alanab 0 #1 January 22, 2008 Hey! So, I tore my right knee ACL and medial meniscus back in december. I am scheduled for surgery Feb. 15th (the day after my birthday). My doctor is a sports medicine doctor and he is going to do a hamstring graft to replace my ACL and leave the meniscus alone. He says the meniscus is such a small tear that it will heal itself. So, I'm totally not looking forward to the surgery. I was hoping to get some feedback from people who have had the same surgery and what to expect as far as time off work, therapy, pain, time until i can run, skydive, snowboard, hike again, etc, etc. I'm sure I will think of more questions to post about it as the day progresses. I hope it's really not as bad as I've heard. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
eeneR 1 #2 January 22, 2008 I had my left knee done with hamstring graft back in Feb 93'. The beginning kind of sucked, but as long as you do the therapy you will be thankful Oh I was cleared to run in 3 months, cleared to ski in 4. She is not a "Dumb Blonde" - She is a "Light-Haired Detour Off The Information Superhighway." eeneR TF#72, FB#4130, Incauto Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
alanab 0 #3 January 22, 2008 thanks! i'm basically scared shitless for the surgery. I have PT set up already, starting 3 days post op, for 3x a week for 2 months. the pt said we will see how i am doing closer to the end of 2 months to see if i need it any longer than that. i have been riding the bike for 5-10 minutes a day since the beginning of the year to strengthen my knee before the surgery. my doc also gave me home exercises like steps, squats and straightening/bending to do, that have been a huge help already. now i am walking without my brace and taking the stairs at work again! but i still cant walk more than 5 blocks without pain. i'm most scared about the pain after the surgery and how long until i can be active again. i don't want to sit around and get fat. thought of another question: how long until i can drive after the surgery? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BillyVance 34 #4 January 22, 2008 Quote thought of another question: how long until i can drive after the surgery? Stick shift or automatic? If it's the latter, fuck, just use your left leg! Yeah, it's a bit awkward, but I've done it with a severely sprained ankle swollen to the size of a grapefruit. "Mediocre people don't like high achievers, and high achievers don't like mediocre people." - SIX TIME National Champion coach Nick Saban Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
monkycndo 0 #5 January 22, 2008 Quote with a severely sprained ankle swollen to the size of a grapefruit. Are you sure that wasn't just water retention?50 donations so far. Give it a try. You know you want to spank it Jump an Infinity Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PrairieDoug 0 #6 January 22, 2008 Alana - You'll be fine! I had ACL reconstruction 3 years ago, but with a donor graft instead of an autograft. The autograft makes makes the initial recovery a little tougher, but is said by some to give a better long-term result. With PT you'll be able to regain basic functional use fairly quickly, but it can take up to a full year to get all your strength and flexibility back. The good news is that your new ligament will be a lot stronger than the original one! Best wishes for a speedy recovery. Doug Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
A1CSpooky 0 #7 January 22, 2008 QuoteHey! So, I tore my right knee ACL and medial meniscus back in december. I am scheduled for surgery Feb. 15th (the day after my birthday). My doctor is a sports medicine doctor and he is going to do a hamstring graft to replace my ACL and leave the meniscus alone. He says the meniscus is such a small tear that it will heal itself. So, I'm totally not looking forward to the surgery. I was hoping to get some feedback from people who have had the same surgery and what to expect as far as time off work, therapy, pain, time until i can run, skydive, snowboard, hike again, etc, etc. I'm sure I will think of more questions to post about it as the day progresses. I've had the medial meniscus tear twice. The only difference is that I had mine repaired both times. I had what they called a "bucket tear" so it was either remove it or repair it. It's been repair'd twice and it is torn again. My doc didn't want to remove it, and have me deal with arthrittis early. As far as recovery I had about 3 months before I was cleared to run as well, I also started sking at 3 months with a brace. As the rest have said as long as you stick to PT and keep those Hydrocodone's flowing you should be fine. I also had a pain pump. It injected meds straight into the knee; really good shit! Spooky Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites BGill 0 #8 January 22, 2008 Don't have any constructive feedback on the medical stuff (man, what a lousy biomedical engineer I am), but I just wanted to wish you good luck on the surgery! Heal fast, my friend. