ACL Tear Greater Desloge, MO. ACL tears can suddenly obstruct your active routine and daily life. You go from having a blast in a sport or playing with your kids, to suddenly wondering whether you’ll get to play or even go back to your job again. At Axes Physical Therapy in Desloge, MO, we have committed 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 develop personalized treatments plans that have been empirically proven to be effective. If you’ve sustained an ACL tear, or any other injury, in Desloge, MO, contact us online or locate the most convenient Axes location for you. Our mission is getting every patient a positive outcome and getting you back to the things that matter most to you, whether that means dominating your local Desloge, MO pickleball league, or carrying your children on your shoulders without any pain.

What is the ACL? | Desloge, MO Physical Therapy

Ligaments are bands found in joints made of durable, pliable connective tissue that affix 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 tandem to control the front and back movement of your knee, and the ACL safeguards the tibia from sliding too far forward on the femur and supplies rotational stability.

ACL tears can be either partial or complete. Depending on the grade of your ACL tear, your capacity to bear weight and your movement will be affected. However serious your injury, trust in the Desloge, MO licensed physical therapists of Axes to help you achieve a complete recovery.

Causes of an ACL Tear | Desloge, MO Physical Therapy

There are up to 250,000 ACL injuries in the United States every year, and it is one of the most frequent knee injuries and sports injuries. They are common in contact sports that require frequent and rapid cutting and changing directions, such as football, baseball, soccer, and basketball. According to the National Athletic Trainers’ Association, almost three-quarters of ACL tears happen in non-contact injuries, such as changing direction quickly, and the rest are the result of direct blows to the knee. External and internal factors could both contribute to an ACL tear:

External Factors

These are when your motion is disrupted just before the injury. Some examples are:

• Landing on uneven ground or landing with improper form
• Being hit by something or someone
• A sudden reduction in speed or switching direction
• Swiveling with a firmly planted foot
• Sustaining a direct hit to the knee

Internal Factors

These concern the structure and anatomy of the body. Examples include:

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

While many ACL tears happen 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 because of anatomical differences.

Symptoms of an ACL Tear | Desloge, MO Physical Therapy

Following an ACL tear, the pain will likely be in the middle of the knee. You might not necessarily feel sever pain after an ACL tear unless other parts of the knee were also injured. Some signs that you might have torn your ACL include:

• Feeling or hearing a pop in your knee
• Having to cease activity
• Rapid swelling
• Reduction of range of motion
• Not being able to put any weight on your knee

If you think you’ve sustained an ACL tear, it’s crucial to contact a physician or a licensed physical therapist in Desloge, MO to verify your injury and come up with the treatment plan you need to recover. We offer complimentary, no strings attached injury screenings and know many trusted physicians in Desloge, MO that we can connect you with. 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 | Desloge, MO Physical Therapy

It is imperative to get effective and personalized treatment soon after your ACL tear. If you don’t, it can result in complications like obesity or osteoarthritis, which can greatly affect how you live 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 mitigate pain and swelling. A doctor will then examine you, assess your range of motion, and likely order an MRI to confirm the ACL tear and judge the extent of the injury.

As there is no blood flow to the ligament, a complete ACL tear cannot heal by itself. This means that you will need the help of licensed professional physical therapists in order to get back to the activities you love. The only way to fully repair an ACL tear is through surgery. So, surgery is often advisable for younger people, athletes who need their knee reconstructed in order to perform, patients with other serious injury to other parts of their knee, or those whose ACL tear causes pain or weakness when performing basic, everyday activities. 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 attached, your journey back to normalcy and the activities you love is still a long way from over. After surgery, you’ll likely be given crutches so you can get around for the next few weeks, as your quadriceps muscles will have weakened. Axes Physical Therapy offers both pre- and post-surgical rehabilitation for ACL tears in Desloge, MO to get you a positive outcome for both your physical rehabilitation and your operation. Our ACL tear physical therapy specialists will be by your side throughout your recovery process with a personalized treatment plan that has been demonstrated to work. Our treatment methods will help to:

• Alleviate pain and swelling
• Provide patient education so you understand your injury and why our methods work
• Gradually and successfully get you back to bearing weight
• Provide you with a brace and teach you how to safely use it
• Perform movement exercises and balance exercises to return range of motion
• Perform strength exercises to increase strength
• Potentially implement electrical stimulation to return strength and flexibility

When you work with the experienced Desloge, MO area physical therapists of Axes and take an active role in your rehabilitation, you have the greatest chance of a complete and quick recovery. Before you know it, we will return you to dominating the local softball league, or just enjoying the ability to sit down and stand up without any pain.

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

Unfortunately, second ACL tears are common and they can lead to life-long repercussions. As part of our ACL tear physical therapy services in Desloge, 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:

• Strengthen your core
• Having strong hip and leg muscles
• Practice proper form, for example keeping knees shoulder width apart while landing
• Stretch consistently
• Increase your balance
• Perform warm-up exercises before sports or other physical activities
• Make sure you are using appropriate footwear

Our physical therapists committed themselves not only to retuning you to the activities you love, but doing what we can to make certain that you stay off the sidelines.

Some of the other services we offer in Desloge, 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 Desloge, 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 probably want to get back to your normal, active lifestyle as quickly as possible. Trust in the knowledgeable professionals of Axes Physical Therapy to work alongside you to create a proven, personalized physical therapy plan to return you to the football field, bowling alley, or just back to your normal, pain-free life. Contact us online or call the location are closest to you.