ACL Tear Greater Scotsdale, MO. ACL tears have an enormous effect on your active and daily routine. One second you’re running down the field, engaging in your favorite sport or having fun with your kids, and the next second you’re thinking about whether you’ll get to play or even go to work again. At Axes Physical Therapy in Scotsdale, MO, we have dedicated 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 create personalized treatments plans that have been empirically proven to be effective. If you’ve sustained an ACL tear, or any other injury, in Scotsdale, MO, contact us online or check out the most convenient Axes location for you. Our mission is getting every patient positive results and getting you back to the things that matter most to you, whether that means dominating your local Scotsdale, MO pickleball league, or carrying your children on your shoulders without any pain.

The Anterior Cruciate Ligament | Scotsdale, MO Physical Therapy

Ligaments are bands found in joints made of durable, pliable fibrous tissue that connect two bones. The ligaments in the knee work to 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 tandem to control the forward and backward movement of your knee, and the ACL prevents the tibia from gliding too far forward on the femur and supplies 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 capacity to put weight on your knee and your motion will be affected. No Matter how significant your injury, trust in the Scotsdale, MO licensed physical therapists of Axes to help you fully recover.

Causes of an ACL Tear | Scotsdale, MO Physical Therapy

There are up to 250,000 ACL injuries in the United States 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 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 blunt force trauma. External and internal factors could both contribute to an ACL tear:

External Factors

These are when your movement is obstructed just before the injury. Some examples are:

• Landing on uneven ground or landing with improper form
• Something or someone knocking into you
• A sudden reduction in speed or changing direction
• Pivoting with a firmly planted foot
• Sustaining a direct hit 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
• Genetic differences

ACL tears don’t just transpire in sports, falls and work-related injuries can hurt they ACL too. 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 owing to anatomical differences.

Symptoms of an ACL Tear | Scotsdale, MO Physical Therapy

After an ACL tear, you’ll likely feel pain 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 signals that you might have torn your ACL are:

• Feeling or hearing a pop in your knee
• Having to cease activity
• Rapid swelling
• 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 necessary to visit a doctor or a licensed physical therapist in Scotsdale, MO to diagnose your injury and start the treatment you need to recover. We offer complimentary, no strings attached injury screenings and work with many excellent doctors in Scotsdale, 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.

How to Treat an ACL Tear | Scotsdale, MO Physical Therapy

It is vital to get prompt, effective, personalized treatment for your ACL tear. If your injury does not heal don’t, it can cause health conditions such as 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 mitigate pain and inflammation. In an examination, a doctor will evaluate your mobility, 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 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 a fully healthy ACL in order to play, patients with other serious injury to 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 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 have weakened. Axes Physical Therapy offers both pre- and post-surgical rehabilitation for ACL tears in Scotsdale, MO to get you a positive outcome for both your physical rehabilitation and your operation. Our ACL tear physical therapy professionals will guide 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 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 increase range of motion
• Perform strength exercises to increase strength
• Potentially utilize electrical stimulation as a supplement to the exercises

When you work with the knowledgeable Scotsdale, MO area physical therapists of Axes and take an active role in your recovery, you have the greatest chance of a complete and quick recovery. Before you know it, we will get you back to tearing up the local softball league, or just enjoying being able to to climb stairs without your knee buckling.

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

Unfortunately, second ACL tears are common and they can have permanent consequences. As part of our ACL tear physical therapy services in Scotsdale, MO, our Certified Athletic Trainers will educate you on how to avoid another ACL tear later on. We recommend some of the following steps to prevent further injury:

• Having a strong core
• Having strong hip and leg muscles
• Practice proper form, for instance landing evenly on both feet
• Maintain flexibility
• Increase your balance
• Perform warm-up exercises before sports or other physical activities
• Make sure you are using appropriate footwear

Our physical therapists devote themselves not only to retuning you to the activities you love, but doing everything possible to ensure that you stay off the sidelines.

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

It is normal to experience anxieties 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 experienced professionals of Axes Physical Therapy to work with you to create a proven, customized rehabilitation plan to get you back to the football field, gymnasts’ mat, or just back to your normal, pain-free daily activities. Contact us online or call the location are closest to you.