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites BillyVance 34 #9 January 22, 2008 Quote Quote with a severely sprained ankle swollen to the size of a grapefruit. Are you sure that wasn't just water retention? I was in high school. Running in track practice, doing 200 meter sprints with a group at full speed. My leg tangled with a teammate's and we both tumbled. It was the size of a walnut when I took the shoe and sock off, then BLAMMO grew to a grapefruit. I should have left the shoe on. So yeah, I drove home using my left foot to work the gas and brake. I don't know how I managed it though."Mediocre people don't like high achievers, and high achievers don't like mediocre people." - SIX TIME National Champion coach Nick Saban Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites tuffyjensen 0 #10 January 22, 2008 I had tore my right ACL 15 years and the left ACL 10 years prior to having bilateral autograph patellar tendon (both at the same time) ACL reconstruction on a Wed. in Dec. '03 (I think 21st). I was shooting pool by Sunday and skydiving within 5 1/2 weeks. Most people thought I was nuts, but I attribute it to the PT. What ever they will allow you to do, push it to the limit without re-damaging. Letting it go, as stated, is very damaging, causing arthritis and the likely chance of total knee replacement later on (trust me I know, cause I will have to). Hopefully you will have a better Doc than I did, wish I knew then what I do now. I can still displace my right at least 1/2 inch without any outside assistance just my leg muscles.Be Safe and Have Fun, in that order! Tuffy Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites SBS 0 #11 January 22, 2008 It sounds cliche, but don't rush it. I've torn my left ACL 3 times, and am waiting to replace it again until I can dedicate months to recovery. I started traveling a week and a half after the surgery and couldn't dedicate to the therapy like I should have. It broke down little by little, and eventually popped about 9 months after the last surgery. It didn't really hurt, because there wasn't that much left to tear. It sounds like you're in better shape than I am, and work out more, but still, it would be better to take a month or two too much off than take a week too little. Also, it wasn't big strenuous activities that damaged it, it was things like tripping on a curb, etc. Point is, just don't be in a hurry. As far as pain, it wasn't that bad. The therapy didn't feel great, but it was ok. The second surgery, they gave me a continuous motion machine that I started using a couple days after surgery. It kept the knee moving so when therapy started there was already a little motion, and kept scar tissue from forming. That's part of what's painful about therapy, tearing through scar tissue that's built up. Anyway, good luck. It's not THAT bad. -S_____________ I'm not conceited...I'm just realistic about my awesomeness... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites kbordson 8 #12 January 22, 2008 Last Feb., I had arthroscopic repair of the medial meniscus, removal of the lateral meniscus and replacement of the ACL (cadaveric). I did it under a spinal and actually got to watch the whole thing (typically anesthesia doesn't like you to do that... cuz patients get weird when they see people cutting on them) But, I got to directly see all the stuff that he later would have told me about. I had the surgery on a Thurs. and was in clinic on the next wednes. (on crutches, of course). Due to the meniscial issues, my recovery and rehab was a bit prolonged. But when I was allowed to rehab, I worked it hard and got things almost "normal." Prior to my ankle injury a couple of weeks ago, the only deficits that I had were with deep knee bends it was sometimes difficult to stand it back up. Don't wait on it. Good Luck with surgery. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites eeneR 1 #13 January 22, 2008 Quote I did it under a spinal and actually got to watch the whole thing (typically anesthesia doesn't like you to do that.. They actually let me do that too! Well that was the plan, the drug dock needed some help with he people skills and we got into an argument before surgery so she just knocked me out...I did however wake up in surgery and got to watch it on TV. "Wow! whatcha drilling there doc?" Definitely was quite interesting, well till I put two and two with the table vibrating and wanted to sit up and actually SEE what was going on!!! They thought it was funny, I sat there and watched for awhile, then just went back to sleep.She is not a "Dumb Blonde" - She is a "Light-Haired Detour Off The Information Superhighway." eeneR TF#72, FB#4130, Incauto Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites alanab 0 #14 January 22, 2008 barf, i could never watch what they were doing to me, i think i'd pass out anyways. what do you mean by "Don't wait on it."