ACL

[mpc]

my acl is gone

i'm scheduled for feb 22
i torned the acl + lcl doing a high step to a knee drop on a sport climb BUT i think yoga did't
i'm concerned about this surgery..
some pips say that they were able to climb easy things after 6 mths
some others say that they climb w/out acl
some other say that it takes 12-24moths...?
i got dr leigth for cutting and sweing and paolo as a physio
what was your experience?
how long did it take you to trad again like a 5.9 say penny lane
what was your rehab program/how often/etc.
what method did you get the hamstring or the cadaver
any ideas/advise would be great
m

[Aaron]

my acl is gone

i'm scheduled for feb 22
i torned the acl + lcl doing a high step to a knee drop on a sport climb BUT i think yoga did't
i'm concerned about this surgery..
some pips say that they were able to climb easy things after 6 mths
some others say that they climb w/out acl
some other say that it takes 12-24moths...?
i got dr leigth for cutting and sweing and paolo as a physio
what was your experience?
how long did it take you to trad again like a 5.9 say penny lane
what was your rehab program/how often/etc.
what method did you get the hamstring or the cadaver
any ideas/advise would be great
m

You're stressed and no doubt scared, and I hear that. I Tore my ACL back in 1997 when I was 21. Took me 12 months before I had full range of motion. But I was out jogging regularly after less than 3 month. Give it time. Life is long.

[slopr]

get a stationary bike and some good tv series on DVD.

I recommend the Wire, breaking bad and Sons of Anarchy. Should keep you busy for the first 6-7 weeks when you will be on the couch.

stay away from impact exercises like running when you first start rehab. Sounds like your timing for surgery is good, by the time July gets here your leg will be in good shape if you bike lots (bike every day). Even right now you should bike as much as you can before your surgery if possible.

I predict you will climb this summer

good luck

[dakine]

Hey mpc,
I did a full tear of my ACL 3 years ago in karate class. I was climbing /bouldering 2 -3 times a week without a ACL until this Jan. I opted to try and rehab my leg at the time with physio and focusing on strengthening the hamstring. The first year i climbed non-stop and was able to climb at near my limit without too many ill effects. The second year was the best, almost pain free and climbing bouldering with only minimal knee problems. Last year i tweaked the knee bouldering and spent the rest of the year in chronic pain and was unable to walk more than a couple clicks without a lot of pain.

I had enough of the pain this November of last year and finally had surgery with Dr. Jando out of lions gate on Jan. 21 (last month). I had the hamstring graft. Currently I'm 3 weeks post op and seeing physio 2 times a week and doing exercises at home in between visits.

Pyhsio said minimum 8 weeks post op before i can think about climbing and it will be soft grades and going easy at that point. The biggest risk to the ACL recovery is damaging it during the first 8-16 weeks as the newly grafted ligament is at it's weakest.
I opted for a custom ACL brace for after the surgery to help protect the knee as i ease back into sports / climbing.

If you want more beta PM me and i'll send you my number if you're interested in any other details.

[hans]

I had a hamstring graft about 5 or 6 years ago. Lots of cycling helped my rehab. At the time I was more of a roadie than a climber, and I was racing bikes 2 months post op. I had good results after 6 months or so, and the biggest issue was the hamstring to be honest.

Give it time, rehab religously, and you'll be fine in the long run.

My wife is currently waiting for ACL surgery BTW. Good luck.

[crazymonkey]

I'm a friend of Crazymonkey posting here as I don't have my own profile. I am a climber though. I've had 3 ACL reconstructions and 2 more scopes to boot. Why so many? Because I rushed the rehab. Stop worrying about or asking about when you will climb 5.9 trad again. Or when you will TR 5.6 in the gym. You will climb when you climb. Unless, that is, you climb too early, in which case you will climb and then you will have another surgery and you will not be climbing again. Everyone recovers at a different rate, depending on your age, height, weight, fitness, health, whether you smoke, condition of your knee joint (apart from the ACL), DILIGENCE AT PHYSIOTHERAPY, etc. You might be back at Penny Lane in 3 months. It might be 18. Noone else's experience has any bearing on when your particular knee will be ready. Get your medical advice from your doctor and your physio, not random climbers whom you know nothing about (like me). That said, I have many friends, colleagues and family in the medical field and Dr. Leith has a superb reputation. He is one of THE knee guys, if not THE knee guy. You are in the best hands possible. Do what he says. I don't know the physio you mentioned. I highly recommend Synergy Physio in North Van. They're expensive, but when you have a 45 minute session, that means you spend 45 minutes with your physio. Not 5 minutes, then he puts some ice on your knee, and comes back for 3 minutes to show you an exercise, which you do alone, and then he's back to start the TENS machine, and then off again, etc. Which is not to say that your physio is not brilliant. I don't know. Do your physio diligently, energetically, and in the exact form instructed. And last but not least, don't rush it. When you think you're ready to push your recovery to the next level and start walking without crutches or a brace/start jogging/start biking/start climbing/start whatever, make sure your physio/doc thinks that's a good idea and even then, err on the side of waiting another few days/weeks/months, as appropriate. Trust me on this one. I have bad arthritis in my mid 30's and am staring at a knee replacement before I'm 50 because I pushed the rehab too fast. You'll get back to 5.9 eventually.

Good luck!

Oh, and as for an allograft (cadaver) v. an autograft (your own, either hamstring or patellar tendon being the most common, but there are other options like the IT band and the achilles tendon), my understanding, at the time of my surgeries (the last being about 10 years ago, so things may have changed) was that allografts were a last resort and not generally as strong as an autograft. But sometimes people have thin hamstrings or patellar tendons or IT bands or such, which makes them inappropriate for grafts. But again, ask Dr. Leith about this. He's the expert. As I understand it, they usually make the decision while you're under, based on earlier discussions with you and after the chance to take a good look at their proposed source of the graft. Just talk to Leith.

[kiwisez]

Hi there,
I just had my ACL reconstruction surgery 10 days ago (indoor bouldering fall), and have set up a website of my progress, including workout regiments and silly little demo videos. I too have been seeing Paolo (who is god!) as well as another physio in Squamish and after setting myself up a strict rehab program, I'm progressing along really, really quickly and feel great: flexing the knee to 98 degrees, walking with crutch since first day post-op, straight knee, but being super careful to not over-strain the graft, especially in the first 10 weeks post-op. I found it really hard online to find a helpful site/blog showing different exercise techniques, pain management issues or advice (had to really shop around), and general info on getting through the long rehab process and coming back stronger and tougher! Not sure if you'll find it helpful but I thought I'd give it a go (plus it gives me something to do!)

http://littlekiwiandherknee.blogspot.com/

Sarah

[squamish climber]

There's some good personal POV on ACL reconstruction recovery on this thread. Although the operation side of things may have changed in the last 15 years the post-op recovery seems to be the same -- hard work, patience and more hard work.

If you haven't checked out Sarah's blog make sure you do -- it's a revealing look at the steady slog required to getting back to what we love to do -- climbing. Good on yeah Sarah and keep it up.

[kiwisez]

Thanks Squamish Climber dude!