My Turn: ACL Reconstruction 2/5/09

I hoped to start this yesterday Pre-Op, but no time: rallied to hospital @5:30AM.

Surgery yesterday at 7:30, awake at 10:45. Discharged at 12:30.
Patellar tendon allograft, medial meniscus trimmed. Doc chose to repair the leteral meniscus bucket-handle tear, rather that trimming it out.

Yesterday went fine, no nausea, good appetite. Napped for 3 hrs when we got home. Got about 3-4 hours of sleep off-and-on last night. Femoral nerve block seemed to wear off about 3:00 AM.
I've been staying ahead of the pain w/ Percocets, working fine so far.
Yay!

I'm now 24hrs post-op, and I'm amazed at how good I feel. Been doing ankle rolls all night/morning, just took the immobilizer off and started gentle quad sets and gentle straight-leg raises. Quads seem to be firing OK for now.
But I'm beginning to wonder how long the 'honeymoon' lasts...

Pulled some excellent advice from GC the last few weeks...good peeps around here. Thanks for sharing your experiences.

Stay tuned...

good luck!

My quad is still not firing, getting closer I think but still not quite acting right.

48 hrs post-op.

HOOOOO-WEEEEE!!!!

Best. Digger. EVAR!

(If you know...you know...)



Yet more pay-off from great TGR beta.

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Second full day post op - my mega man is makin' dinner. I love him! This is my first internet post and I don't know how to post a photo so you'll have to imagine him staning next to the grill in the dark in 36 degree weather. Don't marry a wimp! I didn't!

I highly reccommend that he doesn't over do it in the first week. Its best to stay horizontal with the leg straight and elevated eight inches above the heart as much as possible.


I am aways afraid for my patients with a seemingly high pain threshold who think they are Superman. The crash usually comes at the end of the first week and into the second, when it is time to pay the piper.

Duly noted, DrMark.

I certainly appreciate your input.

Yesterday I started VERY gentle ROM exercises. Pretty tough,but felt 'good.'

Did a bit more today...and kicked my butt. But at least I showered & shaved.

Settling in for a good afternoon rest now, with knee iced and elevated.

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Day 6 Post-Op.

Knee feels tight, but curiously little pain & swelling. ROM exercises feel pretty 'good'...
Some minor muscle soreness from ROM exercises...I've been diligent, but careful, with plenty of RICE time in between.
Cut down to Percs only at night two days ago.

Going in to work for 1/2 day...see how it goes energy-wise.

First Post-Op PT appointment later this afternoon.
Very curious what my therapist will think of my rehab progress thus far.

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Day 11 Post-Op:

Rehab / recovery are going well. PT sessions on 2/10 and 2/13..."PT Bob" says I'm doing very well. Right where I need to be.
PT has been no problem...minor 'discomfort' but no real pain to speak of.
I'm very glad I was in good physical shape when I wrecked it; I think it paid big dividends in how fast my muscle strength & control came around.
Walking gait looks/feels close to 'normal', given that my gimped leg is 3/4" shorter than the other.
I'm gonna stay 'on the cane' for another week, just to be on the cautious side.

I probably should have taken a bit more time off from work...I had really low energy,ended up taking 3 more half-days than planned.

Minimal swelling and pain in general, pretty much off the Percs completely. Still loading up on 'Skittles' (Ibuprofen), 600-800mg, 3x/day.
Do my exercises (incl. 10 mins slow spinning on bike) 3 times a day, followed by ice. Exercises feel 'good'.
Beautiful day, went for a slooow, careful 3-mile walk with the dog. Good energy level, felt great to get out!
knee felt a bit tired, but good, so I RICE'ed it and watched the rest of the Daytona 500.
DE Jr.'s a dick, IMHO. Just saying.

So far, so good [/knocks on wood].
No sign of the dreaded "Week 2 Crash". Yet.
Hope I'm doing the right things to keep it at bay.

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Nonsteriodals, such as Motrin have been shown to retard the bone healing in the tunnels. If you have an allograft bone plug that needs to heal, it needs all the help you can get.

We have our autograft patients on Tylenol and tell them to avoid nonsteriodals.