The anterior cruciate ligament, or ACL, is found in the front of the knee.
The main purpose of the ACL is to keep the thigh bone from rotating on the shin bone.
ACL injuries can be painful, but they are mostly just a nuisance.
If you have an ACL injury, then your knee will give out on a regular basis and without warning, which will cause you to fall down a lot. Most people who have ACL injuries seek ACL repair immediately after noticing the problem.
ACL repair is done through an out-patient surgery on the knee.
The first thing the knee surgeon will do is make sure the ACL injury did not cause any additional knee injuries that would require more invasive and serious surgery.
After the surgeon is satisfied that it is only the ACL that is in need of his or her attention, they will begin the surgery on the ACL.
The surgeon will then scrape off the ACL that remains and begin replacing it with muscle tissue that has been taken from other parts of the knee.
After the replacement tissue is prepared, it is then put into place by the surgeon. Then, the surgeon tests the knee joint for stability before sewing the knee back up.
ACL Repair – Recovery & Prevention
The surgery for ACL repair takes such a short amount of time, but the recovery takes quite a while.
From the time that the ACL surgery takes place to the time when you can expect to be fully recovered ranges from four to six months – six months is preferable if you are an athlete and planning to return to the sport that caused the injury.
Any deviation from the rehabilitation course that your physical therapist prescribes for you and you could re-injure the ACL.
That would mean you would have to go through the whole process all over again.
The best thing to do would be to avoid injury to your ACL to begin with, thus making ACL repair unneeded.
This is easier said than done if you are an athlete. The best way to help ensure that you do not injure or re-injure your ACL is to wear a knee brace on a knee that has a history of giving you problems.
It will help keep the knee from giving out on you while you are walking or doing activities.
Prevention is definitely the best way to go when it comes to things like ACL injuries.
Prevent the problem from happening and you will not need to have ACL surgery at all.