These are ACL surgery tips from real people who have had ACL surgery.
This info comes from open ended survey responses from a December 2010 survey; their open ended ACL surgery advice is listed here in its raw form.
Click here for the ACL surgery results.
- Find a surgeon who focuses on athletes (my doc was a former team doctor for the Redskins). He specialized in knee surgery.
- If you need ACL surgery, I recommend doing it right away to avoid further injury to knee. I chose my own hamstring and now wish that I had chosen a cadaver. Why? 1. The only study I found about types of grafts showed cadaver had higher fail rate for young athlete in contact sports, and I’m triathlete so less impact chances and more linear movement. 2. I do feel my age has been an issue in recovering/rebuilding my affected hamstring. Hope this helps.
- Hamstring surgery has a faster recovery time, but you will loose some range of motion (knee fully bent) – Patellar surgery is more painful and longer recovery time but the result was better for me.
- Do not hesitate and do it asap, in order to have his / hers normal life again
- I would take more time getting healthy before and after surgery. The human body is amazing and no matter how much work you put into rehab, it really just takes time. Be patient and it will feel better.
- PREHAB! Work hard before the surgery and listen to your doctor and your therapist. Make sure you have a system for icing and pain management and surround yourself with people to care for you for the first week.
- Keep up with physical therapy even after you go and its important to regain your motion.
- Have ACL surgery. A person needs a stable knee, especially if they are active, and even if they aren’t, the risk of arthritis and further injury as you get old is too great.
And if done properly, the hamstring graft (3-5 strand) should give you a stronger ACL than you started with. - It is a tough long recovery….be patient and work hard.
- 1. For the active folks, I would say prepare yourself mentally for being out of action for a while. That has really been the hardest part for me. I teach fitness classes and LOVE, LOVE, LOVE working out. I kind of rely on it for stress relief. I have really tried to focus my energy on rehab, but we all know it’s not quite the same.
2. Make sure you feel comfortable with your doctor and the surgical team. You really do want to feel like you are in good hands.
3. I also read “Prepare for Sugery, Heal Faster” by Peggy Huddleston and found it extremely helpful as I prepared for the procedure. The surgery was a breeze, but it does help to go into it in a good frame of mind.
4. Rehab takes a while. Just be patient, don’t rush, and listen to your body.
5. My most important piece of advice is to just keep a positive outlook-things are going to get better and if you do the rehab, you’ll get a little better every single day. - Be sure you trust your doctor. I went to 2 who wanted to operate but were jerks to me. The 3rd was really cool and re-xrayed my avulsion fracture, which had healed itself. My knee is doing great now.
- If you’re young enough to play sports, do it cuz it will improve your life considerably but dont if you do not participate in such activities much. Patella is the strongest, hamstring the least painful and allografts the weakest and for sissies. i went for the patella for the strongest graft. if pain something you can endure for a week or two, patella tendon is best.
- Hamstring,hamstring,hamstring….no pain…quicker recovery …no question a better option
- Ask people for their advice who have had the surgery. This is a very common injury in Ultimate Frisbee, so I had advice pouring in. It was a little bit overwhelming. Different tears also require different treatment. I was only eligible for the hamstring and the cadaver. I also weighed the pros and cons of each and tried to figure out what would be the best fit for me. It’s a personal answer. Which is why I can’t properly answer the question “Which is better?”. I don’t know which is better since I’ve only had one! The biggest factor in making me choose cadaver was one of my teammates saying that he completely regrets having the hamstring vs the cadaver. He was very passionate with his argument. I had surgery October 1st and I am doing alright! Initial recovery was a nightmare but now I can walk and drive myself to PT. It feels good to move around again. I can’t wait to be able to run.
- Think long term. Patella is simply the better bet-all others refer to theirs as being as good as Patella. The skill of the surgeon makes a difference too. Ask surgeon for references. If they tell you that xxx graft is just as good ask for studies and research. We were told that the allograft was just as good but they couldn’t produce any long term studies. We did find some but the majority of the studies say patella is still the gold standard. See Dr. Benjamin Rubin in Orange CA, highly recommend.
- Research your options, talk to everyone as all experiences are different, consider the future, work hard at rehab, dont rush back post surgery, take your time and make sure you’re really ready both physically and psychologically!
