ACL Tear Greater Wright City, MO. ACL tears have an enormous effect on your active routine and daily life. 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 Wright City, MO, we have committed 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 design customize treatments plans that have been empirically proven to be effective. If you’ve suffered an ACL tear, or any other injury, in Wright City, MO, contact us online or check out the most convenient Axes location for you. We focus on getting every patient positive results and getting you back to the things that matter most to you, whether that means burning corners in your local Wright City, MO flag football league, or picking up your grandchildren without any pain.

The Anterior Cruciate Ligament | Wright City, MO Physical Therapy

Ligaments are bands found in joints made of tough, pliable fibrous tissue that affix two bones. The ligaments in the knee work to 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 tandem to control the forward and backward movement of your knee, and the ACL prevents the tibia from moving 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 range of motion will be reduced. Regardless of how severe your injury, trust in the Wright City, MO licensed physical therapists of Axes to help you fully recover.

Causes of an ACL Tear | Wright City, 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 entail frequent and rapid cutting and switching directions, such as football, baseball, soccer, and basketball. According to the National Athletic Trainers’ Association, almost three-quarters of ACL tears occur in non-contact injuries, such as changing direction rapidly, and the rest are because of direct blows to the knee. External and internal factors could both be at play when you sustain an ACL tear:

External Factors

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

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

Internal Factors

These are related to the structure and anatomy of the body. Some examples are:

• The differences in anatomy between men and women
• How flexible the hamstring and other surrounding muscles are
• Genetic variations

While many ACL tears transpire in sports, they are also common in falls and work-related injuries. 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 | Wright City, MO Physical Therapy

After an ACL tear, you’ll likely feel pain at the center of the knee. An ACL tear does not always cause sever pain unless other constructive damage was done to the knee. Some indicators that you may have torn your ACL are:

• Feeling or hearing a pop in your knee
• Having to stop activity
• Rapid swelling
• Reduction 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 vital to contact a doctor or a licensed physical therapist in Wright City, MO to diagnose your injury and get you the treatment you need. We offer no-cost, no-obligation injury screenings and have a great network of excellent physicians in Wright City, 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 | Wright City, MO Physical Therapy

It is imperative to get effective and personalized treatment soon after your ACL tear. If your injury does not heal properly, it can result in problems like obesity or osteoarthritis, which can greatly affect you for the remainder of 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 manage pain and inflammation. A doctor will then examine you, evaluate your range of motion, and likely order an MRI or other tests to verify the ACL tear and assess the extent of the injury.

Because ligaments do not receive blood flow, a complete ACL tear cannot heal by itself. That is why the aid of a licensed professional physical therapist is necessary to return to the activities you love. The only way to fully repair an ACL tear is through surgery. So, surgery is often the best option for younger people, athletes who need a fully healthy ACL 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 pain or weakness when performing 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 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 have weakened. Axes Physical Therapy offers both pre- and post-surgical rehabilitation for ACL tears in Wright City, MO to get you a positive outcome for both your recovery and your surgery. Our ACL tear physical therapy professionals will work with you throughout your recovery process with proven, customized physical therapy. As part of your treatment plan, we will:

• Reduce pain and swelling
• Provide patient education so you understand your injury and why our methods work
• Gradually and successfully allow you to put weight on your knee again
• Fit you for a brace and teach you how to safely use it
• Do movement exercises and balance exercises to increase range of motion
• Do strength exercises to increase strength
• Potentially 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 professional Wright City, MO area physical therapists of Axes. Before you know it, we will get you back to tearing up the local pickleball league, or just enjoying being able to to climb stairs without your knee buckling.

How to Prevent an ACL Tear | Wright City, MO Physical Therapy

Unfortunately, second ACL tears are common and they can lead to permanent repercussions. Included in your treatment program in Wright City, 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
• Strengthen your hip and leg muscles
• Practice proper technique, for instance always landing with your feet directly over your knee
• Stretch consistently
• 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 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 Wright City, MO are:

• Stroke Rehabilitation
• Hip Replacement Physical Therapy
• Workers Comp' Physical Therapy
• Migraine Relief
• Sprain and Strain Treatment
• Geriatric Physical Therapy
• Injury Rehabilitation
• Pain Management Services
• TMJ Treatment
• Herniated Disc Treatment

ACL Tear in Wright City, MO | Axes Physical Therapy

It is normal to be apprehensive about your what your life will look like in the future after suffering a severe injury. 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 implement a proven, personalized physical therapy 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.