? thanks for the replies everyone.... i'm still nervous though. it seems like everyone has a different story, but the one commonality is to work very hard in my post op physical therapy, which i fully plan on doing! it unnerves me that they are gonna tear a chunk of my hamstring out to reconstruct the ACL. but like many have said, the doc told me it holds up better and less chance of rejection than cadaver. but, longer healing time, which i don't want... oh well, you win some, you lose some, right? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites kbordson 8 #15 January 22, 2008 Quotewhat do you mean by "Don't wait on it."? Don't stall on the surgery and say "I'll do it in 6mos/next year/ when it hurts more" because the damage keeps accumulating and gets progressively harder to repair. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites alanab 0 #16 January 22, 2008 ah... yeah! well i had to wait until after my family vacation that's planned for the 1st week of feb. so i already have it scheduled on feb 15th. by then it will have been 2 months... luckily my doc recommends 1 month of pre op therapy to strengthen! i feel like i'm in good hands. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites fields 0 #17 January 23, 2008 back in 2004 I wrote this It still applies."And the sky is blue and righteous in every direction" Survivor Chuck Palahniuk Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites d_squared431 0 #18 January 23, 2008 I had my ACL/meniscus repaired in 2001 and it was a good month from the time I had torn it to the time it was repaired due to the holidays. Everyone heals differently and has a different tolerance with pain. Surgery itself is a piece of cake it is physical therapy that will be painful. Do everything you can prior to surgery to build up your range of motion and strength. I am sure you will do fine.TPM Sister#130ONTIG#1 I love vodka.I love vodka cause it rhymes with Tuaca~LisaH You having a clean thought is like billyvance having a clean post.iluvtofly Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites alanab 0 #19 January 23, 2008 that makes me feel a little bit better that i'm doing a lot prior to surgery to help out with everything in the long run! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites d_squared431 0 #20 January 23, 2008 I wish you luck with your knee. TPM Sister#130ONTIG#1 I love vodka.I love vodka cause it rhymes with Tuaca~LisaH You having a clean thought is like billyvance having a clean post.iluvtofly Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites alanab 0 #21 January 23, 2008 thanks! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites alanab 0 #22 January 23, 2008 wow! no one else has had this surgery? i would think hat i'd have more responses by now... all you crazy fucks! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites BillyVance 34 #23 January 24, 2008 Quotewow! no one else has had this surgery? i would think hat i'd have more responses by now... all you crazy fucks! You might have gotten more responses in the general skydiving discussions, as some people post threads asking about coming back from injuries."Mediocre people don't like high achievers, and high achievers don't like mediocre people." - SIX TIME National Champion coach Nick Saban Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites plowdirt 0 #24 January 24, 2008 Sergery is different for eveyone,, I did it, but Medial and latteral plus acl,, Here is what I was hearing,, you'll be as good as new in 3 months.. What really happend, I was out for 10 months,, bearly got to jog after about a year and a half.. and still barly can. Can you wear a brace and get along does it really bother you,, have you thought about changing your lifestyle to compensate,, Like work out and strengthen your knees. Thing is I did it,,(sergery) and it didn't work,, oh yea he was a sports med DR too.. Good luck on the recovery,, If I had a chance I would have past on it knowing what I know now. Oh btw I jumped for 5 months up untill the sergery and I was fine.. lil scared but fine. Just wear a brace and save your self some pain.. Good luck E Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites lvenojump 0 #25 February 1, 2008 I had hamstring graft ACL reconstruct on 9.24.07. The recovery period had me scared quite a bit also going in... the