Anyone out there tore ACL and how long till you were back on the ice?

[pathfinder 8]

I tore my ACL while playing hockey on Apr. 10 and had repair surgery on Apr. 29. So far I am 8 weeks out and can run, jump, and lift weights. Still not 100% but want to get back on the ice for skate and shoots and ice cardio.

Anyone out there have a similar experience and how long till you started skating again and playing?

I go see the orthopedist next week and would like to get a brace so I can stake,stick handle, and practice shooting till I'm back to normal. He is the team doc for tampa bay bucs, tampa storm, was team doc for lightning so think he is very well versed in this type of injury yet would like to have others perspectives.

Been practicing on my stick handling board and watching hockey on TV now and pretty bummed.

[crispy92 14]

Hold out till you see the doc and see what he has to say. Just because it feels good doesn't necessarily mean it's good enough.

[pathfinder 8]

Ill hold out. Just wondering if anyone had their doc turn them loose on skates with a knee brace for skating (no games).

wondering if this is in the relm of possibliity of if I am doomed to watch the first 1/3 of the lightning season from my couch/stm seats.

[crispy92 14]

With a brace I would say it is definitely a possibility. I have never had a torn acl but work in a pt office so I see a fair share of them.

[stick9 881]

I did, back in 2009. Back skating two months after surgery, back playing after 4. Lots of variables involved though.

And you will need a proper brace. It's takes about a full year for everything to completely heal. I wore mine for almost the entire year.

[fatwabbit 93]

I tore my ACL in 96, went back to playing soccer and hockey after about 6 months, and back to competitive level after about 1 year. I reinjured my knee (MCL strain) in 02, and decided to get a knee brace.

2002 - Innovation Sports CTi2

2004 - Innovation Sport CTi2 (got a replacement as the previous one didnt fit me anymore (bulked up my legs in the 2 years since I got the first one)

2008 - knee brace for my right knee, more a preventive measure. I also started to customise my gear to fit the pads better

2012 - I went and got a custom knee brace, DonJoy Defiance 3, different fit and had to customise my shin pads to accomodate the knee brace

All through that time I've been able to play at a decent competitive level.

Best advice I can give is to stay patient, listen to the PT, and do your own exercises. The PT will be there to guide you (i threatened to choke my PT a few times when he said I wasnt trying hard enough), but its all about the effort that you put in yourself. If you want to get back to playing, and playing regularly and competitively, I would suggest getting back to building up strength in your legs again. My knees are starting to have problems again, but mainly due to the layoff from hockey for the past 1.5 years (had twins). Am hoping to get back on the ice sometime next year, but before that I will do a couple of sessions on my own to build up strength and get all my muscles going again.

Make sure you get a decent brace, and if you can get insurance to cover it all the better. The off the shelf C180 that I've got for my right knee is pretty good, but nothing fits like a custom brace. You can still mould the C180 (get the person fitting you to do it) and you can add padding to make it more comfortable. I would also suggest getting a sleeve for your leg, or wear those long dri-fit type undergear (underarmor, nike, etc). You can also get those that the cyclist wear. Just make sure its moisture wicking, and wash it after every session with the brace. I've just found it much more comfortable with the sleeve... dont go with neoprene, as it gets really really hot.

Best of luck, take it slow, and make the effort count. No point getting yourself all pumped up to play, and then re-injuring yourself because you went back too soon. I can say that playing the game is much better than watching your buddies from the sidelines.

[pathfinder 8]

Thanks folks for the advice and personal stories.

So a quick update:

Saw doc last week. Said I had progressed past PT goals faster than he expected. No more structured PT yet I need to keep doing work on my own. No hockey, golf, etc... for another 2 months. Says ACL is at weakest point and needs 2 more months to be strong again.

Regarding brace he says that new research shows zero impact on braced vs unbraced rather its the amount of time that one waits to return to high impact sports. Meaning waiting longer = less chance of re-tear.

While everyone who has had ortho work done thinks their doc is the best I am inclined to listen and take it easy for another 2 months then start back lightly. He is the team doc for the Tampa Bucs, Tampa Storm, was for TB Lightning and he does the most ACLs in the state of Florida so think he has a little experience. (I work in healthcare)

Anyways I am feeling much better and now trying to do exercises each evening with goal of coming back stronger than when I went out. You all are right watching the team play just plain sucks but thinking about re-tearing and waiting around more sucks worse. Lets face it if I was a pro my contract would be on the line now its just my ability to get around and enjoy life when I am not on the ice so waiting sounds like a better safer option. Thanks for the encouragement and insight. Its helpful having others who have been there before.

