Imagine being a young, world-class athlete at the top of your game and on the path to the Olympics when tragedy strikes. You tear your ACL (anterior cruciate ligament). In a stop-and-go running sport like soccer, that can be a career-ending injury. Yet for the American women's soccer sensation Alex Morgan, her injury wasn't. In fact, five years after sustaining that injury, Ms. Morgan went on to score the goal against Canada that sent the U.S. to the gold-medal game at the London Olympics.
Ms. Morgan underwent surgery to reconstruct her ACL during her senior year of high school. After just five months of intense physical therapy, she was back on the field playing for the University of California at Berkeley, demonstrating a significantly short recovery timeline from her ACL surgery. (Click here to read the entire article on Alex Morgan and her approach to injury-free soccer on Wall Street Journal Online.)
Today, this story is no longer the exception. Under the care of competent orthopedic surgeons, many serious, and not so serious, athletes are enjoying complete recoveries from ACL tears. The procedure itself has become quite routine with patients only required to be in the hospital or surgical center for a few hours. Surgery to rebuild an anterior cruciate ligament is done with an arthroscope using small incisions. Arthroscopic surgery is less invasive. The benefits of less invasive techniques include less pain from surgery, less time spent in the hospital, and quicker recovery times.
If you believe you have damaged your ACL, don't hesitate to see an orthopedic surgeon for an evaluation. A torn ACL can be properly diagnosed by an orthopaedic surgeon who can determine the best treatment protocol to get you back on your feet and doing what you enjoy. Ideally, an orthopaedist with a subspecialty in sports medicine may also bring additional expertise or perspective to your care, especially if you are an active individual. If you believe you have sustained an injury to your ACL, call Great Basin Orthopaedics at 775.786.1600 for a consultation.
Ms. Morgan underwent surgery to reconstruct her ACL during her senior year of high school. After just five months of intense physical therapy, she was back on the field playing for the University of California at Berkeley, demonstrating a significantly short recovery timeline from her ACL surgery. (Click here to read the entire article on Alex Morgan and her approach to injury-free soccer on Wall Street Journal Online.)
Today, this story is no longer the exception. Under the care of competent orthopedic surgeons, many serious, and not so serious, athletes are enjoying complete recoveries from ACL tears. The procedure itself has become quite routine with patients only required to be in the hospital or surgical center for a few hours. Surgery to rebuild an anterior cruciate ligament is done with an arthroscope using small incisions. Arthroscopic surgery is less invasive. The benefits of less invasive techniques include less pain from surgery, less time spent in the hospital, and quicker recovery times.
If you believe you have damaged your ACL, don't hesitate to see an orthopedic surgeon for an evaluation. A torn ACL can be properly diagnosed by an orthopaedic surgeon who can determine the best treatment protocol to get you back on your feet and doing what you enjoy. Ideally, an orthopaedist with a subspecialty in sports medicine may also bring additional expertise or perspective to your care, especially if you are an active individual. If you believe you have sustained an injury to your ACL, call Great Basin Orthopaedics at 775.786.1600 for a consultation.