Navigating ACL Tears: Understanding the Injury, Symptoms and Road to Recovery
First Article in 3-part Series, From Pivots to Pops: A Comprehensive Guide to ACL Tears and Recovery.
What is your ACL?
ACL stands for anterior cruciate ligament, which spans the length of two bones, the femur and the tibia. The knee contains four ligaments that connect bone to bone, helping with joint stability and strength. Two of the ligaments are found on the inside and outside areas of the knee, known as the medial collateral ligament (MCL) and lateral collateral ligament (LCL). The other two ligaments are found deep inside the knee, crossing each other to form an X. The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) prevents the shin bone from sliding forward and the posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) works with the ACL to prevent the shin bone from sliding backward.
The ACL provides for rotational and front and back stability, allowing for the common motions of the knee.
Types of ACL injuries
Doctors diagnose ACL injury severity based on varying grades.
Grade 1: least severe
Suffered mild damage, where the ACL is stretched, but does not quite tear. The ligament can still provide stability to the knee joint. It is still in one piece, holding the knee bones together.
Grade 2: partial tear
The ACL is stretched with a partial tear, making it loose.
Grade 3: most severe ACL injury
Where the ACL is torn completely in half, no longer having the ability to provide knee stability. It is split across the center, preventing normal movement.
What causes ACL tears?
The most common athletic means of a torn ACL comes from sports such as basketball, soccer, football, and skiing. This is due to the intensity of these sports on the knee joint:
- Rapid direction changes (cutting)
- Suddenly stopping
- Pivoting with a firmly planted foot
- Landing awkwardly from a jump
- Direct hit toward the knee joint, or collision
ACL injuries can also occur in work settings causing injury, or automobile accidents.
How do I know I tore my ACL?
ACL tears can happen unexpectedly, but there are a few signs to identify the specific injury.
- A loud pop or popping sensation in the knee
- Rapid swelling of the knee joint
- Inability to continue activity due to severe pain or loss of range of motion
- Loss of stability, a feeling of “giving away” when weight-bearing
If you are feeling or experiencing multiple symptoms, the next step would be to see an Orthopedist to schedule an MRI. An MRI is used to form pictures of the anatomy and physiology of the body. It will allow the doctor to examine the knee ligaments and tissue to identify abnormalities or injuries.
Just found out I tore my ACL, what now?
Tearing your ACL definitely sucks (trust me… been there, done that), but know you are stronger than you think, and with determination, you can come back more powerful than before. It’s important to understand that the next 9–12 months will be a tough mental battle, and while it’s important to focus on your physical strength, remember that this is also a mental fight.
Once an MRI is taken, and it is clear to the Orthopedist the grade and type of ACL injury for the athlete, further steps are taken to determine the treatment options and recovery timeline. Based on the severity of the tear, surgical and nonsurgical options are weighed to determine the best course of action. With surgery, the full recovery timeline is concentrated around 9 months, however, the 9 months leading up will involve discipline and dedication.
Check back next week for part 2 of Pivots to Pops: A Comprehensive Guide to ACL Tears and Recovery, where I will be going into detail about the treatment timeline.
