ACL Tear Wilbur Park, MO | Physical and Occupational Therapy

ACL Tear Greater Wilbur Park, MO. ACL tears can suddenly upend your active routine and daily life. One moment you’re flying down the court, playing your favorite sport or having fun with your kids, and the next instant you’re thinking about whether you’ll get to play or even go to work again. At Axes Physical Therapy in Wilbur Park, 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 concert with you as a team and design tailored treatments plans that have been empirically proven to be effective. If you’ve sustained an ACL tear, or any other injury, in Wilbur Park, MO, contact us online or find the most convenient Axes location for you. We focus on getting every patient positive results and getting you back to what’s most important to you, whether that means breaking defender’s ankles on a Wilbur Park, MO basketball court, or picking up your grandchildren without any pain.

What is the ACL? | Wilbur Park, MO Physical Therapy

Ligaments are bands found in joints made of tough, pliable fibrous tissue that connect two bones. The ligaments in the knee work to 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 in tandem to control the front and back movement of your knee, and the ACL stops the tibia from moving too far forward on the femur and supplies stability when the joint rotates.

ACL tears can be either partial or complete. Depending on the grade of your ACL tear, your ability to put weight on your knee and your motion will be affected. No Matter how serious your injury, trust in the Wilbur Park, MO licensed physical therapists of Axes to help you fully heal.

Why an ACL Tear Happens | Wilbur Park, 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. They are common in contact sports that call for frequent and fast cutting and switching directions, such as football, baseball, soccer, and basketball. 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 because 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
Colliding with something or someone
Instantly decelerating or changing direction
Pivoting with a firmly planted foot
Sustaining 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
How flexible the hamstring and other surrounding muscles are
Differences in genetics

ACL tears don’t just occur in sports, falls and work-related injuries can damage 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 due to anatomical differences.

Symptoms of an ACL Tear | Wilbur Park, MO Physical Therapy

After 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 except if other constructive damage was done to the knee. Some signs that you may have suffered an ACL tear are:

A “popping” sensation in your knee
Inability to continue activity
Your knee becoming inflamed quickly
Loss 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 necessary to contact a doctor or a licensed physical therapist in Wilbur Park, MO to confirm your injury and come up with the treatment plan you need to recover. We offer no-cost, no-obligation injury screenings and have a wide network of trusted doctors in Wilbur Park, MO that we can connect you with. Your Axes physical or occupational therapist is an essential 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 Therapy Wilbur Park, MO | Physical and Occupational Therapy Near Wilbur Park

ACL Tear Treatments | Wilbur Park, MO Physical Therapy

It is vital to get effective and personalized treatment soon after your ACL tear. If you delay, or your treatment is ineffective, it can result in health conditions such as obesity or osteoarthritis, which can significantly impact you for the remainder of your life.

Directly following your ACL tear, it’s best to use over-the-counter pain medication and the R.I.C.E. method to reduce pain and swelling. In an examination, a doctor will evaluate your mobility, and likely order an MRI or other tests to verify the ACL tear and evaluate the completeness and grade of your tear.

As there is no blood flow to the ligament, a complete ACL tear cannot regenerate on its own. That is why the aid of a licensed professional physical therapist is necessary to return to the activities you love. Surgery is the only means available to completely heal an ACL tear. So, surgery is often advisable for younger people, athletes who need their knee reconstructed in order to play, patients whose ACL tears were accompanied by other significant injury to other parts of their knee, or those whose ACL tear causes pain or weakness when carrying out basic, everyday activities. 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, 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 Wilbur Park, 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 demonstrated to work. Our treatment methods will help to:

Alleviate 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
Do movement exercises and balance exercises to return mobility
Do strength exercises to return you to full strength
Potentially implement 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 Wilbur Park, 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 climb stairs without your knee buckling.

How to Prevent an ACL Tear | Wilbur Park, MO Physical Therapy

Unfortunately, many people sustain a second ACL tear and they can result in permanent repercussions. Included in your treatment program in Wilbur Park, MO, our Certified Athletic Trainers will educate you on how to avoid another ACL tear down the road. 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
Perform balance exercises
Perform warm-up exercises before sports or other physical activities
Always wear appropriate footwear

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

Some of the other services we offer in Wilbur Park, MO are:

ACL Tear in Wilbur Park, MO | Axes Physical Therapy

It is normal to be nervous about your your 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 alongside you to create a proven, tailor-made physical therapy plan to get you back to the football field, gymnasts’ mat, or just back to your normal, pain-free life. Contact us online or call the location are closest to you.