2nd ACL tear - good knee

[reeldoc]

Age 47, Family Practice doc - like skiing, Mt Biking, Soccer, Lacrosse

I'm 15 months out from tearing my left ACL playing indoor soccer (14 months out from cadaver graft reconstruction) - now tore my right doing the same thing , I've not seen the ortho yet but I'm 99.99% sure based on prior experience. Will let you know how it goes.

[Sinecure]

Welcome to the club.

[The SMP]

Welcome. I joined after doing my right knee skiing 3 years ago and my left at soccer 2 months ago. I too knew instantly before I hit the ground that things were fucked again. No surprises or unknowns on the second one makes things somewhat easier mentally/physically...

[dicey]

The first one to go is always the hardest. It so much easier with secondaries.

[dpr422]

I am your age and did both of mine playing lacrosse -- the second time was the deal breaker. I shattered my knee cap, blew the acl and more.. That was 18 yrs ago.

Fast forward to the present day... Had an MRI because my knee was hurting and now looking at a TKR.. The Dr said there was so much to fix that he wouldn't know where to start..

So be thankful -- it could be worse...

[reeldoc]

Saw my ortho last week - he did one push/pull with the Lachman maneuver and confirmed my ACL was gone (no MRI needed). You are right about it being somewhat easier the second time around - I had already mentally accepted it before I saw him (the first time around I was in denial and had myself convinced it was a MCL strain). Surgery is set for 3/10/11. I had a good experience with the allograft last time so will do that again.

The big question is will I go back to playing indoor soccer, to some degree it like why have the surgery unless I want to go back to doing sports like that. Have those of you who have had both sides reconstructed gone back to the sports that led to your injuries?

[hose-man]

I am 2 weeks post op with my first knee in jury ever. Isolated ACL. Patellor tendon Allograft. I don't have the voice of experience you're looking for, but I'll gladly subject you to my oppinion.

I plan to go back to the exact same rowdy behavior on the ski hill that caused my injury, with one significant difference.... On the date of my injury I weighed 210 lbs. I am 35 yrs old, 5'10' and wasn't FAT at that weight, but was thicker than necessary. I've trimmed to 190 lbs now & plan to take on next ski season at a strong 175-180 lbs. I believe that the weight reduction is a significant enough mitigating factor that I can justify my continued huck & roll ski adventures. If i get fat again, I probably should reign in my skiing accordingly.

So, what other factors can you control that will help you justify participation in the sport you love at the same level that left you injured?? Indoor soccer is a tricky one. My captain had his knee destroyed playing indoor & decided not to play any more. His whole family plays & he loves it, but its just not worth it to him. Hes got other stuff that has filled that void now & he's not unhappy. Just made a practical decision to stop playing.

Good luck. I know it's difficult.

[reeldoc]

Had ACL reconstruction yesterday - allograft - everything went routine with the recon. Unfortunately when he got in there my orthopedist found I also had a medial femoral condyle injury with traumatic damage of the articular cartilage all the way down to bone. He treated this with a microfracture technique to stimulate fibrocartilage growth over the defect. I will need to be non weight bearing on my right knee for 6 weeks. Has anyone else had this type of injury - seems like it will make if difficult to rehab my ACL if I have to be non weight bearing for 6 weeks

[tone capone]

+++++++++++++++++vibes man, hope you are in good hands there. Best wishes and keep us updated.

[Alaskan Rover]

. Unfortunately when he got in there my orthopedist found I also had a medial femoral condyle injury with traumatic damage of the articular cartilage all the way down to bone. He treated this with a microfracture technique to stimulate fibrocartilage growth over the defect. I will need to be non weight bearing on my right knee for 6 weeks.

Aackkk...I wish you hadn't said that...now I have something ELSE to worry about. Crikey. I'm 8 days post-injury to what I had presumed was a MCL grade 1 to grade 1.5 tear...and am doing at-home grade 1 recuperative techniques secondary to seeing a sports med doc. But now I'll have to look up issues with condyle-specific parameters, as I DO have particular point-tenderness right at that condyle...8 days post-injury it seems condyle point--pain should be somewhat less, but not really. I'm hoping it's no avulsion (knock on wood). Heretofore it didn't present as such.

As to your previous question about post-op life after ACL reconstruction...my ACL reconstruction was an patellar tendon allograft done by a very well respected sports team surgeon, who did an excellent job. 3 months of very strenous and active sports PT...then 6 months of PT on my own...and my knee was nearly as strong as pre-surgery according to Cybex results....but it took a FULL YEAR post-op before I really felt I could trust my knee like before. But AFTER that year, I felt pretty damned strong, and was climbing and boarding and ATing with just as much gusto and gumption (is there a difference?) as pre-injury. Tw0 and three years post-op and it felt even better. The biggest insurance against re-injury is taking the time and effort to do a really strong post-op PT routine without overdoing it. What you do in the year after surgery basically sets up your knee for the rest of your active life, so it is important.

The thing is this: Once you have ANY grade III ACL injury you will never again be 100% strong and stable with that particular knee...that is an impossibility. Any surgeon tells you otherwise...he's blowin smoke. BUT, you CAN get back 95% or even 98% of your strength back. You might even test out at 100% strength and zero laxity (although unusual), but that particular knee has been pere-stressed now, and it WILL be a little more susceptible to re-injury down the road. But you can get pretty damn close to pre-injury strength and stability...and that is pretty damn good.

Given that....I used to play some indoor soccer. Fun game, but it is probably one of the most valgus-force inducing sports out there with all the quick pivots and close-in passing and ball-play and collisions. Played ice-hockey too, and found indoor soccer way more potentially stressful to the knees and respective ligaments.

You might want to think about switching to regular soccer post-op...a LOT easier on knees in terms of pivoting, etc...and almost as much fun. Good luck.

[Woodlandclown]

Had ACL reconstruction yesterday - allograft - everything went routine with the recon. Unfortunately when he got in there my orthopedist found I also had a medial femoral condyle injury with traumatic damage of the articular cartilage all the way down to bone. He treated this with a microfracture technique to stimulate fibrocartilage growth over the defect. I will need to be non weight bearing on my right knee for 6 weeks. Has anyone else had this type of injury - seems like it will make if difficult to rehab my ACL if I have to be non weight bearing for 6 weeks

I was 6 weeks non-weight bearing for my ACL surgery (for a meniscus fix, not what you had), but had no effect whatsoever on the rehab. They find other ways to torture you.