Have i torn my ACL or something else?!
Question: Have i torn my ACL or something else?
2 weeks ago i was at kickboxing training and my trainer was showing me a combo and when he kicked my leg i slipped and my knee bent really awkward and i heard a loud pop and i felt everything in my knee just fall apart. i got up and was stumbling around couldnt really walk had 5 minutes sit down then i got back up and continued trainign probably a stupid thing to do as i kept falling down and stumbling and tripping everywhere. it swelled up in within half a hour to a hour and still to this day the swelling is still there after icing it. my doctor thought i did my meniscus so he sent me to the physio and he was worried i did my ACL the first time i seen him so i got the surgeon next month. then i seen him 2 more times (physio) and the swelling still stayed the same and he was worrying because he said cartlidge doesnt swell and he has done both his ACLs, he did some tests but they were inconclusive it was too hard to tell, when i walk sometimes it feels like i'm gonna fall i can't straight my legs/flex my quads without getgting locked and clicking, gradually the pain eased and it wasn't as bad whilst walking but i've been told that you can have a ACL tear and it wont cause pain afterwards at all then you go do something physical and your knee twists.
Answers:
Brandon, you could have done both of those injuries. Quite often when you injure the knee you do a triad of problems. The group includes the ACL, medial meniscus, and medial collateral ligament. The fact that makes me think this is that you are able to walk with a bent knee, consistent with an ACL injury. The inability to bend the knee which is a hallmark of a meniscus. The instability of the knee is consistent with the ligament. Get an MRI which will tell the extent of injury to the knee. If it turns out to be the meniscus please remember the information I am giving you. The meniscus is designed to deepen the knee joint so that the condyles at the end of the femur stay there. They are shaped like a saucer being high and deep at the outside and very thin as it moves into the center. They are shaped like circles. They sit on top of the cartilage of the top of the tibia. Now when you take away a piece of the meniscus the underlying cartilage is exposed. The cartilage is going to be exposed to stresses that it would not be normally. With time it will erode away. This will mean a lot of pain and eventually a total knee replacement. So unless the knee continues to lock try to avoid having surgery on this. If you have an ACL problem the replacement graft can come from many places. Most surgeons want you to autograft which means you sacrifice a piece of yourself to create this ligament. The usual spots are the patella tendon, kneecap tendon, or the hamstrings. The problem with either of these is that they make you weaker in those points. This can lead to further problems down the road. The other options open to you are a cadaver graft or a newer synthetic graft. The cadaver graft is very safe and has a long history. The newer synthetic grafts are also safe and are showing up as a reliable means of stabilizing the knee. I must tell you that once the knee has been injured the best thing to do is keep it strong and to avoid activities where jumping and running are involved. These movements place extensive stress on the knee.
physical therapist