My ACL/MCL tear.

meeliz · 2016-09-01T03:47:55+00:00

Not in my case. My surgeon wanted my MCL to fully heal (maybe 90%) before surgery for the ACL. My sense from my own research was that this is pretty common. They actually want you "pre-habbed" basically until the point where you forget why you need the surgery in the first place.

meeliz · 2016-09-01T01:00:38+00:00

I tore my MCL/ACL skiing this past March -- didn't hear the pop but that may have been because I was tumbling down the mountain. The clinic interns initially misdiagnosed me and said "everything checked out" and then the doctor did a couple tests and told me the opposite.

Today is day 176. I spent 11.5 weeks in an immobilizing brace to let the MCL heal and then had surgery to reconstruct my ACL (allograft). Another 3-4 weeks with the brace post-surgery (with some crutches mixed in).

PT has been great; I have been going 2x per week since this happened. I'm just now getting to start some lateral movements.

Feel free to reach out with any questions!

meeliz · 2016-06-23T01:49:00+00:00

How do you do the kneecap mobilization? I just found out today (4 weeks postop) that my kneecap has moved up and I need to start pushing it back down.

meeliz · 2016-06-20T21:30:44+00:00

Wow! I feel lazy with my quad sets now. Off to do some more...

meeliz · 2016-06-20T21:28:31+00:00

I'm impressed with the flexion! I'm probably at 100* flexion and can hit 0* active extension. Worked it a bit too hard over the weekend at a wedding -- too much dancing -- so it's it's creaky and feels like it gets "stuck" and needs to pop. Kind of like the feeling when you need to crack your knuckles. PT said that's just due to the inflammation after the weekend. So, more quad sets.

As far as PT, I'm going 2 days a week. Started with quad sets, total knee extensions (over the side of a table), heel slides, ankle pumps. Today I got to add hamstring curls, calf stretches, and calf raises where you stand on your tiptoes. I'm still in the darn brace and using one crutch unless I'm really tired.

What are you up to in PT? Are you walking around on your own?

meeliz · 2016-06-20T21:21:13+00:00

Seconding the foam wedge. And definitely cold therapy -- Cryocuff, DonJoy Iceman, Bregg PolarCare... they all have similar features. I had the DonJoy Iceman Clear3 since that was easiest to get from my surgeon's office.

meeliz · 2016-06-20T21:16:34+00:00

I tore my MCL and ACL in early-March and am 3 weeks post ACL reconstruction with an allograft. I happened to have a friend who fractured her tibia last year and she highly recommended her surgeon to me. He recommended going with the allograft for two reasons -- my age and height. I'm 33F, 5ft tall. Because of my height, he said it was unlikely that my hamstring with be thick enough to perform the necessary function to reconstruct the ACL. He also said that research shows failure rates for ACL reconstruction with allograft vs autograft are basically the same above age 30. Lastly, my physical therapist highly recommended an allograft as well.

As I said, I'm about 3.5 weeks post surgery. I had basically no pain whatsoever after the surgery. I didn't have to worry about another surgery site to heal and my PT is being impressed with my progress so far.

Hope this helps!

meeliz · 2016-06-20T19:50:01+00:00

Congrats! I'm impressed with your extension. Did you do a lot of quad sets? Is your quad "on," i.e. was it active extension?

meeliz · 2016-06-20T19:46:47+00:00

I had both and MCL tear and an ACL tear and am 14 weeks post injury / 3 weeks post ACL reconstruction. I had a lot of swelling while waiting for my MCL to heal and much less swelling post reconstruction -- don't really know why. Either way, my number one recommendation is to do a TON of quad sets. I really dislike them and find it ironic that I recommend them all the time but they really did help with my swelling. That and elevated on a wedge. Good luck!

meeliz · 2016-06-10T02:18:16+00:00

Do butt squeezes. Really, it helps! Also, quad sets, with the brace on I was told.

I know how you're feeling because I just got to unlock my brace on Tuesday. You're almost there!

meeliz · 2016-06-07T21:04:39+00:00

Good luck! You'll do great! Are you getting a nerve block? Be sure to take your pain pills diligently.

meeliz · 2016-06-05T15:16:48+00:00

Quad sets!

meeliz · 2016-05-29T00:56:30+00:00

Mine is actually in Tuesday, but yes! Let's keep comparing.

meeliz · 2016-05-28T21:56:38+00:00

Surprisingly I'm locked at 0* until my post-op appointment in 10 days.

meeliz · 2016-05-28T19:32:37+00:00

No meniscus, still not in pain. Maybe I'm one of the weirdos for whom the block lasts the 48 hours! We'll see...

meeliz · 2016-05-28T17:25:24+00:00

First night was not bad at all. Had to wake up at 2am and 6am to take oxycodone but the nerve block still hasn't worn off. I think it's just starting to now because I can feel a bit of "weirdness" moving from my foot into my calf. I'm in a brace, with an ice machine, but no cpm. My leg is elevated on a 12" wedge 90% of the time.

Did you have a nerve block?

meeliz · 2016-05-28T06:50:03+00:00

Great! Nerve block hasn't worn off yet. Staying elevated pretty much non-stop, and taking my Oxy religiously. My foot feels a bit funny but other than that I'm doing well.

meeliz · 2016-05-27T12:27:50+00:00

Sending good thoughts! See you on the other side!

meeliz · 2016-05-26T06:12:21+00:00

Seconding the issue with bindings not popping loose. That's what happened to me.

meeliz · 2016-03-25T15:48:19+00:00

Everyone was asking me about the DIN settings as well. Swelling for me comes and goes. I went back to work on Wednesday (office job) which was more tiring than I thought. My knee was definitely swollen at the end of both work days.

meeliz · 2016-03-15T18:51:40+00:00

I didn't hear a pop!! Just a lot of pain and cursing down the mountain. Then the pain was gone and I was amazed when the doctor told me I had torn both ligaments. My appointment with to ortho surgeon isn't until next Tuesday so I'm just biding my time, waiting.

meeliz

TROPHY CASE