What You Need to Know About ACL Surgery
- Posted on: Aug 15 2023
Your knees are crucial to maintaining your body’s balance and support. ACL tears are among the most common sports injuries, and they typically need surgery to heal completely. Here is what you need to know about ACL surgery and how you can recover.
What Is the ACL?
The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is one of the main ligaments in the knee. It holds the bones in your knee together and prevents them from twisting or sliding forward. The anterior cruciate ligament provides stability and balance and allows the knee to rotate when needed. This ligament is located in the front center of your knee and crosses the other ligament found in the front center of the knee, the posterior cruciate ligament (PCL).
How Does an ACL Injury Occur
Most ACL tears are caused by a sudden twist or turn, which ruptures the ligament. Sudden stops or hyperextension can also lead to tearing your ACL. Partial and complete ACL tears require different treatments and may have different recovery times. Partial tears may heal on their own, depending on the grade of the tear, and full tears cannot heal on their own. Full ACL tears require surgery and rehabilitation to restore full balance, mobility, and movement.
Do You Need ACL Surgery?Â
Complete ACL tears usually result in needing surgery as this ligament will not reattach or heal on its own, which makes surgical intervention highly recommended. While surgery is not always a must, it is usually recommended for individuals under the age of 30, as restoring the knee can prevent knee complications later in life.
Some long-term effects that may be experienced without ACL surgery include reduced stability, an increased risk of developing knee arthritis, and stress on your other knee joints.
Repairing the ACL will also allow athletes to return to their respective sports and compete again. ACL surgery can restore the full function of your knee and help you return to a high level of play and strenuous activity with the help of rehabilitation and physical therapy.
Find Out if ACL Surgery Is Right for YouÂ
At Redwood Orthopaedic Associates in Santa Rosa, CA, we are dedicated to helping you reclaim mobility, strength, and function, so you can lead your best life. If you’re curious to learn more about ACL surgery or whether it’s the right solution for your knee pain, please call us at 707-544-3400 for more information. Please schedule an appointment to meet with one of our doctors.
Posted in: Knee Injury