first week for me was a series of drugs.sleep.rehab.ice machine.drugs.more drugs.a little food.rehab. and repeat. My PT and my docs were literally fist fighting over my recovery methodology in terms of when to use the brace and when to use crutches; I was a tad annoyed; but the figured it out (I was the first referral from my surg. to my pt so they hadn't ironed all these little things out). I can remember on the first day post-op feeling like there was no way I was ever going to be able to do xyz again; and now 4 months later I am almost 100% back. I was cleared to be able to fly in the wind tunnel and happily flung myself in skyventurenh and enjoyed it greatly! I will hopefully be cleared to go back to skydiving in early to mid May (late May at the latest) and can't wait. You see, I tore my ACL off the mock up. How sexy right!!!! Well, that is the fall that was the straw that broke the camel's back. I had a hard landing a few weeks earlier and then was practicing an exit off the mock up and my knee just shattered underneath me; oh did I mention too that I am only an AFF student; yeah not happy to have sat out the rest of the season (I tore my ACL on memorial day but didn't have a full diagnosis until early August). So my words of wisdom for you are: design a bag/carrier system to use for the first few weeks to carry things around the house. I bought this great covered tumbler glass at target that had a loop in the top. I could hook my finger thru it and still be able to use my full hand on my crutches. Stock yourself with meals that are quick and easy to make and that you can carry easiy with one hand. I was cleared to drive after 2 wks; but I drive an automatic and surgery was on my left knee. Take each day at a day and focus on PT and doing the in home exercises. I kept my head in the game; even when I was so certain that I would never be able to be fully normal again by just telling myself that PT and the gym workouts were all a part of AFF for me. No strong knee. no jumps. Good luck!!! If there is anything I didn't hit on that you want to know how it was for me; please feel free to pm me and I'll chat with you! Lauren"My soul is in the sky" - Shakespeare Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Prev 1 2 Next Page 1 of 2 Join the conversation You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account. Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible. Reply to this topic... × Pasted as rich text. Paste as plain text instead Only 75 emoji are allowed. × Your link has been automatically embedded. Display as a link instead × Your previous content has been restored. Clear editor × You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL. 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BGill 0 #8 January 22, 2008 Don't have any constructive feedback on the medical stuff (man, what a lousy biomedical engineer I am), but I just wanted to wish you good luck on the surgery! Heal fast, my friend. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BillyVance 34 #9 January 22, 2008 Quote Quote with a severely sprained ankle swollen to the size of a grapefruit. Are you sure that wasn't just water retention? I was in high school. Running in track practice, doing 200 meter sprints with a group at full speed. My leg tangled with a teammate's and we both tumbled. It was the size of a walnut when I took the shoe and sock off, then BLAMMO grew to a grapefruit. I should have left the shoe on. So yeah, I drove home using my left foot to work the gas and brake. I don't know how I managed it though."Mediocre people don't like high achievers, and high achievers don't like mediocre people." - SIX TIME National Champion coach Nick Saban Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tuffyjensen 0 #10 January 22, 2008 I had tore my right ACL 15 years and the left ACL 10 years prior to having bilateral autograph patellar tendon (both at the same time) ACL reconstruction on a Wed. in Dec. '03 (I think 21st). I was shooting pool by Sunday and skydiving within 5 1/2 weeks. Most people thought I was nuts, but I attribute it to the PT. What ever they will allow you to do, push it to the limit without re-damaging. Letting it go, as stated, is very damaging, causing arthritis and the likely chance of total knee replacement later on (trust me I know, cause I will have to). Hopefully you will have a better Doc than I did, wish I knew then what I do now. I can still displace my right at least 1/2 inch without any outside assistance just my leg muscles.Be Safe and Have Fun, in that order! Tuffy Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SBS 0 #11 January 22, 2008 It sounds cliche, but don't rush it. I've torn my left ACL 3 times, and am waiting to replace it again until I can dedicate