when I was in recovery.) I also wore it while doing my home exercises that include bending the knee so I wouldn’t go over the 90° mark.
The thing I had the worst time with was showering. My shower is very small, we got a cheapo shower chair, and a hand held shower head (waterpik on a snake). I howled every time I stepped in the shower thinking my foot would touch ground, I’d bear weight, then I’d have to go through it all again. It was not a fun thing for me or my husband. Eventually that became much easier. The hand held shower head helped tremendously because it gave me control of the water direction. I’m pretty sure I had to wait at least a week for the first shower. But oh wow that first one was great!
Do you have a small bar stool or sturdy chair? I always had one close by the couch, I’d use my right arm on the stool to help lift me off the couch, cut down on the pain. same in the bathroom, I had an old wooden cd rack next to the commode and again I’d use my right arm/hand to help me stand up. (bad left knee)
Hope tomorrow brings relief to you.
Hi All,
I tore my acl (left knee) on June 30 playing basketball. I was running a fast break and tried to go up for a layup when my left knee completely gave away and hyper-extended outwards. Easily the worst pain I have ever felt. MRI confirmed an acl tear and meniscus damage. My knee swelled up quite a bit and was on crutches for about 6 days. I was so depressed after the injury suspecting I had torn my acl. It’s been a little over two weeks and I’ve been working hard trying to get my leg into decent pre-op shape. I’m about 100 degrees flexion and can walk normally. I’ve been debating whether to go with autograft or allograft, and think allograft is the way to go (for me at least). I’ve decided I’m done with high demanding sports and will stick with running/biking/hiking to stay in shape. I’m scheduled for another visit with my surgeon to schedule surgery.
Hey Lee,
Alot of people, including myself, have this debate before surgery. You can do all the research and info you want on it and still be split on which way to go.
It basically comes down to how comfortable you feel with going with a transplant when using allograft. Im sure your doctor and other have told you there is a risk of infection but it is very very slight. Some people arent comfortable with taking that risk which is completely normal. I was one of them.
I decided to go with autograft surgery using the patella tendon and had the operation on June 17th. I chose autograft because my doctor reccommended it because of my age (25) and the fact that I will need to be physically active as a police officer. They say it is more painfull and the first 2 weeks were real bad, but at 4 1/2 weeks post-op Im cleared to start walking on Monday morning at PT.
Again every doctor has their own specialties also when it comes to which surgery they preform and there are alot of success stories on here from people using both allograft and autograft. It all comes down to what your most comfortable with and while I would never tell anyone that one surgery is better than the other, I would highly suggest that if you have any worries about using a transplant from another person then you probably shouldnt go thru with the surgery. Theres no point in trying to physically rehab the knee while also mentally stressing out about the transplant. If your fine with it then go for it.
Best of luck either way. Keep us updated
Robert,
Thanks for the insight. I’m glad you feel that the patella was the right option for you. No doubt your recovery is proof of it. As for me, although I may be relatively young (24), I’ve decided to give up on the high active/strenuous sports (e.g. soccer, basketball, football). I’m content with jogging, hiking, and biking for exercise. I’d rather minimize the risk for another acl injury. As for the allograft, the risk for disease/infection is potentially concerning, yet the probabilities are so low that I’m not dissuaded. The faster recovery time, less incisions, and most importantly for me, not losing another part of your leg (hamstring/patella), outweighs the risk of infection/failure. But who knows what the right answer is? As long as you’re comfortable I suppose.
Good luck with your PT and recovery.
Lee,
I’ve given up on the sports too from here on out. Just going to stick to running and biking and the gym. I cant risk anything anymore with the police dept. so it is what it is.
Best of luck on the surgery, when is your surgery date?
Robert,
Going to set the date this week with my doctor. I’m hoping my rehab is going well enough so that he’ll clear me for surgery.
I continue to read all your posts, though I am a year and a half into my recovery. The point I want to make is that this is a personal decision, and I think there are good/bad points to either one. I had to make a quick decision and my doctor had suggested either hamstring or cadaver. For me, since I didn’t know enough about the cadaver, I chose the hamstring. I liked the idea of using my own tissue and my doctor seemed to agree since my sport of choice is Krav Maga. After my surgery I found this site and was floored when I read that my recovery would take longer and that my hamstring would be weak. I started second guessing my decision but then of course it was too late anyway. So I did the best I could in rehab and within a year I was back to doing Krav. As I talked to physician assistants and physical therapists during that year I have found that my recovery time was NOT longer (using my own tissue, my body absorbed the graft faster) and that my hamstring is doing just fine. In fact, my “bad” knee is stronger that my “good” knee, though recently my good knee has became my bad knee. I think I tore my meniscus or a baker’s cyst burst. Either way I have heard that young athletes or those that do contact sports, using your own tissue CAN be (not always) a better option. If you plan on not doing explosive exercise then perhaps the cadaver may be better (though not always.) Just make sure you don’t jump back into sports too soon and follow through with your rehab no matter what decision you make.
