ACL Tear Greater Sherman, 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 Sherman, 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 in tandem with you as a team and create personalized, empirically-backed treatment plans. If you’ve suffered an ACL tear, or any other injury, in Sherman, MO, contact us online or check out the most convenient Axes location for you. We focus on getting every patient great results and getting you back to the things that matter most to you, whether that means breaking defender’s ankles on a Sherman, MO basketball court, or carrying your children on your shoulders without any pain.
What is the ACL? | Sherman, MO Physical Therapy
Ligaments are bands found in joints made of durable, flexible fibrous tissue that connect two bones. The ligaments in the knee help maintain stability in your knee 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 in tandem to stabilize the forward and backward movement of your knee, and the ACL impedes the tibia from gliding 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 ability to put weight on your knee and your movement will be affected. Regardless of how serious your injury, trust in the Sherman, MO licensed physical therapists of Axes to help you fully recover.
Why an ACL Tear Happens | Sherman, MO Physical Therapy
There are as many as 250,000 ACL injuries nationwide each 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 the most likely to get ACL tears. According to data from the National Athletic Trainers’ Association, almost three-quarters of ACL tears occur in non-contact injuries, such as changing direction quickly, and the rest are because 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 motion is disrupted just before the injury. Some examples are:
- Landing on uneven ground or landing with improper form
- Being hit by something or someone
- Instantly decelerating or changing direction
- Swiveling with a firmly planted foot
- Receiving a direct hit to the knee
Internal Factors
These concern the structure and anatomy of the body. Some examples are:
- The anatomical differences between men and women
- How flexible the hamstring and other surrounding muscles are
- Differences in genetics
While many ACL tears happen in sports, they are also common in falls and work-related injuries. 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 due to anatomical differences.
Symptoms of an ACL Tear | Sherman, MO Physical Therapy
Following an ACL tear, you’ll likely feel pain in the middle of the knee. An ACL tear does not always cause considerable pain unless other structural damage was done to the knee. Some signals that you may have torn your ACL include:
- Feeling or hearing a pop in your knee
- Having to stop activity
- Rapid swelling
- Reduction of range of motion
- Instability when putting weight on your knee
If you think you’ve sustained an ACL tear, it’s imperative to visit a doctor or a licensed physical therapist in Sherman, MO to confirm your injury and get you the treatment you need. We offer no-cost, no strings attached injury screenings and have a great network of trusted physicians in Sherman, 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.
How to Treat an ACL Tear | Sherman, MO Physical Therapy
It is important to get effective and personalized treatment soon after your ACL tear. If you don’t, it can cause health conditions such as obesity or osteoarthritis, which can significantly impact 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 reduce pain and inflammation. A doctor will then examine you, evaluate 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 blood does not flow to ligaments, a complete ACL tear will not be able to 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. The only way to fully repair an ACL tear is through surgery. So, surgery is often necessary 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 pain or weakness when carrying out basic, everyday tasks. ACL surgery is typically 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 weaken from disuse. Axes Physical Therapy offers both pre- and post-surgical rehabilitation for ACL tears in Sherman, 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 a personalized treatment plan that has been proven to work. As part of your treatment plan, we will:
- Mitigate pain and swelling
- Provide patient education so you understand your injury and why our methods work
- Gradually and effectively 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 increase strength
- Possibly use 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 Sherman, MO area physical therapists of Axes. Before you know it, we will get you back to tearing up the local flag football league, or just enjoying being able to to sit down and stand up without any pain.
How to Prevent an ACL Tear | Sherman, MO Physical Therapy
Unfortunately, second ACL tears are common and they can result in life-long repercussions. As part of our ACL tear physical therapy services in Sherman, 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:
- Strengthen your core
- Having strong hip and leg muscles
- Practice correct technique, for instance always landing with your feet directly over your knee
- Maintain flexibility
- Increase your balance
- Always warm up 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 can carry on doing them without being upended by another injury.
Some of the other services we offer in Sherman, MO are:
ACL Tear in Sherman, 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 experienced professionals of Axes Physical Therapy to work with you to create a proven, personalized rehabilitation plan to return you to the basketball court, bowling alley, or just back to your normal, pain-free life. Contact us online or call the location are closest to you.