months to recovery. I started traveling a week and a half after the surgery and couldn't dedicate to the therapy like I should have. It broke down little by little, and eventually popped about 9 months after the last surgery. It didn't really hurt, because there wasn't that much left to tear. It sounds like you're in better shape than I am, and work out more, but still, it would be better to take a month or two too much off than take a week too little. Also, it wasn't big strenuous activities that damaged it, it was things like tripping on a curb, etc. Point is, just don't be in a hurry. As far as pain, it wasn't that bad. The therapy didn't feel great, but it was ok. The second surgery, they gave me a continuous motion machine that I started using a couple days after surgery. It kept the knee moving so when therapy started there was already a little motion, and kept scar tissue from forming. That's part of what's painful about therapy, tearing through scar tissue that's built up. Anyway, good luck. It's not THAT bad. -S_____________ I'm not conceited...I'm just realistic about my awesomeness... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kbordson 8 #12 January 22, 2008 Last Feb., I had arthroscopic repair of the medial meniscus, removal of the lateral meniscus and replacement of the ACL (cadaveric). I did it under a spinal and actually got to watch the whole thing (typically anesthesia doesn't like you to do that... cuz patients get weird when they see people cutting on them) But, I got to directly see all the stuff that he later would have told me about. I had the surgery on a Thurs. and was in clinic on the next wednes. (on crutches, of course). Due to the meniscial issues, my recovery and rehab was a bit prolonged. But when I was allowed to rehab, I worked it hard and got things almost "normal." Prior to my ankle injury a couple of weeks ago, the only deficits that I had were with deep knee bends it was sometimes difficult to stand it back up. Don't wait on it. Good Luck with surgery. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
eeneR 1 #13 January 22, 2008 Quote I did it under a spinal and actually got to watch the whole thing (typically anesthesia doesn't like you to do that.. They actually let me do that too! Well that was the plan, the drug dock needed some help with he people skills and we got into an argument before surgery so she just knocked me out...I did however wake up in surgery and got to watch it on TV. "Wow! whatcha drilling there doc?" Definitely was quite interesting, well till I put two and two with the table vibrating and wanted to sit up and actually SEE what was going on!!! They thought it was funny, I sat there and watched for awhile, then just went back to sleep.She is not a "Dumb Blonde" - She is a "Light-Haired Detour Off The Information Superhighway." eeneR TF#72, FB#4130, Incauto Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
alanab 0 #14 January 22, 2008 barf, i could never watch what they were doing to me, i think i'd pass out anyways. what do you mean by "Don't wait on it."? thanks for the replies everyone.... i'm still nervous though. it seems like everyone has a different story, but the one commonality is to work very hard in my post op physical therapy, which i fully plan on doing! it unnerves me that they are gonna tear a chunk of my hamstring out to reconstruct the ACL. but like many have said, the doc told me it holds up better and less chance of rejection than cadaver. but, longer healing time, which i don't want... oh well, you win some, you lose some, right? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kbordson 8 #15 January 22, 2008 Quotewhat do you mean by "Don't wait on it."? Don't stall on the surgery and say "I'll do it in 6mos/next year/ when it hurts more" because the damage keeps accumulating and gets progressively harder to repair. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
alanab 0 #16 January 22, 2008 ah... yeah! well i had to wait until after my family vacation that's planned for the 1st week of feb. so i already have it scheduled on feb 15th. by then it will have been 2 months... luckily my doc recommends 1 month of pre op therapy to strengthen! i feel like i'm in good hands. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
fields 0 #17 January 23, 2008 back in 2004 I wrote this It still applies."And the sky is blue and righteous in every direction" Survivor Chuck Palahniuk Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
