ACL Tear Greater St. Louis, MO. ACL tears have a tremendous effect on your active routine and daily life. One second you’re flying down the court, playing your favorite sport or having fun with your children, and the next second you’re thinking about whether you’ll get to play or even go back to your job again. At Axes Physical Therapy in St. Louis, 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 develop tailored treatments plans that have been empirically proven to be effective. If you’ve sustained an ACL tear, or any other injury, in St. Louis, MO, contact us online or locate the most convenient Axes location for you. Our priority is getting every patient positive results and getting you back to the things that matter most to you, whether that means breaking defender’s ankles on a St. Louis, MO basketball court, or carrying your children on your shoulders without any pain.

The Anterior Cruciate Ligament | St. Louis, 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, 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 control the front and back movement of your knee, and the ACL safeguards the tibia from slipping 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 capacity to put weight on your knee and range of motion will be reduced. Regardless of how serious your injury, trust in the St. Louis, MO licensed physical therapists of Axes to help you fully heal.

Why an ACL Tear Happens | St. Louis, MO Physical Therapy

There are up to 250,000 ACL injuries in the United States each year, 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 at high risk for ACL tears. According to data from 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 due to direct blows to the knee. External and internal factors could both contribute to an ACL tear:

External Factors

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

• Landing on uneven footing or landing awkwardly
• Something or someone bumping into you
• Suddenly decelerating or changing direction
• Pivoting with a firmly planted foot
• Sustaining a direct hit to the knee

Internal Factors

These have to do with the structure and anatomy of the knee and legs. Some examples are:

• The differences in anatomy 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 sustain an ACL tear, likely because of anatomical differences.

Symptoms of an ACL Tear | St. Louis, MO Physical Therapy

When you sustain 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 torn your ACL include:

• A “popping” sensation in your knee
• Having to stop activity
• Rapid swelling
• Loss of range of motion
• Instability when putting weight on your knee

If you suspect you’ve suffered an ACL tear, it’s necessary to reach out to a doctor or a licensed physical therapist in St. Louis, 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 St. Louis, 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 | St. Louis, MO Physical Therapy

It is essential to get prompt, effective, personalized treatment for your ACL tear. If you delay, or your treatment is ineffective, it can result in complications such as obesity or osteoarthritis, which can significantly impact how you live your 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 swelling. In an examination, a doctor will evaluate your range of motion, and likely order an MRI to verify the ACL tear and gauge the extent of the injury.

As there is no blood flow to the ligament, 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 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 their knee to buckle in 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 in place, you still have a long way to go before you’ll feel fully back to normal. After surgery, you may 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 St. Louis, MO to get you the best results 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 effectively 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 range of motion
• Do strength exercises to increase strength
• Potentially 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 St. Louis, MO area physical therapists of Axes. Before you know it, we will return you to tearing up the local pick-up 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 | St. Louis, MO Physical Therapy

Unfortunately, many people sustain a second ACL tear and they can have permanent consequences. Included in your treatment program in St. Louis, MO, our Certified Athletic Trainers will help you understand the best practices that help to avoid another ACL tear down the road. 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 form, for example landing evenly on both feet
• Maintain flexibility
• Perform balance exercises
• 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 things you love to do, but doing what we can to make certain that you stay off the sidelines.

Some of the other services we offer in St. Louis, 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 St. Louis, MO | Axes Physical Therapy

It is normal to be anxious about your prognosis and road to recovery after being seriously injured. 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 implement a proven, personalized rehabilitation plan to get you back to the football field, bowling alley, or just back to your normal, pain-free daily activities. Contact us online or call the location are closest to you.