- I have torn both of my ACLs and had replacement surgery both times. My biggest concern heading into surgery was the type of graft to use. On my first tear, I used a patellar graft. On the second, which I’m currently almost 4 months removed from, I used a hamstring graft. The patellar graft never gives me any trouble, and the hamstring graft is also coming along extremely well. I’d say to go with whatever your surgeon recommends, assuming your surgeon is good. Both grafts are sound, but there is a TON of internet “literature” out there that will exaggerate the pros and cons of both grafts. Don’t pay too much attention to that. From first-hand experience, both surgeries are good.
- Do it as fast as posible and choose the strongest graft. Also try to use resorbable screws, would save you for another operation to remove the titanium screws.
- If you have the hamstring graft, you are having TWO surgeries; it makes it worse. Have the surgery and one STRONG piece of advice DO NOT STOP PHYSCIAL THERAPY until you absolutly MUST or you are completly healed. I stopped after 20 visits and ended up back there 3 months later.
- If you do the patellar one you will have pain in the front of your knee cap for a long time (maybe forever). It doesn’t bother me all that much, but I can’t kneel without discomfort. Just something to think about if you do things like kneel to pray, or play on the ground with kids, or yoga.
- Had two ACL surgeries, first used Patella tendon, it tore third game back after rehab. Second surgery used hamstring still strong after 2 years. Also did quad fold.
- Do physical therapy both before and after surgery
- Get a doc you can trust, and then the best physiotherapist + 100% commitment to physio
- find the best surgion that fits you, and your lifestyle. REASEARCH the different grafts and proceduers. when its all over… HIT THE GYM and PHYSICAL THERAPY! workout workout workout. get stronger and good luck!
- Mentally prepare yourself for a long, difficult, but ultimately rewarding process. Don’t give up. You are more than half the battle to recovery.
- Do a lot of research for which ACL reconstruction will work best for you. Patellar is a harder recovery but the strongest of the 3. Don’t get dependant on your brace after surgery. Stop using it as a crutch after 9 months. You REALLY don’t need it after 9 months but most people wear them forever. PT, PT, PT… attend PT as much as possible and do as much as you can at home. All the best!
- Listen to your doctor and physical therapist and don’t skip on doing the rehab fully. And there are lots of good blogs out there with real first-hand experience info to let you know what you’ll go through!
- ACL rehab has ups and downs, and if you stick through it, you’ll come back 100%
- its painful, but worth it in the end, its a slow process patience is the key
- Gather as much information as possible to make an informed and correct decision for your scenario.
- research it fully in order to try to decide which graft choice would be best for you.
dicuss it with your surgeon, and only choose a technique which your surgeon is familiar with and does many of. - Go with the procedure that your O.S has suggested and has had the greatest success with. Age is also a factor considering Patella procedure pain can linger and hamper rehap for older patients.
- Wait until your knee is dry and muscles are strong bofore the operation
- During the recovery take a balanced approach. Don’t overdo it because of something you saw online and don’t be lazy either. Keep close communication with your doctor, get them to respond to your questions, issues.
- Do your research & strengthen your legs pre surgery!
- Do it, otherwise you’ll spend the rest of your life thinking ‘what if’. For a couple of days of not being that mobile it’ll be worth it
- make a research better to be a good acl after surgery…and give more tips to improve stronger the knee every patient…not only for the athletes
- deffinetly get it because it changes your world for the better just make sure you go to a surgeon you would trust with your life because thats basicly what you are doing
- Only use a knee specialist, use patella or cadavor (sp?), be prepared for pain, use the meds your prescribed, get your knee drained if it’s too swollen to even do therapy, ask for a stim machine if your quad won’t fire by day 3.
- do it ! My knees work great. I had the surgery on both knees.
- Don’t have it too soon after injury. Work as hard as you possibly can in re-hab.
Yoga is good for strengthening muscles before and after ACL surgery
Loading ...
I am 17 and i tore my ACL presidents weekend, i had surgery on February 24th and used my hamstring. we had this same debate and eventually decided to leave it up to the doctor and what he was comfortable doing. I was able to walk three days after surgery and 22 days out i have full extension and 100 degree flexion but i am still in a brace and walk with a serious limp. I’m an athlete and before surgery i was lifting weights every day and have very strong legs. It is very important to get quad strength up before the procedure because it makes the recovery a lot quicker. That being said, I had a cadaver graft in my right knee in 2003 and it has held up wonderfully, no problems at all. I am not sure that the hamstring graft is better yet because i do have a lot of pain in my hamstring and i worry that it will never be the same. Cadaver is least invasive, hamstring is strongest, and patellar is easiest
Thanks for the information. I’m having ACL reconstruction on June 2, which is next Wednesday, and still haven’t decided.