I’ve been wanting to ask. I tore my acl and lateral meniscus two and half weeks ago. My doctor wants me to reacquire my full range of motion as well as some strength prior to surgery. Initially after my injury I couldn’t bend my knee at all. Two and half weeks later, I’m a little over 100 degrees. My goal is to match my good leg (140 degrees). However, there reamains considerable resistance/tightness above my knee when attempting to bend it as much as possible. Although the swelling has subsided considerably, some still remains. Should I be concerned at this point that my range of motion isn’t at its max?
Lee,
My doctor told me to do the same before my surgery as well. My knee was too stiff and swollen to operate on and needed to wait a onths before he could preform the surgery.
I couldnt walk for about 2 weeks but then was able to limp and then gradaully got rid of the limp and just walked relatively slow. I dont think i got to full range of motion in my knee before the surgery but was pretty close.
Day 5, Pain still lingers with occasional shooting pain. Still on vicodin - 1 in 4 hrs, yet to get a shower ,Thanks to Lauries suggestion,am able to stand up with a sturdy support on my good side.
Starting PT tommorow and hope it makes things better. While I culd vouch that my surgeon was really good, he dint meet us after surgery and his assistant who came in to talk to us was happy to walk away as fast as she culd without answering my so many doubts, dos and donts. So I am hoping PT wuld answer some of them at least. I am happy everyday taht I found this place to ask so many questions and get helpful answers from so many of you - Robert, Joanne, Laurie, Sean…
Robert, Hope your walking is going good and no issues.
Lee, welcome and whatever u decide, go with confidence and outcome would be good.
By the way, anyone out there uncomfortable using crutches ? I was using a walking support before surgery (for almost 4 weeks after injury) and I prefer using that than crutches, any idea if thats OK to use than crutches ?
Hey Aps,
Glad ur slowly feeling better. Definitely DO NOT get rid crutches just yet. Since ur not supposed to put any weight on the knee, you need the crutches. Esp do not use a cane at this point. The cane only takes about 10-20% of the weight off your knee and you’ll end up hurting your shoulders.
Ask your PT to make sure you’re using the crutches properly. It takes a little getting used to.
I’m annoyed for you that your dr didn’t take the time to talk to you after surgery and that the nurses rushed you. My surgeon saw me prior to surgery, kind of like a pre-game, ok this is what were going to do, how ur feeling, and then he marked up my knee. I then met everyone on my surgical team (nurses, anesthesiologist, asst surgeon..etc). They also asked me questions. My surgeon came 2x to see me post op and then gave me several papers instructing what he wanted me to do and all sorts of advice..etc. The nurse showed me how to use the crutches and once i was able to, they got me up, put me in a special like reclining chair and gave me a little breakfast. They were wonderful.
Ask your PT as many questions as you need and if you have to, call your surgeon.
My surgeon, makes himself available even thru email. I had a question regarding one of my incisions right on the bend of the knee seemed to be separating once I started PT, 10 days post-op. I had emailed him at 11 pm. The next morning I saw that he responded at 3am.
This your knee, you make sure your PT and surgeon take care of you.
Hi Lee,
Welcome! It more important that the swelling goes down and you have some range of motion prior to surgery. My surgeon was concerned about reaching max rom prior to surgery, the emphasis for me was just more on strengthening the quads. The thinking is the stronger your legs muscles are prior to surgery, the quicker you’ll recover. You will lose a lot of muscle tone after surgery.
Good luck, when’s your surgery?
Lee - Correction, my surgeon, wasn’t concerned about me reaching max rom prior to surgery.
I know Joanne,I am going to one of the so called very reputed hospital that is research based and all good. They did everything very nice pre op and post op, but I dint get to see the surgeon post op and his assistant is always in hurry.it also hurts that i can never get him on phone
I have been down with injury for little more than 4 weeks now while its been 5 days I had surgery, the good knee hurts so badly now , i hope i dint tear anything in that by putting so much of pressure on it for the past 4 weeks. i think i better learn to use the crutches.
Joanne,
I haven’t scheduled my surgery yet. My doctor insisted on reevaluating my knee to determine if it can be operated on. I’m seeing a physical therapist right know so hopefully I can decrease the swelling, increasing rom and strength. I’ve already lost much of my leg strength. You can easily tell the difference by looking at my legs. How long did you wait following your injury to have surgery?
day 6 post op - lot of pain and swelling till fingers suddenly since last night. is this anything to worry abt or common to happen sometimes suddenly ?
