MCL Injury Mapaville, MO | Sports Rehab

MCL Injury | Mapaville, MO Physical Therapy

MCL Injury in Mapaville, MO. If someone plays sports or engages in other physical activity, it’s easy to fear the worst when you hear that sudden “pop” in your knee: Did I injure my MCL? How bad is the injury? How long will it take to recover? Will I ever be able to perform at the same level again? At Axes Physical Therapy in Mapaville, MO, we are driven by getting our clients back to sprinting down the court. While we’d like to be able to magically fix your MCL, we can help ensure you get back to feeling like yourself with safe, evidence-backed treatments. Physical therapy has been shown time and time again to be an integral component of any treatment plan for MCL injuries. Our physical therapists in Mapaville, MO are movement health experts. For lasting and meaningful recovery, call the Axes location most convenient for you you or contact us online.

How the MCL Works

MCL is an abbreviation for “medial collateral ligament.” A ligament is a tough, flexible of connective tissue that connects bone to bone and provides stability. The MCL connects your upper shin bone to the inner surface of the bottom thigh bone, running along your inner knee, and maintains stability in the inner knee. Its functions to resist valgus pressure, or the knee being forced unnaturally inward. It combines with three other ligaments to keep the knee stable:

ACL (anterior cruciate ligament), which goes through the middle of your knee and provides rotational stability and prevents the knee from bending inward
PCL (posterior cruciate ligament), which crosses the ACL in the middle of the knee and keeps the shinbone from sliding back too far
LCL (lateral collateral ligament), which attaches the thigh bone to the fibula (the smaller bone between the knee and ankle) and provides stability to the outer knee

The knee is known for being one of our most complex joints. Healthy structure and function depends on surrounding bone, muscle, tendons, and ligaments. There are countless knee injuries that can limit or completely restrict your mobility and ability to do what you love most, or just live a pain-free day-to-day life. Certain physical therapy exercises and other treatment modalities, prescribed by a doctor, have been proven to help those who have suffered an MCL injury manage their symptoms and get back to normal movement health.

MCL Injury Mapaville, MO | Sports Rehab | Injury Prevention | Physical Therapy Near Mapaville

What Types of MCL Injuries Are There?

For all intents and purposes, an MCL injury is either a sprain, which stretches the ligament beyond its normal limits, or a tear, where the MCL may fray partially or entirely separate from the bone. There are three grades to MCL injuries:

Grade 1 — A grade 1 sprain or tear means that the ligament has been stretched, and less than 10% of the the fibers in your ligament are torn. These are not generally severe, and your knee largely remains stable. Symptoms will likely be tenderness and mild pain.
Grade 2 — This is more significant tearing, most commonly to the superficial part of the MCL. Your knee will be slightly unstable, and the knee will likely be loose when moved by hand. A grade 2 injury will result in significantly more pain than a grade 2 MCL injury.
Grade 3 — A grade 3 tear is a complete tear, or separation from the bone. Your knee will be significantly unstable. Pain will be intense and you’ll likely feel several other symptoms. Grade 3 MCL injuries often occur alongside other knee injuries such as ACL tears.

Whatever grade MCL injury you have, the team of qualified Mapaville, MO physical and occupational therapists at Axes can, as a team with your physician, create an extensive and tailored plan to get you back to the activities your love most safely.

What Causes MCL Injuries?

Ligament injuries account for 40% of all knee injuries, and the MCL is the most commonly injured ligament. People often suffer and MCL injury because of the knee suddenly being forced too far inward. MCL injuries can also by the knee rotating more than the ligament can stand. They can also take place when landing or awkward bending, such as if your foot stays in one place while you’re moving.

MCL injuries are common in athletes in contact sports and in athletic events that require a lot of sudden movement such as football, soccer, skiing, basketball, and tennis. They can also occur in people who have to hunch over and lift heavy objects, either for athletic training or in the course of their employment.

Common Symptoms of MCL Injuries

Most people feel pain immediately on the inside of the joint when they experience an MCL sprain or tear. Other symptoms may include:

Hearing or feeling a popping noise or feeling
Instability
Not being able to put any weight on the knee
Bruising
Tenderness on the inside of your knee
Swelling, either on the inside of the knee or the entire knee joint

Sometimes you may feel like your knee is “shaky”, while other times you’ll barely be able to move the knee. Any time you feel pain or instability in your knee, do not participate in any more strenuous activity and schedule a physical examination in order to get a diagnosis.