I’m a wrestler and Brazilian jiu jitsu competitor so I want whatever is strongest. Problem is that a lot of BJJ consists of grappling in a kneeling position, which makes me feel that hamstring will be better for me.
Thanks for the information.
2 weeks post op and walking around the house fine. I pre-habed very hard and could sprint before my surgery. I had to wait 3 months after my tear and i think it was worth it. have full extension and half felxion. I can flex both my hamstrings and quads very well and raise my leg on my own. However, my surgeon told me to still take it easy. I think this is for freak accidents hat involve falling. I think the key is to realize that you had your surgery onn the ACl not the hamstring of quads. So why not try to use your ham string and quads as normal as possible after surgery? only you know your body the best and it is important to not let the doctor mentally freak u out. after all, everything is mental after a certain point. The sooner you can overcome the mental aspect the sooner u will be better and everything will be easier
It surprises me that this post which was posted two-years ago is still very active. Reading all the stuff here has been really helpful, and it makes me feel that i’m not alone.
I’m 16yo, female, and I tore my ACL last December while playing Basketball. I’ve been playing for four years then and it was hard on me that I got injured, I remember crying every time i saw a doctor, when they told me i couldn’t play the next month with a broken ACL for our biggest league that year. Well, the doctor warned me that if i didn’t get surgery I would most likely have arthritis by my 30s, so the obvious choice for me was to have surgery. Since I was graduating at March and i didn’t want to miss all the pre-grad activities I didn’t have the surgery until 2.5 weeks ago. My basketball coach, who was also a sports science major, told me to go on a strengthening program pre-op because he said it’ll make recovery easier, and so i did. I went for physical therapy three time a week for strengthening, focusing on strengthening my quads and hamstrings. And i regularly went on a stationary bike. So for the surgery i took the hammy route, but i didn’t have much choice. The doctor only did recon with the hammy. Which actually brought me here, I wanted to find something that would make me believe that the hamstring was the right choice for me (even though it wasn’t exactly a choice), and after reading all these stuff I feel pretty confident with it.
I got an epidural when i had surgery so i was awake the whole time and couldn’t feel my legs, but i got to watch the surgery. I was apprehensive about watching at first but they said it was just like watching Discovery, and it was, after that I was in recovery and waited for the anesthesia to wear off, it was hard to walk with the brace at first but it was ok after. I also made sure to take my pain-meds on time and i practically felt no intolerable pain up until now (and my pain tolerance is pretty low)
I’m now 2.5 weeks in recovery and I have 110degrees range of motion, at my first PT session I was at 90degrees, so it’s an improvement. I think its true what the others say that you shouldn’t be dependent on the crutches and brace. I had my brace a week and was scared to even walk, so i spent days lying down. And when my PT got my brace off my range of motion went from 92 to 100degrees in just two days, then 100 to 110 after that. So every now and then i try to walk around, to stretch my legs out and get used to walking. I also think that my pre-op strengthening helped a bit, my PT says that my quads and hamstrings are doing better than others’ after the surgery. Almost no pain for me too, even during PT, just a little stiffness.
I also agree that the result of the surgery really depends on the surgeon, my surgeon was an orthopedic surgeon, but specializes in sports medicine, he’s supposed to be one of the best around my country, and performs sports injury related reconstruction about 3 times a day, plus, he was the doctor of the pro-basketball league of our country. I could have gotten a surgeon who charges half the price, but i wouldn’t feel as confident about the surgery.
After reading all the stuff on this thread, I’m left with two important decisions to make. 1) When, or if I will start playing again? and 2) If I should get the screws out? (i got titanium screws), but i heard there are bio-absorbable screws which dissolves, so you don’t have to worry about them being taken off after a year or ringing when passing bu metal detectors.
Also, anyone recommend anything that will prevent the scars? The hamstring-graft didn’t require a really big incision but i still don’t want a scar. I heard that vitamin E helps, does it really?
