ACLr w/Patella Autograph and Meniscus Removal

[Im139]

My ACLr was June 11th so I'm 10 days out. I had PT autograph as well with 20% of my meniscus removed but nothing repaired due to meniscus damage in non vascular region. I'm 37 but have a bad habit of playing sports like I'm 20 something. Not sure exactly when ACL injury happened but tweaked the knee really good in feb on a 1 day ski trip in VT. MCL and Patella tendon suffered slight damage but not significant enough to require repair. I probably did the ACL injury during paintball or touch football league earlier. Also found out other knee is ACL defeciant as well. That one will be next.
First few days weren't bad. I'm on 1 Oxycodine every 6 and rotating Tylenol and Advil every 4. Full extension day 1 with minimal pain. Took 2 Oxy day 1 but dropped to 1 by day 2 due to sick stomach causing me to vomit. No brace or machine for range of motion. Ice machine and electric stim are the only items provided. 3 days a week of PT and it's going well. ROM is only 40/45 which I wish I was at least at 50 but not pushing yet since I got full extension day 1. Heel slides not going as well but squats and calf raises are accomplished with about  30/70 weight distribution. Shooting for 40/60 by late next week.
Last few days I've had some increased pain spurts here and there but hope it's just from the added increase in PT. I also ended up with a small bilateral rash/ bumps just below my arm pits. They itch so I don't think it's from from crutches and maybe an allergic reaction from pain meds. Also using ice with no barrier on skin for 20 min here and there since compression stocking is not allowing my knee to get cold enough to my satisfaction.

I'm curious from others on the following;
Where do you find most resistance coming from during heel slides (ROM)? I think I'm getting my resistance more from the lateral incision on the outside of the knee.
Do different locations on the knee result in different types of pain? I'm getting a mild burning pain, possibly from patella graph site. I'm getting mild sharp pain after PT on medial side for short periods of time.
Thoughts on backing down pain meds without hindering rehab/PT?
How long post op was it before you saw your OS? My first follow up appt. is 13 days post op. I saw PA 1 day post op and PT Team almost every other day.

[Im139]

A couple of corrections; Surgery was Wed. June 13th not the 11th. ROM is 80 -85, not 40-45, and should be 90+ by PT appointment on Monday. Oxy is doing it's job 

[Im139]

12 days post op and some stuff is good and some is not so good. The good: I'm off the Oxy and rotating Advil and Tylenol every 3 hrs. Extension is 0- neg 5. Incisions look good and strength is good. Not so good: ROM is only 75-85, not 90. Probably due to swelling that's not going away as quickly as it should. PT says I need to try and lay off of it more and concentrate on ice and elevation with limited exercises focused on increasing ROM. I'm going to ice the heck out of my knee for the next 4 days. Also, I made the switch to one crutch but was told to go back to two until swelling goes down. Sutures come out tomorrow! I may take an Oxy for that.

[Im139]

2 weeks out had sutures taken out and gained some ROM, 90 degrees. Still alittle stiffer than I would like but still icing and uses crutches. Off of pain meds. At 2.5 weeks down to 1 crutch and ROM is 105. Pain is decreasing as well as swelling. Off of all meds including OTC. 3 weeks and I'm crutch free. Easier getting around but still stiff in the morning and stairs are still a minor challenge. ROM is 110 and getting better. Done with electric stim and concentrating on PT exercises.

[Im139]

Weeks 3,4, and 5 were filled with gradual improvement from PT resulting in increased ROM and increased strength. I was taken off of the muscle stim machine at the beginning of week 4.  Swelling still present up until week 6 but has been reduced to a minimum now. In the middle of week 4 I had one day that I thought I may had strained my calf muscle from heel lifts so I took a rest from PT for one session. I came back refreshed and healthy ready to push myself again. Week 5 I went out of state on a mini vacation which required extensive walking. It was a good break from PT missing only two sessions and I only had a minor limp and stairs were only difficult going down. Going up stairs wasn't too bad. My 1st appointment since suture removal was at the end of my 6th week. ROM is at about 125-130 and strength is still less than expected preventing certain activities like going down stairs. The lateral incision still has a minor bump on the distal end which is believed to be either scar tissue or a suture knot from the non-absorbable suture in the fascia. I have a minor click when cycling in a very tight position but I'm able to ride my mountain bike on paved trails with no click. I have done two, one hour rides this week and everything feels very good.

[Im139]

Post op week 7 is gone and things are going well. ROM is good enough to discontinue heel slides and have moved on to more muscle building exercises. Walking limp is almost gone. Still tight here and there but not to bad. Able to do hour long bike rides and doing them at least twice a week. Main exercises to concentrate on are Bosu ball balancing single leg, single leg leg press, and heel drops on short step sideways and forward. These exercises should help me build the strength to go down stairs normally. Dropping PT down to twice a week once I go back to work. Going back to work in a couple of weeks. Still icing once a day.

[rainman14]

Hello IM39.

I had the same surgery 28 days ago.
I am also concerned on what you said in your first post.
When i walk,i feel a stiffness around the area of the incision.Left and right to the patellar tendon area.
It feels like something prevents me to bend my knee when i am walking.Like a force or something.

Did you feel the same thing?
Will this go away?

[Im139]

I'm a week short of 6 months out and things are going very well. Scars look very good. I started some light impact activities about 2 months ago and I'm really starting to feel like things are moving in the direction of being normally. I have minimal discomfort after workouts and the morning stiffness has been greatly reduced. The only things that aren't back to normal are the following: numbness on laterall side of knee running down half distance of shin and numbness and discomfort during knealing. Haven't attempted to run but minor jogging is almost done with normal gate. Last week was the first time I jogged with no limp. Current workout is as follows:
Warm-up5min versa climber or stairmaster
5min bike
StretchSoldier marches
Stretch, right leg in front lean to right ballerina Step backs Stretch, half prone
Workout1min medial step down heel strike level 1 box 34R/26L 1min one leg side to side
1min one leg front to back
90 degree turns one leg 10 revolutions
Agility box, jog, shuffle,mambo,back pedal Back pedal transition to shuffle
2 leg hop transition to shuffle
1 leg hop landing on two transition to shuffle Shuffle transition to hop
10 Bosu ball double leg hop
Stairs:
Double leg single step hop
Step lunge
Double leg single step hop lateral and medial
Single step up hill moguls
1 leg single step hop
1 leg single step 45 degree turn

[Im139]

Mid January and things are going well. Still some minor stiffness and aches but that's all. I skied over the Holiday and eveything went very well. No moguls but was able to ski with the kids and speed and quick turns weren't too much of an issue. Not a ton of ice which made it alittle easier. One fall and other than nerves, I was fine. Couldn't ski backwards as well but that's only for video of kids so not a big deal.
I'm doing the 6 week Impact program which should make strength, stamina, etc... much better. Golfed 18 in Vegas last week and felt pretty sore the next day after. The only thing that's really giving me issues is kneeling down or any other activity that requires pressure on the patella tendon. I'll be looking for info to help progress that issue.