[pantallica39 0]

@pathfinder, I tore my ACL back in October of last year during an ice game, lost my edge and fell extremely awkward on my leg. Completely tore the ACL and have a slight tear on my meniscus. didn't have surgery nor did i have any PT and it feels really good. Ive been skating on 3 hockey teams, 2 ice 1 roller, and also playing softball so I am pretty active on it. Went to 3 different Dr's, all 3 confirmed a torn ACL but could not believe that I was still doing everyday things and still highly active in sports with no instability or pain issues at all and the only brace I wear is a cheap compression sleeve that i got from Target. They all did recommend the surgery just because i am highly active and my job requires physical labor.

Few questions for you since you have gone through the surgery...Did you tear anything else beside the ACL? Did you take a tendon from yourself (patella or hamstring) or did you go with a donor? How long did it take you get back to walking without any crutches or cane? After the surgery did you have any severe pains from the operation?

[stick9 881]

Few questions for you since you have gone through the surgery...Did you tear anything else beside the ACL? Did you take a tendon from yourself (patella or hamstring) or did you go with a donor? How long did it take you get back to walking without any crutches or cane? After the surgery did you have any severe pains from the operation?

I know it wasn't directed at me, hope you don't mind me offering my experience.

I didn't tear anything else other than the ACL. I did sprain my MCL however. Thing to note here as two doctors told me the same thing. Had I not injured the MCL I wouldn't have needed surgery. The remaining three ligaments would be able to stabilize my knee. But since the MCL was sprained, when healed it would be a bit longer than before.

My doctor used my own hamstring tendon to replace the ACL. Less chance of infection but not as strong as a donor graft.

It was one week on crutches, but I was weight bearing at the time. After my first checkup, the doctor unlocked the hinge on the full length brace and said it was now a walking brace. I was told to use my crutches if need be, but not to rely on them. I ditched them pretty quickly, so maybe like 2 weeks max.

Shit yeah! The next morning when the nerve block wore off. They adjusted my pain meds and I was good. There were some moments like the first real full bend in PT, but I expected that. The first month was pretty rough.

Every doctor has their own unique approach. Do what they tell you and put in the work and you shouldn't have any problems. In terms of braces. I don't wear one now. Only reason I wore one was to help stabilize the knee until everything was 100% healed over, which I was told can take up to a year. The brace was bulky but allowed me to play hockey and continue training in taekwondo.

[pathfinder 8]

@pathfinder, I tore my ACL back in October of last year during an ice game, lost my edge and fell extremely awkward on my leg. Completely tore the ACL and have a slight tear on my meniscus. didn't have surgery nor did i have any PT and it feels really good. Ive been skating on 3 hockey teams, 2 ice 1 roller, and also playing softball so I am pretty active on it. Went to 3 different Dr's, all 3 confirmed a torn ACL but could not believe that I was still doing everyday things and still highly active in sports with no instability or pain issues at all and the only brace I wear is a cheap compression sleeve that i got from Target. They all did recommend the surgery just because i am highly active and my job requires physical labor.

Few questions for you since you have gone through the surgery...Did you tear anything else beside the ACL? Did you take a tendon from yourself (patella or hamstring) or did you go with a donor? How long did it take you get back to walking without any crutches or cane? After the surgery did you have any severe pains from the operation?

• I did not have any other tears besides ACL
• I used my hamstring (best option with less pain/side effects and zero chance of rejection)
  • work in healthcare so a lot of research was done and this was my personal conclusion.
• Crutches = 10 days, limp = 4 weeks, stairs without significant pain = 4 months
• Pain: this is relative and I have a pretty high pain tolerance. Only took percocet for 5-6 days with any consistency and only 1 at a time. Less pain meds = faster recovery
• Lessons learned: DO PT early and often. Ice 20min wait 40 then repeat, There is no such thing as a little surgery. It hurts and it will take time to get back. There is no substitute for time and allowing the body to heal. Research shows that 6 months the graft is fully healed. Waiting to 1 year from surgery is the single greatest thing to reduce your chances of re-injury during the first year period. Practices vary by doctor and they all think there way is the best. Latest white papers show this: Knee braces do not lesson re-injury or hurry recovery. Find the doctor who does the most in your area and go with him/her. Research shows that the more surgeries a MD does the better the outcomes. Your knee is a important joint so you want to get it right so go to who does the most.
  • Less Pain meds = faster recovery, hamstring graft least pain and least chance of body rejection. PT is key to success. Not everyone needs surgery however lateral force with twisting will increase your chances of arthritis in future and further injury of knee/mi.

