ACL Reconstruction with meniscus repair. 7 days post op

[JoeDank]

Hello everyone my name is Joe. I'm 24 years old. I had ACL reconstruction and repair of the medial and lateral meniscus. This site was the best one IMO that I've come across for knee information and a great community to boot.
Currently I'm 8 days post-op. I seem to be progressing quite well (especially the first 4 days).  The swelling is down mostly all the way. I can walk unassisted with a heavy limp. I can bend my knee to about 45 degrees. I try to straiten my knee all the way but I get a really sharp pain(I'm close to full extension though). The only abnormality I have encountered is a numb (to touch) spot to the right of my first incision about an inch in diameter. What does this mean? I I imagine it's nerve damage due to the drilling. But I'm not sure if there is any cause for concern.
Some questions I have.....
Can I use an electronic muscle stimulator to gain strength in the muscles around my knee?
Is it too early to start trying to work my knee out?
I'm a roofer at what point can I start again?
Any advise will help, Thanks

[Snowy]

Hi Joe! Congrats on making it through surgery.

The numb patch you mention is quite normal; a peripheral nerve gets cut during the surgery, and leaves you with a numb patch that may or may not eventually resolve itself. (I was told it would eventually shrink to a point where it wasn't noticeable, but mine is still there nearly 9 months after surgery.) You'll probably also find that you start to get some odd sensations in that area when the nerve starts to regenerate - tingling, prickling, hot and cold.

With regard to your questions about e-stim and working the knee out, you need to see a physiotherapist for a proper rehab program and advise on when to begin working the knee. Correct rehab is absolutely critical to the success of an ACL reconstruction, and it's very surprising that you weren't given instructions about this before leaving hospital. I can't stress the importance of this enough; in the early days you have to be very, very careful about what you do because the ACL graft is weak and you need to protect it. Additionally, you need to make sure you're not doing anything that could compromise the meniscus repair. Over time you can gradually introduce more exercises, but when and what depends on the kind of graft you have and the progress that you make. You can check out the Information Hub for some examples of ACL rehab programs to give you an idea what to expect.

Generally for an active job you could be looking at anywhere from 3-6 months before you can go back to work, depending on your progress. Again, it's really odd that your surgeon gave you no guidance on this. It seems like you're missing a lot of important information - I would strongly recommend calling your surgeon's office and asking for some clarification around rehab and return to work expectations. A successful ACL rehab has some very specific requirements, so you definitely don't want to be guessing at what you should and shouldn't be doing.

Best of luck! I hope your rehab continues to go well.

[JoeDank]

Thanks for the quick response!

I have an appointment with my surgeon on Monday which is the first since surgery. I will definitely make a list of questions.

I haven't done anything extreme as far as trying to work out. The only thing I have done is walk without crutches. I've found that to be a workout in its self.
 
About 4 years ago I originally tore my ACL playing basketball. I once weighed 320 lbs and lost all of it playing basketball so I found it extremely difficult to quit playing (bad move),, so I re-injured it about 6 times over the course of those years. Eventually I developed a way to play without re-injuring myself (plenty of jump shooting). Then I almost hurt my other knee and that was it for me. Then finally I got health insurance that covered the injury (in America health care sucks) but in my case I have good coverage and haven't paid anything.

After all this damage is it possible the other ligaments are stretched so just fixing the ACL will not make my knee completely stable?

[Snowy]

Sounds like you're doing all the right things at the moment. Definitely best to get the surgeon's confirmation before you try anything else, just to be sure it's something that's okay for your particular repair. My OS had me take it really easy for about ten days after surgery to give the immediate trauma time to settle, and then got me going on some gentle PT after that. So much depends on the surgeon and on exactly what they had to do in your knee - some take a really aggressive approach to rehab and get it started right after surgery, others will have patients NWB and immobilized in a brace for a couple of weeks or more. What kind of graft did you have?

If your surgeon didn't find any laxity in other ligaments during pre-surgery testing and scans (or while he was in your knee doing the reconstruction), I'd think your other ligaments are intact. You might want to ask him about this too, just to be sure. Because it's so common to injure other ligaments and the meniscus along with the ACL - especially the MCL - it would be unusual if he hadn't checked for damage.

Hope all goes well for you on Monday! Definitely take a written list of questions with you - it's amazing how much falls out of your head when you're actually in front of the surgeon.

[Curz]

Hello, im 6 weeks post op and a cop so have a
Job a bit like yours (in the sense that were active)

I have the same sensation to you mate on the inside right of my knee. My swelling is gone and i get a pain every now and again which seems quite normal. My surgeon did tell me that i have a problem with cartilage which mite need sorting so may be worth asking him regards everything. If he shows u pics of ur op make sure u ask questions as i didnt. U will only regret it.

I was walking with a limp. Just keep it going it will go away and get better!

[JoeDank]

Hello again Snowy and nice to meet you Curz.

I am now 2 weeks and 3 days post op. I met with this surgeon on Monday, everything went fine. He told me I can begin to do my own PT. Like stationary bicycle etc. I begin my PT evaluation next week. The surgeon's referral recommended 3 times a week for 6 weeks.

My knee is progressively getting better everyday. I can walk 98% normally although after a wile my calf tires and eventually cramps up. I can straighten it all the way and it bends to about a 30 degree angle. I do have one occasional problem when my knee is either put at a certain angle or bent a certain way it seems to go ever so slightly out of place (not unstable feeling) it causes me to walk with a heavy and painful limp. What I do is straighten my leg completely as much as I can and this seems to resolve the issue. I know to do this because it used to happen all the time before the surgery (on a way worse scale) and that is how I corrected it. Im hoping as my leg strengthens this will correct itself. Other than that no problems what so ever.


Snowy, my doctor is definitely taking the aggressive approach he wants me to get it going and hasn't given me any restrictions. I know I'm not ready to run a triathlon but I can walk one for now. My graft type was from a cadaver.

The surgeon didn't say anything about my other ligaments or anything else of concern so I imagine that's a good thing. It's one of those questions I forgot to write down (an important one at that).

Cruz,,, 6-weeks you are my near future! Are you working again? If so... Do you carry heavy objects? Do you climb ladders?

Glad to hear its going good for you...I need to remember to ask him about the condition of my cartilage as well thanks for pointing that out.



Thanks for responses guys and or gals. I will be sure to follow up for the rest of my recovery until I'm doing back flips (metaphorically speaking).