sherwooa's ACLr (B-P-B allograft) plus meniscus trim - 28 Oct 2010

[Snowy]

Glad to hear that things are going well. Sounds like everything is making good progress; a few little niggles at 7 weeks is pretty good going. It was about the 7 week point where I finally got rid of that pulling sensation from the scar tissue, but I still had very poor flex at that stage.

The hardest part with regaining muscle is getting that first visible sign of it back - if the VMO is looking better now, it should start to progress more rapidly from here on in.

Hope things keep going in the right direction!

[sherwooa]

Thanks 'Tea and Snowy!  Yes, it seems to be going well and on schedule, so I'm pretty pleased.  'Tea - don't worry - you'll get rid of the brace and crutches soon enough.  I'm learning through this process that patience is a definite virtue, even though, for most of us who frequent these boards, it doesn't come easily

Like you, 'Tea, I've been continuing to elevate and ice and take ibuprofen, but the little bit of remaining swelling is still there as well.  Just gotta keep at it.  If yours is still really swollen, you could ask your OS for drain like I had a 2 weeks post op.  It definitely helped, even though a bit of the swelling came back.  My frozen pea scar tissue formation under the uppermost incision, on the other hand, looks like it might be here to stay.  Despite lots of self-massage and PT massage, it doesn't seem to have changed at all.  Hopefully as the lateral quad develops it will disappear a bit.

More PT this morning, and we added in band-resisted lunges and 5lb weighted leg extensions over the cylinder thingy.  Definitely seeing the VMO pump up a bit, and I'm about 1-2 lb heavier on the scale lately, so perhaps I am getting a bit of muscle development.  Diet hasn't really changed and I've been consistent on my protein intake.

Cheers all and Happy Holidays!

[sherwooa]

Day 54

Well, here I am almost at the end of week 8 and things are continuing to progress about as well as I could hope at this point.  The swelling is just about gone, the "pulling" sensation is starting to dissipate, and I'm picking up the pace in PT.  I still have some knee stiffness when I get up in the morning and when I sit at my desk at work, and still a bit of the hamstring tendonitis, but I continue to work on stretching the hamstring, calf and inner thigh, and it's starting to help.

My flexion was measured at 143 last night, and extension looks good now, according to my PT.  Walking normally now, going up and down stairs quickly, and stability feels solid.  I've also been cleared to row on the erg (Concept 2 Rower), which is great for me because I use it a lot for conditioning.  Still using the (borrowed) spin bike at home and it really helps.

Some new PT exercises this week:

- Walking lunges
- One-legged step-ups on a chair (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-hGXD-njPL8)
- Plyometric lateral exercises on a block (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-mpSd-TCOH8) - sorry for the music
- Squats on a Bosu ball
- Round the clock lunges (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ecASpebTKZ4)
- Plank leg lifts (kind of like this only I had to keep my planted leg perfectly straight and did not rest my lifting foot in between reps - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pAQdYsfI6DQ)

I see my OS tomorrow for a follow-up, so hopefully he'll be pleased with the progress.

Overall, feeling pretty good and I can definitely understand it when I hear other folks say that you start to feel more normal around this point, and like you could go back to your athletic activities again.  But I know I need to be patient and go with the rehab process, and not do anything risky at this point.

[steved]

Awesome! Good to know you're doing great. I can't wait for my 8th week!!! Today marks week 7 for me. Feeling good too. My swelling has gone down significantly as well. Still got a little scar tissue under the incisions too, not too bad though as it seems it's still soft enough to break down (hopefully). I'm curious to know where my flexion is at, I'm gonna ask them to measure it up on Thursday. My extension is great though, makes walking a hell of a lot easier. It's funny though cuz i find myself almost holding back a lil' when i step forward. It's a mental thing though. It's like a mental cringe or something. haha. It just feels like its gonna hurt but it really doesn't. I've got to get past that.

I was able to run in place on a mini trampoline at PT today. It felt amazing! Even if it was only for 2 minutes. My PT asked me to go ahead and run in place and I froze up. I had to ask her again if it was 100% ok for me to do it. Haha. I mean, it's been months since I've had that sensation or feeling of running so I didnt even know how to just start. It was great to trust my body (knee) though. I can't wait to be back playing footy and being active again! Everyday feels like the best day of recovery. It's an awesome feeling. I wish you all the best on your ongoing recovery and hope you all have tons of fun during the holidays!

[sherwooa]

Hey steve.  Thanks for the good wishes and glad to hear your progress as well.  I know what you mean about holding back a little on full extension - until this past week, I had been doing the same - it almost feels like it's gonna hyperextend and cause another tear.  Definitely a mental hurdle.  PT progress sounds great!

