ACL Tear Greater Potosi, MO. ACL tears have an enormous effect on 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 Potosi, MO, we have devoted 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 put in place tailored treatments plans that have been empirically proven to be effective. If you’ve suffered an ACL tear, or any other injury, in Potosi, MO, contact us online or find the most convenient Axes location for you. We focus on getting every patient a positive outcome and getting you back to what’s most important to you, whether that means burning corners in your local Potosi, MO flag football league, or picking up your grandchildren without any pain.

The Anterior Cruciate Ligament | Potosi, MO Physical Therapy

Ligaments are bands found in joints made of tough, pliable connective tissue that connect 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 stabilize the front and back movement of your knee, and the ACL impedes the tibia from slipping too far forward on the femur and supplies rotational stability.

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 your motion will be affected. Regardless of how severe your injury, trust in the Potosi, MO licensed physical therapists of Axes to help you fully heal.

Causes of an ACL Tear | Potosi, MO Physical Therapy

There are up to 250,000 ACL injuries in the United States annually, 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 happen in non-contact injuries, such as cutting rapidly, and the rest are caused by direct blunt force trauma. 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 footing or landing with improper form
• Colliding with something or someone
• Suddenly decelerating or changing direction
• Spinning with a firmly planted foot
• Suffering a direct blow to the knee

Internal Factors

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

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

ACL tears don’t just transpire 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 sustain an ACL tear, likely owing to anatomical differences.

Symptoms of an ACL Tear | Potosi, 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 sever pain after an ACL tear unless other structural damage was done to the knee. Some indicators that you may have suffered an ACL tear are:

• Feeling or hearing a pop in your knee
• Inability to continue activity
• Rapid swelling
• Loss of range of motion
• Instability when bearing weight

If you think you’ve suffered an ACL tear, it’s crucial to see a doctor or a licensed physical therapist in Potosi, MO to verify your injury and start the treatment you need to recover. We offer no-cost, no-obligation injury screenings and know many excellent doctors in Potosi, MO that we can connect you with. Your Axes physical or occupational therapist, your doctor and medical providers, and you will join forces and work together to ensure your recovery is safe and efficient.

ACL Tear Treatments | Potosi, MO Physical Therapy

It is vital to get prompt, effective, personalized treatment for your ACL tear. If you wait, or your treatment is ineffective, it can lead to complications such as obesity or osteoarthritis, which can significantly impact 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 mitigate pain and inflammation. A doctor will then examine you, evaluate your mobility, and likely order an MRI to verify the ACL tear and gauge the severity of the injury.

Because blood does not flow to ligaments, a complete ACL tear will not be able to regenerate on its own. That is why the aid of a licensed professional physical therapist is necessary to get back to the activities you love. The only way to fully repair an ACL tear is through surgery. 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 injury to other parts of 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 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 attached, your journey back to normalcy and the activities you love is still a long way from over. After surgery, you’ll probably be given crutches so you can get around for the next few weeks, as your quadriceps muscles will weaken from disuse. Axes Physical Therapy offers both pre- and post-surgical rehabilitation for ACL tears in Potosi, MO to optimize your recovery and the success of your surgery. Our ACL tear physical therapy specialists will guide you through your recovery process with proven, customized physical therapy. As part of your treatment plan, we will:

• Alleviate 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
• Perform movement exercises and balance exercises to return range of motion
• Do strength exercises to increase strength
• Potentially implement electrical stimulation as a supplement to the exercises

When you work with the experienced Potosi, MO area physical therapists of Axes and take an active role in your recovery, you have the greatest chance of a complete and timely recovery. Before you know it, we will get you back to dominating the local pickleball league, or just enjoying the ability to climb stairs without your knee buckling.

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

Unfortunately, many people sustain a second ACL tear and they can cause permanent repercussions. As part of our ACL tear physical therapy services in Potosi, MO, our Certified Athletic Trainers will help you understand the best practices that help to avoid another ACL tear later on. Some of the preventive methods you can take in order to prevent further injury are:

• Having a strong core
• Having strong hip and leg muscles
• Practice proper technique, for example landing evenly on both feet
• Maintain flexibility
• Perform balance exercises
• Always warm up before sports or other physical activities
• Always wear appropriate footwear

Our physical therapists committed themselves not only to getting you back to the things you love to do, but doing everything possible to ensure that you stay off the sidelines.

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

It is normal to be apprehensive about your prognosis and road to recovery after being seriously injured. If you’ve sustained an ACL tear, you might be impatient to return to your active lifestyle and physical activities you value. Trust in the knowledgeable professionals of Axes Physical Therapy to work in concert with you to create a proven, customized physical therapy plan to return you to the basketball court, bowling alley, or just back to your normal, pain-free daily activities. Contact us online or call the location are closest to you.