ACL Class of 2017

[Djongo Unchained]

Even with all the high tech imaging it still seemed to me that they weren't certain about the extent of the damage until they got in there and had a look.

My Doc stated this exactly after a few 1000 fixes. Only seeing it will be certain.

And I believe the life without an acl is def a thing. For a steady lifer skier, that's the less ideal path I'd assume.
Contrarily, she sounds like a prime candidate for dealing with it as is for a while too.

And she's gonna be a lifer methinks.

[Djongo Unchained]

Thought about this thread today while skiing.

For the first time since my ACL surgery back a few years now, I felt like my repaired knee was actually stronger feeling through the turn in rough conditions.
Frozen big bumps of yesterday's melted corn.

I was pretty psyched to feel a bomber stance on a long suspect leg.

[pfluffenmeister]

8.5 months post-op left knee ACL hamstring autograft.

PT'ed soft then hard.

Just put in four days skiing in the last five and feel pretty damn good.

[Duffman]

8.5 months post-op left knee ACL hamstring autograft.

PT'ed soft then hard.

Just put in four days skiing in the last five and feel pretty damn good.

Fuck yeah mag!

[pfluffenmeister]

Fuck yeah mag!

9 days in 11 (short days, but definitely charging).

RAARRRRR!!!

[sb]

Nice!

[montanaskier]

I’ve got 30 days so far. Some good, some bad, but getting stronger each time it seems. I skied a couple days at Telluride and Crested Butte the last two weekends and was my first time in steep, tech terrain and did pretty good. I don’t like chatter on firm snow (that’s how it tore this past time). I ski pretty well until my quad fatigues and then it’s done and quickly. I’m not skiing nearly as much as normal this season, trying to stay patient.


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[yeahman]

I’ve got 30 days so far. Some good, some bad, but getting stronger each time it seems. I skied a couple days at Telluride and Crested Butte the last two weekends and was my first time in steep, tech terrain and did pretty good. I don’t like chatter on firm snow (that’s how it tore this past time). I ski pretty well until my quad fatigues and then it’s done and quickly. I’m not skiing nearly as much as normal this season, trying to stay patient.


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Sounds very typical, you're doing it right. Listen to your gut.

[Duffman]

I’ve got 30 days so far. Some good, some bad, but getting stronger each time it seems. I skied a couple days at Telluride and Crested Butte the last two weekends and was my first time in steep, tech terrain and did pretty good. I don’t like chatter on firm snow (that’s how it tore this past time). I ski pretty well until my quad fatigues and then it’s done and quickly. I’m not skiing nearly as much as normal this season, trying to stay patient.


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How far out are you now?

[montanaskier]

How far out are you now?

1 year is Thursday this week! Skied 3 days this weekend….Friday was good but really really tired and sore after. Sat and Sun were great….didnt ski as well on Sun but Sat was as strong as I’ve felt all season.


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[mcski]

Sounds great. Maybe I missed it, but what type of graph did you get?

[montanaskier]

Sounds great. Maybe I missed it, but what type of graph did you get?

Quad this time


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[Duffman]

Question for the vets- how long were you in a locked extension brace in the immediate post op period. I talked to my wife's Ortho's assistant on the phone yesterday going over some pre and post op plans, and she said she would be in a locked extension brace for 6 weeks Post op. My understanding is thats only normal for a meniscus repair, not a straight ACL reconstruction. Seemed odd , and we will ask the surgeon before surgery. , but just wanted to see what's the norm here.

[pfluffenmeister]

Hmm, I've had it done once on both knees.
ACL reconstruction only, no other damage.

IIRC is was back to surgeon in 2 days for dressing removal/inspection.
Then locked for two weeks moving to limited ROM.

[Djongo Unchained]

Quad this time

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So then you have a little divot above the knee now? It took the better part of 3 years for mine to flush up to normal.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
@Duff - dang, 6 weeks doesn't sound right to me. I had full acl, meniscus nibbling and a partial mcl tear. Not to mention the completely separate surgery of harvesting the quad graft
Iirc, I was in the stiff brace for a few days, maybe a week. Had a full donjoy right after and even that was only for maybe 4-6 weeks.

We're all different and that's the key. Some heal faster, others drag on and on seemingly.

[mcski]

Have cadaver grafts become old news? Seems like most I hear about these days are harvested. When cadaver grafts started becoming common the consensus was they were stronger. Sounds like that perception has changed for most docs? Given the harvest options, I think I’d feel better w the quad compensating than the hamstring

[pfluffenmeister]

My cutter said autografts are typically better for active types aiming at returning to their previous [/bestskieronthemountain] levels of performance.

IIRC cross sectional area is quite a bit larger with an autograft (IE 9mm diameter vs 7mm for cadaver graft; which has been irradiated so not as supple).

He said 6% loss off hamstring strength but no one would notice that unless they were like an Olympic sprinter or something ...

I responded with the aforementioned [/bestskieronthemountain] comment

But I just break'em.


I'm just past 9 months post-op on 2/22.
PTed soft, then PTed hard.
15 days skiing since 1/30 when I started my Powder Pilgrimage.
1\2 days, but charging.