Diagnosis and Treatment of an MCL Injury in Mapaville, MO

MCL injuries are diagnosed in a doctor’s office, urgent care or at a physical therapy center. In the examination, your Mapaville, MO doctor or physical therapist will go over what led to the injury, will feel for swelling and how your knee is different from your healthy knee, and check for stability.

Most physical therapists or physicians that specialize in mobility of the human body in Mapaville, MO are qualified to determine if you have an MCL injury with the above procedures. Other tests to check severity or to confirm may include:

An MRI (magnetic resonance imaging), which uses a magnet and radio waves to create detailed images of the inside of your knee
An ultrasound, which uses sound waves and can help determine the grade of your injury
An X-ray, which, while it won’t show the MCL or other ligaments, to insure your femur, kneecap, tibia, and fibula have not been broken

You can also schedule and appointment with the Axes location most convenient for you for a free, no-obligation injury screening. While we can offer you an evaluation, Missouri Revised Statute §334.506 stipulates that physical therapy be prescribed by a physician.

How to Treat and MCL Injury in Mapaville, MO

The initial treatment of an MCL injury consists of basic first aid: swelling reduction, relieving discomfort, and implementing the R.I.C.E. Method of Rest, Ice, Compression, and Elevation. For sprains or slight tears, the R.I.C.E method, pain and swelling relievers, and a few days or week or two of rest may be sufficient for your body to heal itself.

Professional physical therapy is needed for grade 2 and 3 injuries to restore strength and optimal range of motion and get you back to racing down or around the court or field. You’ll also need to refrain from most physical activity for an even longer period. Your Axes physical therapist in Mapaville, MO will be able to fit you for a knee brace to give your knee stability while it’s healing. Even with physical therapy, you’ll likely still continue the R.I.C.E. method and anti-inflammatory medication.

Though rare, the worst grade 1 tears — in which the MCL is completely torn, the injury is accompanied by an ACL tear, or nonsurgical treatment just isn’t working — may require surgery. The surgery is carried out by using a graft, either from one of your other ligaments or an organ donor, to reconstruct the MCL. You would not have to be hospitalized overnight. If you do require surgery in Mapaville, MO, our physical therapists will be able to help you with pre- and post-surgical rehabilitation to make your surgery and recovery as successful as possible.

How Do Physical Therapists in Mapaville, MO Treat MCL Injuries?

For recovering from any injury, a physically therapist will implement safe and evidence-backed treatments, each aimed at helping a specific part of the body get back to optimal movement health. Physical therapy slowly and effectively improves strength in the strength in the muscles that power the knee, flexibility of ligaments and tendons, and range of motion to the joint in the interest of not only recovery, but injury prevention. A physical therapist may recommend and implement the following practices:

To begin, passive motions carried about by your physical therapist to help restore normal functionality
Exercised performed by you later to further develop strength and flexibility
Exercises with resistant bands, weights, or cardio machines such as treadmill
Instrument-assisted soft tissue mobilization, which has been proven to help accelerate knee ligament healing
Kinesio Taping®, which provides further stability while your body heals and helps control motion
Trigger point dry needling to further help the body’s natural healing process
Blood flow restriction training to improve strength while lifting lighter weights
Athletic training and sports therapy for athletes who want to improve their performance

At Axes Physical Therapy in Mapaville, MO, all of our treatment plans are as unique as each patient, and created with the help of your physician, in order to get you the best patient outcome possible and get you back to the activities you love.

Other services we offer in Mapaville, MO include:

MCL Injury Mapaville, MO | Athletic Training | Sports Training | Physical Therapy Near Mapaville

Call an Axes Physical Therapist in Mapaville, MO for Your MCL Injury

An MCL injury is scary and anxiety-inducing at first, especially if you’re an athlete or someone who finds joy in an active lifestyle, but with our help, the ailment is only temporary. We know our clients trust us with their recovery, so we repay that trust with safe and effective treatments that are backed by evidence. We also strongly believe in patient education so you can stay as healthy and active as possible. For meaningful and lasting recovery from your MCL injury in Mapaville, MO, call the location nearest you and request an appointment online.