ACL Tear Greater Chain of Rocks, MO. ACL tears can suddenly upset your active and daily routine. One instant you’re running down the court, engaging in your favorite sport or playing with your children, and the next moment you’re wondering if you’ll get to play or even go to work again. At Axes Physical Therapy in Chain of Rocks, MO, we have devoted our practice to helping our patients regain their strength and mobility, and getting them back to the activities they love. Our ACL tear rehabilitation specialists work with you as a team and put in place personalized treatments plans that have been empirically proven to be effective. If you’ve sustained an ACL tear, or any other injury, in Chain of Rocks, MO, contact us online or check out the most convenient Axes location for you. We focus on getting every patient positive results and getting you back to what’s most important to you, whether that means dominating your local Chain of Rocks, MO pickleball league, or carrying your children on your shoulders without any pain.

What is the ACL? | Chain of Rocks, MO Physical Therapy

Ligaments are bands found in joints made of tough, flexible fibrous tissue that affix two bones. The ligaments in the knee work to keep your knee stable by connecting your tibia (shinbone) to your femur (thigh bone). The ACL, or anterior cruciate ligament, is in the center of your knee and crosses the posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) so they make an “x”. The ACL and PCL work in tandem to stabilize the forward and backward movement of your knee, and the ACL impedes the tibia from gliding too far forward on the femur and provides stability when the knee rotates.

ACL tears can be either partial or complete. Depending on the grade of your ACL tear, your ability to bear weight and your motion will be affected. No Matter how severe your injury, trust in the Chain of Rocks, MO licensed physical therapists of Axes to help you achieve a complete recovery.

Why an ACL Tear Happens | Chain of Rocks, MO Physical Therapy

There are as many as 250,000 ACL injuries in the United States every year, and it is one of the most frequent knee injuries and sports injuries. Athletes who play contact sports and/or sports where there is a lot of cutting and changing direction are the most likely to get ACL tears. According to reporting from the National Athletic Trainers’ Association, almost three-quarters of ACL tears occur in non-contact injuries, such as changing direction quickly, and the rest are due to direct blows to the knee. External and internal factors could both contribute to an ACL tear:

External Factors

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

• Landing on uneven ground or landing with improper form
• Something or someone bumping into you
• Instantly decelerating or changing direction
• Spinning with a firmly planted foot
• Sustaining a direct hit to the knee

Internal Factors

These are related to the structure and anatomy of the knee and legs. Examples include:

• The anatomical differences between men and women
• Flexibility of the hamstring
• Differences in genetics

While many ACL tears occur in sports, they are also common in falls and work-related injuries. 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 | Chain of Rocks, MO Physical Therapy

Following an ACL tear, you’ll likely feel pain in the middle of the knee. An ACL tear does not always cause considerable pain unless other constructive damage was done to the knee. Some indicators that you may have torn your ACL include:

• Feeling or hearing a pop in your knee
• Not being able to continue activity
• Rapid swelling
• Reduction of range of motion
• Instability when putting weight on your knee

If you think you’ve suffered an ACL tear, it’s crucial to visit a physician or a licensed physical therapist in Chain of Rocks, MO to diagnose your injury and start the treatment you need to recover. We offer no-cost, no strings attached injury screenings and work with many excellent doctors in Chain of Rocks, MO that we can refer you to. Your Axes physical or occupational therapist is an integral part of your recovery team, working closely with you and your doctors and medical providers to collaborate on your safe and efficient recovery.

How to Treat an ACL Tear | Chain of Rocks, MO Physical Therapy

It is important to get prompt, effective, personalized treatment for your ACL tear. If your injury does not heal properly, it can lead to complications like obesity or osteoarthritis, which can significantly impact how you live your life.

Immediately after your ACL tear, it’s best to use over-the-counter pain medication and the R.I.C.E. method to mitigate pain and swelling. A doctor will then examine you, evaluate your range of motion, and likely order an MRI or other tests to confirm the ACL tear and assess the completeness and grade of your tear.

Because ligaments do not receive blood flow, a complete ACL tear cannot regenerate on its own. That is why the aid of a licensed professional physical therapist is necessary to return to the activities you love. Surgery is the only means available to completely heal an ACL tear. So, surgery is often advisable for younger people, athletes who need their knee reconstructed in order to perform, patients whose ACL tears were accompanied by other serious injury to 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 damaged 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, your journey back to normalcy and the activities you love is still a long way from over. After surgery, you may need crutches to move around, as your quadriceps muscles will have weakened. Axes Physical Therapy offers both pre- and post-surgical rehabilitation for ACL tears in Chain of Rocks, MO to optimize your recovery and the success of your operation. Our ACL tear physical therapy specialists will guide you through your recovery process with a personalized treatment plan that has been proven to work. As part of your treatment plan, we will:

• Reduce pain and swelling
• Provide patient education so you understand your injury and why our methods work
• Gradually and effectively allow you to put weight on your knee again
• Provide you with a brace and teach you how to safely use it
• Perform movement exercises and balance exercises to return mobility
• Perform strength exercises to return you to full strength
• Potentially utilize 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 professional Chain of Rocks, MO area physical therapists of Axes. Before you know it, we will get you back to tearing up the local pickleball league, or just enjoying being able to to sit down and stand up without your knee buckling.

How to Prevent an ACL Tear | Chain of Rocks, MO Physical Therapy

Unfortunately, second ACL tears are common and they can have life-long repercussions. Included in your treatment program in Chain of Rocks, MO, our Certified Athletic Trainers will help you understand the best practices that help to avoid another ACL tear down the line. Some of the preventive methods you can take in order to prevent further injury are:

• Strengthen your core
• Strengthen your hip and leg muscles
• Practice proper form, for instance landing evenly on both feet
• Stretch consistently
• Increase your balance
• Always warm up before sports or other physical activities
• Always wear appropriate footwear

Our physical therapists devote themselves not only to retuning you to the things you love to do, but doing what we can to ensure that you can carry on doing them without being interrupted by another injury.

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

• Neck Pain Treatment
• 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

ACL Tear in Chain of Rocks, MO | Axes Physical Therapy

It is normal to be nervous about your prognosis and road to recovery after suffering a severe injury. If you’ve sustained an ACL tear, you probably want to get back to your normal, active lifestyle as quickly as possible. Trust in the experienced professionals of Axes Physical Therapy to work with you to implement a proven, tailor-made physical therapy plan to get you back to the football field, gymnasts’ mat, or just back to your normal, pain-free daily activities. Contact us online or call the location are closest to you.