ACL Tear Greater Brentwood, MO. ACL tears can unexpectedly obstruct your active and daily routine. One instant you’re sprinting down the field, taking part in your favorite sport or playing with your children, and the next instant you’re wondering if you’ll get to play or even go back to your job again. At Axes Physical Therapy in Brentwood, MO, we have devoted our practice to restoring our patients’ mobility and returning them to the activities they love. Our ACL tear rehabilitation specialists work with you as a team and develop tailored treatments plans that have been empirically proven to be effective. If you’ve sustained an ACL tear, or any other injury, in Brentwood, MO, contact us online or locate the most convenient Axes location for you. Our priority is getting every patient great results and getting you back to the things that matter most to you, whether that means breaking defender’s ankles on a Brentwood, MO basketball court, or carrying your children on your shoulders without any pain.

The Anterior Cruciate Ligament | Brentwood, MO Physical Therapy

Ligaments are bands found in joints made of tough, pliable fibrous tissue that connect two bones. The ligaments in the knee help maintain stability in your knee by attaching your tibia (shinbone) to your femur (thigh bone). The ACL, or anterior cruciate ligament, runs down the center of your knee and forms an “X” with the posterior cruciate ligament (PCL). The ACL and PCL work in concert to control the front and back motion of your knee, and the ACL safeguards the tibia from gliding too far forward on the femur and provides rotational stability.

ACL tears can be either partial or complete. Depending on the grade of your ACL tear, your ability to put weight on your knee and your motion will be affected. No Matter how severe your injury, trust in the Brentwood, MO licensed physical therapists of Axes to help you fully recover.

Why an ACL Tear Happens | Brentwood, MO Physical Therapy

There are up to 250,000 ACL injuries nationwide each year, and it is one of the most common knee injuries and sports injuries. Athletes who play contact sports and/or sports where there is a lot of cutting and changing direction are at high risk for ACL tears. According to reporting from the National Athletic Trainers’ Association, the vast majority of ACL tears occur in non-contact injuries, such as cutting rapidly, and the rest are because of direct blunt force trauma. External and internal factors could both contribute to an ACL tear:

External Factors

These are when your movement is disrupted immediately before the injury. Some examples are:

• Landing on uneven ground or landing with improper form
• Being hit by something or someone
• Suddenly decelerating or switching direction
• Swiveling with a firmly planted foot
• Sustaining a direct blow to the knee

Internal Factors

These have to do with the structure and anatomy of the knee and legs. Some examples are:

• The anatomical differences between men and women
• How flexible the hamstring and other surrounding muscles are
• Genetic variations

ACL tears don’t just occur in sports, falls and work-related injuries can harm they ACL as well. The elderly are also at high risk, as our bodies degenerate as we age. Women are 4-6 times more likely to suffer an ACL tear, likely as a result of anatomical differences.

Symptoms of an ACL Tear | Brentwood, MO Physical Therapy

After an ACL tear, you’ll likely feel pain at the center of the knee. You might not necessarily feel considerable pain after an ACL tear except if other parts of the knee were also injured. Some signs that you may have suffered an ACL tear include:

• A “popping” sensation or sound in your knee
• Having to stop activity
• Your knee becoming inflamed quickly
• Reduction of range of motion
• Instability when putting weight on your knee

If you suspect you’ve sustained an ACL tear, it’s crucial to contact a physician or a licensed physical therapist in Brentwood, MO to confirm your injury and get you the treatment you need. We offer complimentary, no-obligation injury screenings and work with many excellent doctors in Brentwood, MO that we can refer you to. Your Axes physical or occupational therapist, your doctor and medical providers, and you will join forces and work together to ensure your recovery is safe and efficient.

How to Treat an ACL Tear | Brentwood, MO Physical Therapy

It is vital to get effective and personalized treatment soon after your ACL tear. If your injury does not heal don’t, it can result in problems like obesity or osteoarthritis, which can significantly impact you for the remainder of your life.

In the minutes after your ACL tear, you should use over-the-counter pain medication and the R.I.C.E. method to reduce pain and swelling. In an examination, a doctor will assess your mobility, and likely order an MRI to verify the ACL tear and gauge the completeness and grade of your tear.

Because ligaments do not receive blood flow, a complete ACL tear will not be able to heal on its own. This means that you will need the help of licensed professional physical therapists in order to return to the activities you love. Surgery is the only means available to completely heal an ACL tear. So, surgery is often the best option for younger people, athletes who need their knee reconstructed in order to play, patients with other significant injury to other parts of their knee, or those whose ACL tear causes their knee to buckle in basic, everyday tasks. In an ACL surgery, a surgeon will remove the torn ACL, take a graft from another one of your or a donors tendons, and use small incisions to attach it to the bones.

Once the new ligament is in place, you still have a long way to go before you’ll feel fully back to normal. After surgery, you’ll probably be given crutches so you can get around for the next few weeks, as your quadriceps muscles will weaken from disuse. Axes Physical Therapy offers both pre- and post-surgical rehabilitation for ACL tears in Brentwood, MO to optimize your recovery and the success of your surgery. Our ACL tear physical therapy experts will work with you throughout your recovery process with a personalized treatment plan that has been demonstrated to work. As part of your treatment plan, we will:

• Alleviate pain and swelling
• Educate you on your injury and the rehab process
• Gradually and effectively get you back to bearing weight
• Fit you for a brace and teach you how to safely use it
• Do movement exercises and balance exercises to increase mobility
• Do strength exercises to increase strength
• Potentially implement electrical stimulation as a supplement to the exercises

You have the best chance for a full recovery by actively participating in it and trusting the expert Brentwood, MO area physical therapists of Axes. Before you know it, we will return you to tearing up the local flag football league, or just enjoying being able to to sit down and stand up without your knee buckling.

How to Prevent an ACL Tear | Brentwood, MO Physical Therapy

Unfortunately, many people suffer a second ACL tear and they can cause permanent consequences. Included in your treatment program in Brentwood, MO, our Certified Athletic Trainers will help you understand the best practices that help to avoid another ACL tear down the line. We recommend some of the following steps to prevent further injury:

• Having a strong core
• Having strong hip and leg muscles
• Practice correct technique, for instance keeping knees shoulder width apart while landing
• Stretch consistently
• Perform balance exercises
• Always warm up before sports or other physical activities
• Always wear appropriate footwear

Our physical therapists dedicate themselves not only to retuning you to the activities you love, but doing what we can to ensure that you can continue doing them without being upended by another injury.

Some of the other services we offer in Brentwood, MO are:

• Physical Therapy Clinic
• Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Treatment
• Sciatica Treatment
• Sports Medicine
• Hand Pain Physical Therapy
• Foot & Ankle Pain Treatment
• Hip Pain Treatment
• Plantar Fasciitis Treatment
• Stroke Rehabilitation
• Hip Replacement Physical Therapy

ACL Tear in Brentwood, MO | Axes Physical Therapy

It is normal to be nervous about your your future after suffering a severe injury. If you’ve sustained an ACL tear, you might be impatient to return to your active lifestyle and physical activities you value. Trust in the knowledgeable professionals of Axes Physical Therapy to work with you to create a proven, personalized rehabilitation plan to return you to the basketball court, gymnasts’ mat, or just back to your normal, pain-free life. Contact us online or call the location are closest to you.