Saw my OS this morning and he drained another 22cc of fluid out of my knee.  The first time I bent it after he pulled out the syringe hurt like the dickens, but it got much better after an hour or so.  He said it was normal, and that I had been "riding on a cushion of fluid" for the past few weeks and that it would hurt for a bit.  Felt much better later, and after PT too.  I feel like I've gotten those extra few degrees of ROM as well.  I had thought my swelling was looking really good, but he saw it immediately and asked if I wanted a drain.  Shows you how much perspective you lose watching your own knee for so long, LOL.

Anyway, I go back to him in 4 weeks to take my "hop test" to clear me for sports/running training, and he said I could go back to sports at the 5 month mark.  Woo hoo!!

[steved]

I'm a week shy of 9! Almost there. I'm starting to feel really good, leg feels stronger and I'm ALMOST walking completely normal. I can get up & down the stairs fine. I've been going to the gym everyday and doing my PT stuff there as well as some pool exercises. It's felt great! I see my OS on Monday Jan. 3rd. Hope it all looks good to him. How are you feeling? Hopefully awesome. hope to hear back before the New Year if not.....Happy New Year!!!

[sherwooa]

Thanks steve, and sorry for the late reply!  Caught a nasty cold/mild flu on New Year's Eve and have neglected Kneegeeks the last few days.  Anyway, Happy New Year to you (and to all the other ACL'ers) too!  Sounds like you're right on track and feeling good, which is great to hear.

As for me, PT is going well and I've been feeling pretty good.  The swelling hasn't returned, thankfully, and my PT regimen is progressing well, with no pain or instability.  Also been using the Biodex machine the last couple of weeks, which is pretty neat and reminds me of Ivan Drago's training in Rocky IV 

I still have this slight "tightness" feeling in the medial side of the knee next to my patellar tendon, mainly when I am standing up and pivot slightly on the knee.  I don't know whether it's still a slight fat pad issue below the arthro portal, or whether it's some scar tissue or whether it's actually just that the ACL itself is a bit tight, but I'm waiting for a call back from my OS as my PT isn't sure.  It doesn't impede my flexion or extension, and it doesn't hurt or feel unstable.  It just feels...different.  Hopefully it's just one of those things that resolves over time. 

The hamstring tendonitis/bursitis has been getting gradually better and curls are easier now, though it's not completely gone.  Stretching the hammie and inner thigh helps a lot.

[steved]

Damn, sorry to hear about your flu on NYE. Hope you're good now! Ha, I'm still having a little bit of tightness in the hamstring too. it has definitely gotten a lot better and i can curl pretty easily but right at the end there its a little tight still but i've been told its normal. I started some small hops yesterday and it feels good knowing i can do things like that again. How is your walking Sherwooa? Mine's ALMOSt normal but not 100%. It seems i walk perfectly fine most of the day but as it gets later i get a bit sore/stiff? Probably due to my weak muscles still. Saw my OS on Monday and he was happy with my rehab and leg strength. I wont see him until March 7th so hope I'm in great form by then. Almost there!!!

[sherwooa]

Damn, sorry to hear about your flu on NYE. Hope you're good now! Ha, I'm still having a little bit of tightness in the hamstring too. it has definitely gotten a lot better and i can curl pretty easily but right at the end there its a little tight still but i've been told its normal. I started some small hops yesterday and it feels good knowing i can do things like that again. How is your walking Sherwooa? Mine's ALMOSt normal but not 100%. It seems i walk perfectly fine most of the day but as it gets later i get a bit sore/stiff? Probably due to my weak muscles still. Saw my OS on Monday and he was happy with my rehab and leg strength. I wont see him until March 7th so hope I'm in great form by then. Almost there!!!

Gradually getting better from the virus, but skipped PT on Monday and today because of it.  Will probably try to do some in the home gym tonight.  I will definitely be asking about some hops when I go on Friday, seeing as how I'm going to have to hop in 2 weeks.  i tried some small forward hops last Friday and was able to do it, but it sure felt weird!

As for my walking, most of the time it's normal with good extension, but likewise if I've been sitting at my desk or in a car for a couple of hours and then get up, it's a bit stiff and sore and I limp for a a bit until it gets warmed up.  I think it's pretty normal at this stage from what I read.  This is a long, strange journey, it seems...

[hibiscus_tea]

Hope you're feeling better!

When I walk after my leg is warmed up or if I'm walking a longer distance, I can get myself to walk pretty "normally".
Like you said, though, after sitting for awhile, my leg is super stiff.  I have to limp and walk "abnormally" for awhile.
I'm looking forward to the day I can just stand up and walk like I used to. *sigh*  Yes, it's a long, strange journey... learning a lot about patience, I suppose...

