ACL Tear Greater Desoto, MO. ACL tears have a tremendous effect on 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 to work again. At Axes Physical Therapy in Desoto, 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 create tailored, empirically-backed treatment plans. If you’ve suffered an ACL tear, or any other injury, in Desoto, MO, contact us online or find 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 Desoto, MO pickleball league, or picking up your grandchildren without any pain.

What is the ACL? | Desoto, MO Physical Therapy

Ligaments are bands found in joints made of durable, flexible connective tissue that attach two bones. The ligaments in the knee help maintain stability in your knee by affixing 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 concert to control the front and back movement of your knee, and the ACL impedes the tibia from moving too far forward on the femur and provides rotational stability.

Most ACL tears are partial, but they can be completely torn as well. Depending on the grade of your ACL tear, your capacity to bear weight and your motion will be affected. Regardless of how serious your injury, trust in the Desoto, MO licensed physical therapists of Axes to help you fully recover.

Causes of an ACL Tear | Desoto, MO Physical Therapy

There are as many as 250,000 ACL injuries nationwide 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, 70% of ACL tears occur in non-contact injuries, such as changing direction quickly, and the rest are caused by direct blunt force trauma. External and internal factors could both be at play when you sustain an ACL tear:

External Factors

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

• Landing on uneven ground or landing awkwardly
• Something or someone bumping into you
• A sudden reduction in speed or switching direction
• Spinning with a firmly planted foot
• Suffering 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
• How flexible the hamstring and other surrounding muscles are
• Differences in genetics

ACL tears don’t just happen in sports, falls and work-related injuries can harm they ACL too. They can become more common as we age and our bodies weaken. Women are 4-6 times more likely to suffer an ACL tear, likely as a result of anatomical differences.

Symptoms of an ACL Tear | Desoto, MO Physical Therapy

After an ACL tear, the pain will likely be at the center of the knee. An ACL tear does not always cause significant pain except if other structural damage was done to the knee. Some signals that you may have torn your ACL are:

• Feeling or hearing a pop in your knee
• Having to stop activity
• Your knee becoming inflamed quickly
• Reduction of range of motion
• Not being able to put any weight on your knee

If you suspect you’ve sustained an ACL tear, it’s necessary to reach out to a doctor or a licensed physical therapist in Desoto, MO to diagnose your injury and get you the treatment you need. We offer complimentary, no strings attached injury screenings and work with many excellent doctors in Desoto, MO that we can refer you to. Your Axes physical or occupational therapist is an essential 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 | Desoto, MO Physical Therapy

It is essential 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 greatly affect how you live your life.

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

As there is no blood flow to the ligament, a complete ACL tear will not be able to regenerate by itself. This means that you will need the help of licensed professional physical therapists in order to return to the activities you love. The only way to fully repair an ACL tear is through surgery. So, surgery is often the best option for younger people, athletes who need their knee reconstructed in order to play, patients whose ACL tears were accompanied by other serious damage to other parts of their knee, or those whose ACL tear causes their knee to buckle in basic, everyday activities. ACL surgery is generally done by taking a graft from another tendon — either one of yours or a deceased donor’s — and then using small incisions to attach the graft to the femur and tibia.

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 probably 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 Desoto, MO to get you a positive outcome for both your physical rehabilitation and your surgery. Our ACL tear physical therapy professionals will lead you through your recovery process with proven, customized physical therapy. Our treatment methods will help to:

• Reduce pain and swelling
• Educate you on your injury and the rehab process
• Gradually and successfully 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
• Possibly 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 professional Desoto, MO area physical therapists of Axes. Before you know it, we will return you to dominating the local softball league, or just enjoying being able to to climb stairs without any pain.

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

Unfortunately, many people sustain a second ACL tear and they can have life-long consequences. Included in your treatment program in Desoto, MO, our Certified Athletic Trainers will educate you on how to avoid another ACL tear in the future. 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 technique, for instance keeping knees shoulder width apart while landing
• Maintain flexibility
• Perform balance exercises
• Perform warm-up exercises before sports or other physical activities
• Always wear 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 Desoto, MO are:

• Back Pain Treatment
• 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

ACL Tear in Desoto, MO | Axes Physical Therapy

It is normal to be nervous about your prognosis and road to recovery after being seriously injured. 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, customized physical therapy plan to return you to the basketball court, gymnasts’ mat, or just back to your normal, pain-free daily activities. Contact us online or call the location are closest to you.