*Wishes everyone luck!*
I completely tore my right ACL on May 30th. I am a 33 yr old professional MMA fighter. My surgery is scheduled for June 21st in Pittsburgh. I beleive my fighting career is over but I plan on continuing to train in Jui Jistu and wrestling once I am at 100%.
This site has helped me a lot preparing for my surgery. I talked to a lot of friends that have had the surgery and I have gotten mixed reviews for both. I am leaning towards the hamstring surgery based on the chance of rupturing the patella post surgery.
I’ll update you guys once I get the surgery. Thanks for the help.
Joe
Hi Guys,
From what i have been taught at university, pre hab-ing (strengthening etc) the hamstring from which the graft is being taken significantly helps during the re-hab period. Consult your physical therapist on their opinions.
hope this helps
My daughter’s hamstring graft tore in her first game back. Her surgeon thought it would provide less pain long term, but he gives patella a slight advantage for dependability (i.e. tight wihtout retear). Even if you’ve been cleared & are running alot, be careful kicking, planting, cutting, etc. excessively your first few games. She was playing SO well that the coach kept her in, had her take a penalty kick instead of the 9 other girls on the field, she planted, and it collapsed. And our surgeon is one of the best in the Chicago ‘burbs. She had done all the PT, PT tests for clearance, etc. Also would say if you’re menstrating first few games back, you may want to wait until you’re not, for the reasons you’ve probably read if you’re on this site.
Sorry to hear that. How long did she recover before going back? Less than a year?
I’m person #2 in survey, and I wanted to clarify my answers.
“Do it right away…”- I waited 15 years! Did “strengthening exercises” instead and frequently re-injured my knee. Now have bone cartilage loss which is bad news. I believe this could have been prevented by ACL surgery which would have stabilized the knee.
“my age in recovering from hamstring graft”- I was nearly 50 at surgery and taking material from my hamstring might not have been best idea since IMO muscles don’t recover as easily as you age. I feel I could have gotten away w/cadaver to protect my own hamstring.
I’m getting for acl surgury and arthrosurface(due to arthritus) in less than a month on my right knee. I am 49 and I injured my knee 32 yrs ago playing football. I have had issues with my knee, but it always seemed to hold up, until about 4 months ago. I agree with you when you said get it done right away. I was told by my doc that I may not have got arthritus if my acl was repaired when it happended.
Well, I had the arthrosurface and ACL replacement surgery done in the same surgery. It has been a little over 6 weeks and it has been very painful and still need pain meds to sleep at night amd after rehab. I have had some good days recently. I have been going to rehab directly after surg at 2 times weekly and have another 5 weeks to go. Rehab can cause pain, but seems to be making things better. I am really suprised how much my muscles seemed to have left me, but I am building them back up and am able to walk up an down stairs – very slowly. My doc thinks I will be able to return to golf in a month – we’ll see. I am interested to hear from anyone else who had this multi-surgery.
I’m 52 and tore my ACL 31 years ago doing judo. I was young, dumb and uninsured so I rehabed it on my own and kick boxed a couple years later avoiding bad angles on the bad knee. I tore the medial meniscus in the same knee last year and now I’m old and dumb, but I am insured so I had ACL (allograft) and meniscus repair done in March. It’s been a slow but positive recovery with patella tracking issues; however, I am improving incrementally every day. Fortunately, even with the kick boxing, there was no arthritis in the knee as seen from the surgery images. I guess I’ve had dumb luck and I’ll push it by taking up Muay Thai and Brazillian Jujitsu. One thing that I will do is wear a Donjoy eXtreme Action Armor knee brace when working out to protect the knee. It is a “off the shelf” brace that has a lot of good reviews. The best price I found was from jointhealing.com for $445 w/free shipping. Normal price pushes $700+.
Wow, great info. Thanks for sharing.
The graft really depends on what level of sports and activity you’re trying to do. I’m in my late 30s and very active, but I didn’t want a cadaver and got the hamstring. Glad I did, I didn’t want to risk knee pain by doing the patellar.
I was just told today by my orthopedist that I need ACL reconstruction and a repair to a meniscus tear. This Doc is very highly regarded, is a sports ortho and treats one of our local pro teams (SF Bay Area). He looked at the MRI scan but didn’t have the radiologist’s report yet when he gave me his firm opinion. Then I come home to the preliminary MRI radiography report, e-mailed to me, and it doesn’t even mention the ACL! I have a cyst, tendinosis, but no ligament tears seen. This is a “prelim” report, and I’m still looking up the terms.