d_squared431 0 #18 January 23, 2008 I had my ACL/meniscus repaired in 2001 and it was a good month from the time I had torn it to the time it was repaired due to the holidays. Everyone heals differently and has a different tolerance with pain. Surgery itself is a piece of cake it is physical therapy that will be painful. Do everything you can prior to surgery to build up your range of motion and strength. I am sure you will do fine.TPM Sister#130ONTIG#1 I love vodka.I love vodka cause it rhymes with Tuaca~LisaH You having a clean thought is like billyvance having a clean post.iluvtofly Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
alanab 0 #19 January 23, 2008 that makes me feel a little bit better that i'm doing a lot prior to surgery to help out with everything in the long run! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
d_squared431 0 #20 January 23, 2008 I wish you luck with your knee. TPM Sister#130ONTIG#1 I love vodka.I love vodka cause it rhymes with Tuaca~LisaH You having a clean thought is like billyvance having a clean post.iluvtofly Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
alanab 0 #22 January 23, 2008 wow! no one else has had this surgery? i would think hat i'd have more responses by now... all you crazy fucks! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BillyVance 34 #23 January 24, 2008 Quotewow! no one else has had this surgery? i would think hat i'd have more responses by now... all you crazy fucks! You might have gotten more responses in the general skydiving discussions, as some people post threads asking about coming back from injuries."Mediocre people don't like high achievers, and high achievers don't like mediocre people." - SIX TIME National Champion coach Nick Saban Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
plowdirt 0 #24 January 24, 2008 Sergery is different for eveyone,, I did it, but Medial and latteral plus acl,, Here is what I was hearing,, you'll be as good as new in 3 months.. What really happend, I was out for 10 months,, bearly got to jog after about a year and a half.. and still barly can. Can you wear a brace and get along does it really bother you,, have you thought about changing your lifestyle to compensate,, Like work out and strengthen your knees. Thing is I did it,,(sergery) and it didn't work,, oh yea he was a sports med DR too.. Good luck on the recovery,, If I had a chance I would have past on it knowing what I know now. Oh btw I jumped for 5 months up untill the sergery and I was fine.. lil scared but fine. Just wear a brace and save your self some pain.. Good luck E Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
lvenojump 0 #25 February 1, 2008 I had hamstring graft ACL reconstruct on 9.24.07. The recovery period had me scared quite a bit also going in... the first week for me was a series of drugs.sleep.rehab.ice machine.drugs.more drugs.a little food.rehab. and repeat. My PT and my docs were literally fist fighting over my recovery methodology in terms of when to use the brace and when to use crutches; I was a tad annoyed; but the figured it out (I was the first referral from my surg. to my pt so they hadn't ironed all these little things out). I can remember on the first day post-op feeling like there was no way I was ever going to be able to do xyz again; and now 4 months later I am almost 100% back. I was cleared to be able to fly in the wind tunnel and happily flung myself in skyventurenh and enjoyed it greatly! I will hopefully be cleared to go back to skydiving in early to mid May (late May at the latest) and can't wait. You see, I tore my ACL off the mock up. How sexy right!!!! Well, that is the fall that was the straw that broke the camel's back. I had a hard landing a few weeks earlier and then was practicing an exit off the mock up and my knee just shattered underneath me; oh did I mention too that I am only an AFF student; yeah not happy to have sat out the rest of the season (I tore my ACL on memorial day but didn't have a full diagnosis until early August). So my words of wisdom for you are: design a bag/carrier system to use for the first few weeks to carry things around the house. I bought this great covered tumbler glass at target that had a loop in the top. I could hook my finger thru it and still be able to use my full hand on my crutches. Stock yourself with meals that are quick and easy to make and that you can carry easiy with one hand. I was cleared to drive after 2 wks; but I drive an automatic and surgery was on my left knee. Take each day at a day and focus on PT and doing the in home exercises. I kept my head in the game; even when I was so certain that I would never be able to be fully normal again by just telling myself that PT and the gym workouts were all a part of AFF for me. No strong knee. no jumps. Good luck!!! If there is anything I didn't hit on that you want to know how it was for me; please feel free to pm me and I'll chat with you! Lauren"My soul is in the sky" - Shakespeare Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