[yeahman]

He said 6% loss off hamstring strength but no one would notice that unless they were like an Olympic sprinter or something ...

That's exactly what my surgeon told me, but he was wrong, I do notice it.

It's possible some of us ski harder than the average doc realizes.

I'm not even saying it compromises my skiing, but I do notice it. Stepping into Marker Griffons, which are known for being very stiff, and it is noticeable between one leg and the other. Had to switch to Attacks [emoji3]

[mcski]

That’s why I kind of feel like I would feel it less if the graph was from my quad instead on the hammy but who knows.

I do think most of the docs under estimate the use cases for most of the tRG type folks

[PowerWhore7]

Have cadaver grafts become old news? Seems like most I hear about these days are harvested. When cadaver grafts started becoming common the consensus was they were stronger. Sounds like that perception has changed for most docs? Given the harvest options, I think I’d feel better w the quad compensating than the hamstring

Wife is 5 weeks out from injury & 2 weeks out from cadaver graft surgery, she is 100% weight bearing & brace is unlocked to 90 degrees. She got her surgery done at Hoag HOI in Irvine with Dr Parveresh who is supposed to be "one of the best".... will give updates as to how things are going.

[Duffman]

Some good news for Mrs Duff but now uncertainty. 8 weeks from the injury and she's been prehabing hard. Full range of motion, about 80% strength to other leg, a little lateral pain but that's prob from the small meniscus tear and bone bruise. Has been skiing east coast icy groomers with the kids but not going hard .

Went in to plan surgery and had the Ortho recheck the knee since the MRI read high grade near complete tear of proximal ACL , but it wasn't 100% . Same Ortho who noted laxity and + Lachmans and pivot test last time said she could only feel subtile laxity on the Lachmans and that a resident might not even notice it. Discussed options and said it was totally up to the wife what she wanted to do and that no decision was wrong. The Ortho knows she wants full function and doesn't want to be a ACL deficient coper . Also discussed the possibility of a repair vs the quad tendon reconstruction as one bundle of the ACL may be intact or healing.

My wife is more stressed now because she had mentally committed to surgery . Her concern is that leaving it alone is a ticking time bomb that will cause problems. I understand this and the Ortho didn't disagree and said that you simply won't know how the knee will hold up until you push it


Anyone have a similar situation? I feel if I was in that spot I would want to avoid surgery , potential weakness and complications, and the long 6 -9 months rehab (6 if its just a repair , 9 or more if it's a quad tendon recon). But her thought is she's fit now, in a good place to rehab it aggressively post op, and doesn't want to have doubts about the knee going forward skiing aggressively.

[singlecross]

My wife just popped her ACL at Snowbird on Tuesday. Had X-ray at Snowbird clinic same day (bones all ok) and MRI same day in SLC. MRI results show ACL. We have both X-ray and MRI results on hard disk. Currently have knee brace, crutches, and on the R.I.C.E. program.

Now the interesting part… We are travelling around the West by truck camper from the East Coast. We have a place in Bozeman for a week (here now) then we were planning to go to PNW mid-March. We just left SLC area to come get our stuff stored in Bozeman, but could go back that way if warranted.

Looking for recommendations/connections/advice for ortho surgeons that might have availability. This is all new to us and we feel like we’re in a bit of a rock and a hard place situation. We live in very rural Maine with not so great health care. Thinking that orthos out west would have better experience and more positive surgical outcomes. Wife (52 y/o)wants to continue to ski hard for decades.

Any Mag help appreciated!Thank you. Adulting sucks!

[bodywhomper]

Duffman, you mentioned that your ortho suggested the acl is healing? I didn’t know that was a thing…

The young sports med doc that I consulted (1 of 4) suggested that a high stability brace (eg donjoy custom) could/should work well for support of additional injury for higher risk activities. That doc basically told me that any middle aged athlete that works hard in higher risk sports (e.g., skiing, soccer, football, BB) very likely has compromised soft tissues in their knees that are being compensated and supported by muscle strength. You and wife may also want to look at published studies of injury of her other knee as a result of her current injury. My 30kft skim is that she has a more likely chance to injury her “good” knee now compared to before her injury earlier this winter.

Singlecross, I do not have specific answers, but know there are several othro’s in SLC area that work with US ski team and other pro athletes. Also, I experienced a very rapid turnaround in December when I got my donjoy custom brace after finding, coordinating, and meeting with one of their reps.

[hawkgt]

hey single... I see your getting advice on doc and surgery route...

I would highly recommend something like this.... there are quite a few, will hold ice for a long time while resting, etc...

https://www.amazon.com/NEHOO-Continu...17&sr=8-9&th=1

was well worth the comfort

[montanaskier]

In general, allografts have a faster recovery but a higher failure rate long term. I was locked at 0 for a few days but certainly not for 6 weeks. I was in a brace when I was out and about for awhile, mainly to make sure people knew to give me space. The Vail area has a ton of great knee surgeons….id recommend vail/summit orthopedics….you might find a surgeon that could turn it around quickly.


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