-Tea

[steved]

Hey Sherwooa & Tea, hope you guys are doin' awesome! How's the knee? How's PT going? Any new milestones in your recovery? Sherwooa, have you started running? If not, I'm sure you're really close to that point right? I'm feeling good. Im trying to focus on building up my quad more, It looks like an 8-year olds. Haha.

[sherwooa]

Hey tea and steve - thanks for the reply and for the good wishes.  I am mostly better at this point, but still have some sinus congestion, believe it or not.  Over a week since it started...what a nasty virus.  Regardless, made it to PT last Friday and this morning and progress continues.  Like you, steve, I've also been trying to build up my seriously atrophied quad - mine looked like a chicken leg.  My PT has had me on the Biodex a lot to work on leg extensions and curls (in addition to leg presses, squats, lunges, etc.) and my quad seems to be returning gradually.  What's tough is that my right leg was always a bit smaller than my left anyway, so I have to work extra hard to get it even.  I definitely feel like it's been getting stronger - one-legged squats, presses, lunges, etc. have felt much easier over the last couple of weeks.  When I looked in the mirror this morning, it looked like it was about 65-70% back to where it was, maybe a bit more.  But I want it even with my left! 

As for new milestones, some small ones - I started squatting and deadlifting over the weekend (though I am starting out fairly light so as not to hurt myself and because I'm sure I've lost some strength), and this morning at PT I started doing some plyometrics.  Today we did squat-jumps and split-jumps and they felt good!  I have not started running yet.  My OS and PT wanted me to complete my "hop test" first before clearing me for running, agility work, etc.  I see my OS next Wednesday to do my hop test.

I have ordered a CTi brace to have when I return to sports in spring/summer (or whenever I get cleared).

Also, I asked my OS about the "tightness" under the kneecap and he said it's all par for the course and that it will resolve over time.  He said as long as it's not impeding extension and flexion that it will get better with time - he said the knee won't feel "fluid" for a while but to keep working at PT, keep stretching, etc.  Stretching my quads and IT band does seem to help a bit, as well as doing more heel slides to get even more flexion.  I still get stiffness after sitting for a long time.

Another interesting note - I was walking down a steep driveway the other night and, of course, there was ice on it.  My feet slipped out a bit and I was about to go down on my a$$, but fortunately I caught my balance and stayed upright.  I was actually kind of happy to think that I still had enough strength and proprioception to catch myself, but it could have been luck too.  Now, I think hyperextension was not likely to happen, but a sideways bend could have easily happened.  Definitely one of those heart in the throat moments!

steve - how goes your rehab?  What are you working on at this point?

[steved]

Awesome! Things seem to be going good for you! It sounds like I'm pretty much doing everything you're doing though I haven't done any leg presses yet, I will probably start to hit those up tomorrow. They said I could start those but I've been hesitant. I will probably start doing them now that my leg feels a lot stronger and stable. I started hops last week though i havent done them as much as I would have wanted. Gonna try and stay on track with those this week. Initially i was told I'd be able to start my running/jogging program on Jan. 25th so we'll see if that's still gonna happen. excited though!

[steved]

Also, my leg still gets a little tight when I'm sitting as well. they say it's normal and will eventually feel better. Even while I'm watching TV, i'll try and keep my leg extended or kick my heel up on the coffee table. Once I try and stand up, It's a weird feeling, almost like it's stuck in that position & I have to slowly bend it up or bring it down. Not really painful but odd. Same with 1 of my incisicion scars. the one closest to my MCL, when i apply some heavy pressure on it and move it around, the opposite incision site starts to tingle all over, now that's a weird feeling. haha again, its not painful but really odd. I'm gonna ask about that tomorrow as well.

I've been doing some of my PT in the pool as well. It's been helping out. I do some light jogging in the pull. Also those lateral steps back and forth down the swim lane. and then some simple marching in place in 5ft deep water. it all seems to be helping. Anything you guys are doing that you'd suggest?

[steved]

It sucks to hear about your flu. I bet it makes things pretty frustrating. You'll be good soon though! I'm sure you'll be back on track in no time! In regards to your close call, man, I also had a scare about a week ago. I was moving a pretty heavy box and as i picke dit up and turned to set it down the boxed tore/slipped out of my hands and made me shift sideways since i was really using some force to move it. I had to shuffle real quick to regain my balance. Twas very scary indeed. haha. 

Other that that freakish feeling, Everything is starting to feel great though.   Had PT this morning. Things are looking good! I was told I can start some light running/jogging excercises next week at PT. The best news I've heard in months 
I'm just short of the last couple degrees of flexion. ALMOST there though. Trying out somethign different to try & pick those up asap. I bought a resistance band to use at home so I'll be hitting those up nightly. Gonna try those leg presses tomorrow at the gym. We'll see how that goes.