Of course it’s the weekend, so I’ll sit with this till Monday. I really think I need another opinion – did any of you get more than one diagnosis and/or see more than one orthopedic surgeon? I’m so glad to stumble onto this site, and hope it keeps going.
BTW, I’m a 55 yo (woman) competitive equestrian – no pain when I ride, but some when I go up and down stairs and bend my knees to pick things up – I actually have to press my left hand against my left knee to get up with less pain. Hope you all are still out there and thanks for the info and inspiration.
Good tips on this site, here are a couple more practical ones: girls, get a nightgown. Think moo moo. By the time u brace up, and hobble to the bathroom, it is great to not have to fiddle with anything, just lift and whizz. 2nd, first few days your leg is too sore, but now I have a bathrobe sash to loop around my foot and gently hold up my leg as needed. 3rd, make sure all the cords for your cpm or ice cuff machines are hidden. Yep almost tripped on those! good luck all!
I’m now 25 and almost exactly 1 year post-op after a patella graph to repair an ACL tear and also ripped the meniscus in half, luckily i was able to have the meniscus sheared off saving me some rehab time but i definitely recommmend a patella graph to anyone with that option, it is a little more painful and more rehab but its well with it (at least it was for me). I was able to return to a very active job after 6 weeks. I waited on returning to organized sport due to being a little worried about reinjuring it, but after getting past the mental block was able to return at nearly 100% and it has continued to get better as I’ve been able to regain confidence in the knee and build strength and flexibility…
I had an ACLr using a BPB autograft in Sept 2010 that has now failed and I am planning on fixing it again. Any advise?
It’s been 6 weeks since my surgery and I still don’t have my full extension back, I’m 3 degrees short, i can get it to “0″ But putting some weight on it. As soon as I stand up, it bends. I’m getting worried, they gave me a kneehab to see if my quad will wake up but i’m scared I’ll stay like this forever
I’d try not to worry and give your quad some time to strengthen. It loses strength so fast and takes months to build it back up. I had electroshock treatment on the quad too to try to wake it up- not sure if it helped or not- but my quad is back and strong now a couple years later (a year after the surgery I felt pretty strong).
As far as extension, I had fluid buildup (blood, water, etc) in my knee and it restricted my range of motion. It wasn’t until they stuck a needle in and drained it that I felt so much relief! It constricted my motion. Also, it just takes time. Not everyone is on the same time table. Basically, just keep trying, strengthening, working on flexing, give it time and try not to worry. Worrying really doesn’t help anything.
Anyone have suggestions where I can rent an ice machine for my knee post surgery? I live in Southern California.
thanks.
I’m a mother of 3 and 25 yrs old. I was jumping on a trampoline and tore my acl and have severe sprains of my medial and latteral ligaments, plus and impactin fracture on my shin. I’m currently in physical therapy 3 times a week and they won’t do the acl surgery until my other 2 ligaments are healed. Im only 2 weeks out from the injury and I was pretty scared of the whole “surgery” aspect and have had nothing but horror stories told to me about the physical therapy and pain after. Reading this site has given me a little more confidence in having the surgery but anyone who can give me any information on what to ask the surgeon about or what kind of graph to use would be EXTREMELY appreciated. Right now they are telling me they want to use my quad for the graph….any suggestions as what graph to use seeing that im a mom and a runner?????
Hi Holly, this site has a lot of information and if you haven’t done so already, I recommend reviewing every page- the links at the top, plus the ones in the middle of the homepage. It covers advice, what graft to choose, finding a doctor, cost, insurance issues, and more. There are lots of comments to learn from too. If your primary concern is a graft, I’d recommend printing this page out and just taking it to your doctor and asking questions from each of the opposing thoughts about graft pros/cons: http://www.aclsurgery.us/patellar-vs-hamstring/ – I’d also be sure and see the survey results- there’s 2 on this website: they show that the majority believes hamstring is best, of course this is a generalization, averaging people of different athletic needs and abilities. The other survey is on every page, and shows out of 231 votes that hamstring is the most popular choice among the 3. Best of luck to you in your process of Q&A and learning about your options.
Thank You so much and I love your site it has helped so much and eased my fears by making me more knowledgeable about my choices!!!