Does anyone here live (i.e. SKI) without ACL?

[duboix]

Visited orthopedist last week - he said, that I have a torn medial meniscus and ACL. His plan is to make knee arthroscopy - ACL and whole joint revision and meniscus repair. After two months I'm gonna be fully rehabbed and we'll see if my knee is stable enough to live without ACL. Most of non-professional sportsmen here in Russia, who tore their ACL, live without it, cause surgery ain't cheap and rehab period is long and most of medical insurance programs don't cover such cases. I've got a couple of friends without ACL's - one of them skis and bikes, another one plays soccer. They don't feel any discomfort or instability now. What can you say, what do you guys know about living without ACL?

[dbldmnd]

I tore my ACL last december, but my knee was too stable and they didn't think it was torn. Finally after a few months it was still hurting, so I had an MRI to confirm that it was torn.

From December until the close of the season, I skied on it. I figured out how to deal with my knee. I was afraid to hit the big jumps in the terrain park, but I was skiing bumps every day out. I would usually get a "pivot slip episode" where the knee shifted, but it would then go back into the normal position. These hurt like mad, but after a few minutes of laying in the snow I could get up and continue skiing.

After living with no ACL for 4 months I realized that it was effecting my everyday life and the actvities I participate in. The knee would hurt and swell up after running for 10 minutes when I was coaching my daughters soccer team, it hurt when I would do yard work, etc. During this time I learned that I could live with no ACL if I really needed to, but this would not allow me to participate in sports activities at the level I am used to. My choice was to get it fixed.

I had the hammstring graft ACL repair performed yesterday. I look forward to getting back to having a normal knee.

Good lock with your decision.

[Zeedashbo]

i finished a season, 30+ pow days w/o one. the end result was that i messed up my meniscus bad with the whole slip/pop thing. if you got really buff legs then it isn't too much of a problem cause the muscles keep everything in place.

[focus]

my dad has virtually no acl in his left knee, it's completely unattached.

he skis, has a strong left turn, but isn't too confident on the right turns. every now and then the right turn just isn't there.... tends to keep him out of the hairier terrain. he still gets out there and enjoys it, but he'd enjoy it a heckuva lot more if he'd just suck it up and get it fixed.

[altagirl]

I also finished the season without mine the first time. Army docs kept misdiagnosing it as nothing that a little motrin wouldn't fix (it felt stable due to both strong muscles and swelling) so I kept skiing on it. But it would blow out again every few ski days, swell up,etc. It usually worked but I had no real confidence in it until it was surgically repaired. And I'm lucky I didn't do more damage in the meantime.

[Vinman]

in some and I emphasize "some" cases, there are people who can function at a very high level of cutting, twisting, turning activites without an ACL. These are usually high level/pro athletes who for some reason are able to compensate with other structures to stabilize the knee.

But sadly for the rest of us who are regular joe athletes that is typically not the case. As those in this thread have already attested to, you cn expect the knee to give out, swell and possibly damage other structures such as the mensicus, joint surface, and other knee ligaments.

now as bad as that sounds you could "maybe" get away with bracing the knee in something like a Donjoy defiance, but not without a price. And the price I speak of is the reduced skiing of hairball terrain/park/charging hard in general. Those types of things even with the brace, you'd be taking your chances on having the knee give out.

On another note 2 months rehab for and ACL revision is way too short. Not sure what that doc is telling you or if you just misunderstood him. But 2 months even for pro athletes is unheard of. 2 months for the meniscus repair is more like it and 6 to 8+ months total time for meniscus+ACL repair.

[basom]

On another note 2 months rehab for and ACL revision is way too short. Not sure what that doc is telling you or if you just misunderstood him. But 2 months even for pro athletes is unheard of. 2 months for the meniscus repair is more like it and 6 to 8+ months total time for meniscus+ACL repair.


i think his plan is to have his meniscus done now, do the rehab for that (2 months) then see if his knee is and feels stable enough to live sans acl.

my advise is if you want to ride on the snow without an acl take up snowboarding.

[duboix]

i think his plan is to have his meniscus done now, do the rehab for that (2 months) then see if his knee is and feels stable enough to live sans acl.

what he said

[Woodsy]

a friend has no acls in either knee.( car accident)
she skis with braces
well
everywhere @ alta at least