ACL Tear Greater Manchester, MO. ACL tears can unexpectedly 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 Manchester, 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 in tandem 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 Manchester, MO, contact us online or find 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 breaking defender’s ankles on a Manchester, MO basketball court, or carrying your children on your shoulders without any pain.

What is the ACL? | Manchester, MO Physical Therapy

Ligaments are bands found in joints made of durable, flexible fibrous tissue that attach two bones. The ligaments in the knee help keep your knee stable by connecting 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 stabilize the front and back motion of your knee, and the ACL stops the tibia from gliding too far forward on the femur and provides stability when the joint rotates.

Most ACL tears are partial, but they can be completely torn as well. Depending on the grade of your ACL tear, your ability to put weight on your knee and range of motion will be reduced. Regardless of how significant your injury, trust in the Manchester, MO licensed physical therapists of Axes to help you fully recover.

Causes of an ACL Tear | Manchester, MO Physical Therapy

There are as many as 250,000 ACL injuries nationwide every 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, almost three-quarters of ACL tears happen in non-contact injuries, such as cutting rapidly, and the rest are caused by direct blows to the knee. External and internal factors could both be at play when you suffer an ACL tear:

External Factors

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

• Landing on uneven ground or landing awkwardly
• Colliding with something or someone
• A sudden reduction in speed or changing direction
• Pivoting 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. Examples include:

• The anatomical differences between men and women
• How flexible the hamstring and other surrounding muscles are
• 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 sustain an ACL tear, likely as a result of anatomical differences.

Symptoms of an ACL Tear | Manchester, MO Physical Therapy

When you suffer an ACL tear, the pain will likely be in the middle of the knee. You might not necessarily feel considerable pain after an ACL tear unless other parts of the knee were also injured. Some indicators that you might have suffered an ACL tear include:

• A “popping” sensation in your knee
• Having to cease activity
• Your knee becoming inflamed quickly
• Reduction of range of motion
• Not being able to put any weight on your knee

If you think you’ve suffered an ACL tear, it’s imperative to reach out to a doctor or a licensed physical therapist in Manchester, MO to verify your injury and get you the treatment you need. We offer complimentary, no-obligation injury screenings and have a wide network of trusted doctors in Manchester, 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.

ACL Tear Treatments | Manchester, MO Physical Therapy

It is important to get prompt, effective, personalized treatment for your ACL tear. If you delay, or your treatment is ineffective, it can lead to problems like obesity or osteoarthritis, which can greatly affect your quality of life.

Immediately after your ACL tear, you should use over-the-counter pain medication and the R.I.C.E. method to mitigate pain and inflammation. In an examination, a doctor will assess your mobility, and likely order an MRI or other tests to verify 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. 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 a fully healthy ACL in order to play, patients with other significant damage to 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, 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 weaken from disuse. Axes Physical Therapy offers both pre- and post-surgical rehabilitation for ACL tears in Manchester, MO to get you the best results for both your physical rehabilitation and your operation. Our ACL tear physical therapy professionals will be by your side throughout your recovery process with a personalized treatment plan that has been demonstrated to work. As part of your treatment plan, we will:

• Reduce pain and swelling
• Educate you on your injury and the rehab process
• Gradually and successfully 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
• Do strength exercises to return you to full strength
• Possibly utilize electrical stimulation to return strength and flexibility

When you work with the knowledgeable Manchester, MO area physical therapists of Axes and take an active role in your rehabilitation, you have the best chance of a complete and quick recovery. Before you know it, we will get you back to dominating the local pick-up league, or just enjoying the ability to sit down and stand up without feeling any instability in your knee.

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

Unfortunately, many people suffer a second ACL tear and they can result in permanent consequences. Included in your treatment program in Manchester, 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
• Strengthen your hip and leg muscles
• Practice correct form, for example bending at the knees and hips when turning
• 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 dedicate themselves not only to getting you back to the activities you love, but doing what we can to make certain that you can carry on doing them without being upended by another injury.

Some of the other services we offer in Manchester, 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 Manchester, MO | Axes Physical Therapy

It is normal to experience anxieties about your what your life will look like in the 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 in concert with you to implement 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.