Wednesday, May 5, 2010

Andrew and his questions about PCL Surgery

Hello and welcome to my blog.

Andrew came to me for help.
Andrew, you'll find your questions and answers in the comment section of this post.

Thanks Everyone!!!!!!
Skinnygurl.

5 comments:

Skinnygurl said...

Dear fellow pcl'er,

I tore my pcl and partially, as you can probably guess in sept 07 (day
before my birthday :( but luckily recovered relatively well. i played
soccer the following year for the school team and have since been able to
keep up a normal lifestyle.

As of now I am scheduled to have replacement (for both acl and pcl)
surgery done in June. I am lucky as I have a very good doctor (he does
the knees for the philadelphia phillies among other people) but only does
2-4 pcls a year. i guess that is high though considering what I have read
up on.

I guess my main question is what was your experience of physical therapy
like? I am college student, and enjoy partying and such. I know for at
least a month to two I will need to keep my activity to a minimum but I am
hoping after that point I can resume more or less normal activity. I have
been through physical therapy before so I know whats its like, I just
wonder by late augest and september will I be able to go back out and
start dancing again?

Any info or advice you have is greatly appreciated.

Thanks!!

PLUS>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Its not so much the surgery I
am worried about, but the length of recovery and if my knee is worse then
it is now. I have relatively no problems, like i can exercise and sprint
and everything and it doesnt feel that loose, I just feel I should get the
operation done before
1)something else happens, like i mess up my knee more
2) I start my life for real, like I wont be able to have 3 months of fun
to lose
and 3) my knee wears down more. Since im still so young and very active,
the doc says im more likely to develop arthritis early on, like 30's then
if i tore it in my mid 20 when i would get it in late 40 or even late
50's.

soooo I mean thats whats going through my brain.

idk if you have anything else you would recommend being factored in, but
thank you so much for being here and helping me in this part of my life.

This second email was more meant for you, but if there are parts you think
the group can answer, by all means include them. Thanks again.


Thanks Everyone!!!!!!
Skinnygurl.

Molly said...

Andrew:

You have your youth going for you. That means you will heal quickly.

However, the rehab will take a while, and it's going to hurt. No way around that. But, the pain lessens after a while. You can handle it. Work through it.

That said, DON'T PUSH IT FARTHER THAN YOUR PT SAYS TO. When you push too hard, you set yourself back. The bone tunnels and ligaments take time to heal. You can't fake that, or push it. And you don't want to. You'll hurt the repair and set yourself back.

You are lucky to have a great surgeon and the support of the readers of this blog. Let us know how you are doing. We'll help you through it.

Molly said...

P.S. Are you having allograft or autograft reconstructions?

Unknown said...

Hi Andrew,
I'm just over 5 weeks post PCL replacement and ACL repair surgery. My surgery was on March 30, 2010 and now May 7th I have limited mobility, lots of swelling and expect it to be some time before I can get to "normal" activity...no dancing for a while. Being my right knee, I can't drive either. My flexion is about 55 degrees and coming very slowly. I work my PT (2X week) and also at home, several times a day. Many of us work our PT hard, but the PCL recovery is going to be a process as I have quickly found out. My leg strength is very good due to the PT, but my flexion is not as good, perhaps I have some scar tissue. I see my surgeon next week so will inquire. Many have told you that already it is a process, listen to them. My advise to you is to go talk to a PT who has worked with a PCL replacement recovery patient to set rel expectations. The process is much slower than ACL/MCL etc, so don't expect the same speedy recovery. The fact that your body is about 100% would make me consider if you need the surgery or not. In tme perhaps the surgery or recovery times may be much better as technology advances, but that is something you need to weigh to determine if now is the best time for this surgery.
Get as much info as you can before making your final decision.
Best of luck
Neil

Unknown said...

hi, All the best Knee Physical Therapy , thanks