Hey everyone,
Just got back from PT today and everything feels and is looking great. I was cleared to start walking with assistance from the crutches with partial weight bearing. Felt weird at first but zero pain and after a minute or two i got the hang of it. Doctor said I should stick with the partial weight bearing until i see him again on August 2nd. I was also able to do standing calf raises for the first time.
Another mini-milestone in the books.
How is everyone else hanging in?
first session of PT today was so relaxing.at PT, met another lady who was walking normal at 4 weeks of ACL allograft and it gave lot of hope that i culd do it in 6 or 7 weeks for sure.
Robert, hope u r enjoying walking
just an update… im 4 1/2 months post op and im feeling pretty good. My only concern is that it feels like im not progresing, it sux makes me feel like im not getting anywhere.
QUESTION> in the near future when i go back to soccer do i have to wear a brace? i just need advice.. help!
Hey Jaylo,
I’ve heard that wearing a brace when returning to competitive sports after surgery doesn’t help or hurt either way but alot of people do wear one because mentally it feels better. Some other people on here may know better, especially Sean who recently returned to soccer. But also ask your doctor and physical therapist and see what they say.
I’m only 5 weeks outy of surgery and I’ve been thinking about a brace too for when i eventually return to going to the gym or running and biking.
Hi Lee,
My dr scheduled surgery 17 days after injury. I was able to walk around with a cane and it was quite ironic that by the time the surgery date came, I felt better like I didn’t need surgery. It was weird walking myself into surgery knowing that in a few hours I wouldn’t be walking normal for weeks!
Yes, my leg muscle definitely atrophied a lot. I jokingly would call it my skinny leg. It takes a lot to get the strength back. Like anything we have to work for it.
Congratulations Robert!!! That’s one of those mini milestones that really feel good, cause the next one will be to ditch at least one crutch and then you can carry your own coffee or sandwich to the table!
Hey Aps and Lee,
Try getting a cooling machine. I cant stress how much it helps with the swelling and pain. You can wear it 24/7.
I lent mine out to my friend and she loved it. She had knee surgery a couple of years ago (meniscus) and didn’t have the cooling machine, she recently had to have knee surgery on the other knee and she was amazed how much the cooling machine helped.
If you cant get it then be diligent on icing your knee. I think its 20 minutes on and 40 minutes off. Ask your PT to be sure.
Hey Jaylo,
Glad ur doing better. We all plateau and you just need to probably add different exercises to your routine or more weights. Are you still going to PT?
Just take it slow and I wouldn’t try to go back to soccer too soon. Give yourself the time you need to heal. When does your season start?
Thanks Joanne, I did take the cooling m/c and keep in on 24*7.
I am looking on advice on what kind of food is better or what kind of foods will help in healing on meniscus and getting back on feet. are there any particular foods to be avoided ??
Hey Aps,
Not sure about that. I don’t think there is any particular wonder food that’s going to do it. I would say just eat healthy overall to keep fit. Maybe ask your PT or a nutritionist.
thanx Robert and Joanne.
@Robert> i hOpe your recovery is going well and thanx on the tip.I will ask my PT as soon as i go back.
@Joanne> i recently stopped going to PT he gave me a home exercise plan that ive been following at home but i get discourage easy., my season starts in Nov.( its just a recreational league) but its really competiitve.
Hey everyone,
Like jaylo I was wondering if anyone on here used any sort of knee brace once they returned to physical activity of any sort whether it be soccer, football, running, biking, etc…and if so which one did you use and how pleased were you with it?
I’ve read wearing a brace when returning to physical activity doesn’t necessarily help or hurt in protecting the knee but alot of people wear one because mentally they feel it makes them feel more comfortable.
I did some looking online and the DonJoy company makes popular braces that athletes wear after ACL surgery. Some are very expensive but if they do work id be willing to spring for it.
Anyone with any info would be appreciated.
Robert
Since I opted to wait to have my ACL reconstructed my surgeon suggested a brace for high activity moments. I’m 49 so I don’t do the extreme sports anymore. The surgeon suggested the DonJoy defiance. When I went to their brace people, they only provided Breg. I went outside my surgeon and contacted DonJoy. The rep was great up until delivery day of my DJ 4Titude low profile brace. I had issues and questions and tried to contact him but to no avail. I contacted DonJoy corporation and they suggested I contact my rep. This have been going on since December. I use the brace only when I’m hauling sand or doing extensive landscaping or when I need to climb a ladder. It is not very comfortable and a pain to position correctly. It slips and loosens quickly. My insurance paid for most of it. It’s sad, you can buy it outright from DonJoy for under $600, but go through insurance and they jack the price up to $1200. It cost me $65.
