ACL Tear Greater Kinloch, MO. ACL tears can unexpectedly upend your active and daily routine. 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 Kinloch, MO, we have committed 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 create tailored treatments plans that have been empirically proven to be effective. If you’ve sustained an ACL tear, or any other injury, in Kinloch, MO, contact us online or check out 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 running the bases in your local Kinloch, MO league, or picking up your grandchildren without any pain.

The Anterior Cruciate Ligament | Kinloch, MO Physical Therapy

Ligaments are bands found in joints made of tough, flexible connective tissue that affix two bones. The ligaments in the knee work to keep your knee stable 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 together to control the front and back movement of your knee, and the ACL prevents the tibia from moving too far forward on the femur and provides stability when the joint rotates.

ACL tears can be either partial or complete. Depending on the grade of your ACL tear, your ability to bear weight and your movement will be affected. However severe your injury, trust in the Kinloch, MO licensed physical therapists of Axes to help you fully recover.

Why an ACL Tear Happens | Kinloch, MO Physical Therapy

There are as many as 250,000 ACL injuries nationwide annually, 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 the National Athletic Trainers’ Association, 70% of ACL tears happen in non-contact injuries, such as changing direction rapidly, and the rest are the result of 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 disrupted just before the injury. Some examples are:

• Landing on uneven ground or landing awkwardly
• Colliding with something or someone
• A sudden reduction in speed or switching direction
• Spinning with a firmly planted foot
• Receiving a direct blow to the knee

Internal Factors

These concern the structure and anatomy of the knee and legs. Some examples are:

• The differences in anatomy between men and women
• Flexibility of the hamstring
• Genetic variations

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

Symptoms of an ACL Tear | Kinloch, MO Physical Therapy

After an ACL tear, you’ll likely feel pain at the center of the knee. You might not necessarily feel significant pain after an ACL tear unless other constructive damage was done to the knee. Some signs that you may have sustained an ACL tear are:

• A “popping” sensation in your knee
• Having to cease activity
• Your knee becoming inflamed quickly
• Loss 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 important to visit a doctor or a licensed physical therapist in Kinloch, MO to confirm your injury and start the treatment you need to recover. We offer free, no-obligation injury screenings and have a great network of trusted doctors in Kinloch, MO that we can connect you with. Your Axes physical or occupational therapist is an indispensable part of your recovery team, working closely with you and your doctors and medical providers to collaborate on your safe and efficient recovery.

ACL Tear Treatments | Kinloch, MO Physical Therapy

It is vital to get effective and personalized treatment soon after your ACL tear. If your injury does not heal properly, it can result in complications such as obesity or osteoarthritis, which can significantly impact your quality of life.

In the minutes after your ACL tear, you should use over-the-counter pain medication and the R.I.C.E. method to alleviate pain and swelling. A doctor will then examine you, evaluate your range of motion, and likely order an MRI to verify the ACL tear and evaluate the completeness and grade of your tear.

Because ligaments do not receive blood flow, a complete ACL tear will not be able to heal by itself. 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 recommended for younger people, athletes who need their knee reconstructed in order to perform, patients whose ACL tears were accompanied by other serious damage to other parts of their knee, or those whose ACL tear causes pain or weakness when carrying out basic, everyday tasks. In an ACL surgery, a surgeon will remove the injured 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 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 Kinloch, MO to get you a positive outcome for both your physical rehabilitation and your operation. Our ACL tear physical therapy specialists will guide you through your recovery process with a personalized treatment plan that has been demonstrated to work. Our treatment methods will help to:

• Mitigate pain and swelling
• Educate you on your injury and the rehab process
• Gradually and successfully get you back to bearing weight
• Provide you with a brace and teach you how to safely use it
• Do movement exercises and balance exercises to return mobility
• Do strength exercises to return you to full strength
• Possibly 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 expert Kinloch, 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 feeling any instability in your knee.

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

Unfortunately, many people suffer a second ACL tear and they can cause life-long consequences. As part of our ACL tear physical therapy services in Kinloch, MO, our Certified Athletic Trainers will help you understand the best practices that help to avoid another ACL tear in the future. We recommend some of the following steps to prevent further injury:

• Strengthen your core
• Having strong hip and leg muscles
• Practice correct technique, for instance landing evenly on both feet
• Stretch consistently
• Perform balance exercises
• Perform warm-up exercises 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 everything possible to make certain that you can carry on doing them without being interrupted by another injury.

Some of the other services we offer in Kinloch, 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 Kinloch, 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 knowledgeable professionals of Axes Physical Therapy to work with you to design a proven, personalized physical therapy plan to get you back 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.