PM me if you want to chat more I can send you my cell and we can chat. Having people who have gone through it is helpful and I found value in listening to their experience and using it as a proxy for what I would expereince. Remember everyone is unique and while the surgery might be the same your perspective will vary widely and perspective is reality.

[pathfinder 8]

so I hit the ice this past weekend for some skate and shoot. Felt good to gear up and work up a sweet even if it was just skating around.

no pain in knee/joint. Just can tell that my quads are still not as strong as the other. hockey stance took its toll and after an hour and fifteen minutes I was worn out. Still nice to get out and practice.

Its amazing how much skill one can loose over 5 month period. Going to wait another 4 months to start playing fullout again but will mix free skates and skate and shoots along with my PT to work back up.

According to PT tests my injured leg is about 60% of other and I need to be at 90% in order to be fully cleared to play. nice to have a gauge I can perform so I can better understand progress.

[YesLanges 127]

Still having no luck trying to use the quote function (or copying/pasting) anything on this forum. This (down below) is the mess that happens when I try to quote manually using HTML and copying to a Word doc first before pasting into the message box. It's gotta be some setting somewhere because I have no problem quoting (etc.) on other very similar forums that I've been using for years.

Anyway, @Pantallica39:

Something like 1/3 of people don't need their ACLs at all; they tear them and after the swelling goes down, they have no instability without the ligament. For the rest of us, it feels like our femur is going to slide right off at the knee joint anytime we put weight on it. Many times, you won't know which category you are for weeks after the injury, so you have to gamble by having surgery ASAP that you may not even have needed or waiting until the swelling goes down to evaluate and see. By that time, your chances of an optimal outcome are somewhat less than having it done immediately. Mine didn't swell badly immediately so I could tell right away that my knee was totally unstable. This was in 82 using my iliotibial band and an 8" incision, so the surgical options and technology have obviously progressed a lot since then. You're probably just one of the lucky 30% who don't need your ACL. Steve Yzerman was a weird case because he could skate just fine with two blown out ACLs but could barely walk up stairs or run.

Mine was done by W. Norman Scott, then of the NY Rangers, and he said it would be good for at least 10 years. I squatted over 400 lbs a year to the day after surgery, but didn't consider it 100% rehabbed for dynamic sports for another full year. Once I started skating again, I really didn't feel it except for once in a while pivoting, but in general, skating seems to bother it less than land sports that require quick changes of direction, which was sort of the opposite of what I was expecting, especially with the way that I tape up my skates, since that should be transmitting even more torque up to my knee. I was acutely aware of it playing land sports.

Since I started playing again this year (after 25 years off) in a 50+ league, I've noticed that, in general, all these old bastards (including me) look a lot smoother skating than running (or even just wrestling their bags into and out of the rink) and I'm thinking that it has a lot to do with the fact that the deceleration forces are much less in hockey than in sports like basketball or tennis because on land, the entire force is transmitted up to your knee instantaneously when you stop and change directions. On skates, even a hard stop takes much longer (even if it's only a difference of a few milliseconds) than planting your rubber-soled foot on land. Likewise, pivoting on skates occurs on a pin-point length of blade compared to the huge flat surface of a sneaker with all that torque transmitted up to your knee. I'm not saying a repaired ACL can't get reinjured skating, but I'm thinking it's less likely to happen outside of awkward falls like you described.

Where do you play in NY?

 I tore my ACL back in October of last year during an ice game, lost my edge  and fell extremely awkward on my leg. Completely tore the ACL and have a slight tear on my meniscus. didn't have surgery nor did i have any PT and it feels really good. Ive been skating on 3 hockey teams, 2 ice 1 roller, and also playing softball so I am pretty active on it. Went to 3 different Dr's, all 3 confirmed a torn ACL but could not believe that I was still doing everyday things and still highly active in sports with no instability or pain issues at all and the only brace I wear is a cheap compression sleeve that i got from Target. They all did recommend the surgery just because i am highly active and my job requires physical labor.