I know you will be highly active so my situation isn’t much help that way. What I can offer is my experience with DonJoy. Hopefully my guy was the exception. Next time, however, I would go through my surgeon’s office so if I did have trouble, questions, complaints, I’d have a place to go for some resolution.
Aps: How are you doing? Did you get that shower in yet??? I went back and read my log and my first shower was 10 days after surgery. Woo hoo 10 days was way tooo long.
Hope everyone is doing well.
Hey Laurie,
That’s what I would be affraid of. Getting something that expensive only to have it slip and loosen up and not work right. I’ll ask my doctor and PT and see what they say about it when the time comes. Maybe I’ll get one of those simple braces that dont have those hinges on it that are about $50 bucks that slide on the leg like a sleeve but i will ask around.
Hey Laurie
I am doing good. Able to manage a “partial” shower from day 6, looking forward to a full one soon
I am having my post op tomorrow(day 13) to remove the stitches. Can someone guide me on what I shuld be asking the doc ? I usually go prepared to doc, but this time around my mind is so blank from pain and all this stuff. Also, after how many weeks would i be going for my next post op ?
One another important thing if anybody can let me know how to avoid or help - my good knee hurts like hell unable to take the stress and strain. Is there anyway I can avoid or lessen the stress on it ?
Hey Aps,
I had my surgery on a Thursday and saw my doctor 4 days later on monday to remove and replace the bandages. Then i saw him 2 weeks later to remove the stiches. And i am seeing him again on August 2nd to see if he will clear me to ditch the crutches and try walking without them.
Basically ask any question you can think of. I had so many questions that I just flat out told him what my daily routine is and asked if that was OK. I told him what hurt and didnt hurt when i went to PT and he told me that was normal for now. Im sure you’ll have specific questions but i would also give him a general rundown of your daily routines and see what his reaction is.
My good knee hurt too when i took a shower because it was supporting everything. But once i got back on the crutches i was able to balance the weight better. Thats really the only time my good knee would hurt was in the shower trying to stand on one leg. For that reason i took very quick showers so i could get back on the crutches and on the couch to elevate it and ice it.
Cant really think of anything else. But dont be affraid to ask him or us here anything.
Aps:
When my good knee got sore I used an elastic ace knee brace for short periods of time. It gave it some compression and always made it feel better. It is under so much more stress right now and will improve as your bad knee heals and gets stronger. I haven’t been able to find one at my sports store but did order one online at amazon. The brand was a Mcdavid Elastic Knee Support. I actually still use it occasionally on both knees when I’ve overdone it. (An ace wrap would probably work too.) Again, always ask your dr.
Robert.
August 2!! Ditch the crutches!! Fingers crossed for you.
When I started bearing weight again on the meniscus repair, my surgeon had me put 60-80 lbs weight on it several times a day, 10 reps at a time on a bathroom scale. I used an old dial scale to measure the weight, so if you have one or can borrow one it might be helpful. I used an old phone book next to the scale to make a flat surface for both feet. After a few times though you get to know how much weight to put down and you are full weight bearing in no time at all….a wonderful thing indeed.
For those of you who have gone with the allograft option, are there any important questions/requests I should ask/make to my surgeon regarding the allograft?
Thanks Laurie and Roberts,
The Dr took off my stitches yesterday and cleared me for a full shower and put water on the bandages tomorrow . I see some deep open wounds where the stitches were there, so little hesitant to get into full shower. May be I am just being worried ! By the way, did any of you need any dressing to the done(after shower) on a daily basis after the stitches were removed ?
Doctor wasn’t so happy with my extension, she says I shuld have got it flat by now(2 weeks over after surgery) and said I have to get it straight by next week and also get 70 degrees bending. I am close to 70 degrees of bending, but straightening is getting little difficult, I will keep up PT and try.
Overall, this is proving to be a overwhelming experience and I am just hoping that everything heals well and continues to be good at the end of it. Its been more than 40 days now from the time of my injury and looking at the fact that I may have 4 or more weeks ahead of me to heal kind of really stresses me out. But looking at all of you people who have done it and who are doing it now, I feel hopeful.
Lee,
Though I dint get to ask any Questions( I had to go in for Allograft due to small size of my platellar tendon), I think you should be at least asking on the age of the donor and exactly what grafts (heel or hamstring or..)they are using. If you are into any active sports, the duration of revascularization and when u can go back to them also will be critical to ask.