“Oh man, I think I just felt something pop in my knee!” This is a common statement made by those who have just experienced a ligamentous injury in their knee. The knee joint is made up of:
- Three bones
- Tibia
- Patella
- Femur
- Menisci
- Ligaments.
Ligaments in Our Knees:
There are four main ligaments that provide stability for the knee, as well as hold the joint together.
- The Medial Collateral Ligament (MCL) and the Lateral Collateral Ligament (LCL)
- both prohibit sideways and unusual movements.
- The Posterior Cruciate Ligament (PCL) and Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL)
- work to prevent the too much forward or backward motion.
Causes of Ligament Injuries:
- Sudden twisting motions (most commonly the cause of a sprained/torn ACL)
- Sudden direct impact (the PCL is most commonly injured this way from direct force applied)
- Blows to the outside or inside of the knees, causing injury to the opposite side
Signs & Symptoms:
- The sound of a “pop”
- The sensation of the knee buckling
- Overall knee instability, or looseness
- Swelling
- Inability to bear weight through the joint
Types of Ligament Injuries:
- Grade I (mild): “over stretching” of the ligament, causing multiple micro tears, but does not ultimately affect the knee’s stability.
- Grade II (moderate): partially torn ligament, that leads to mild/moderate knee instability or also known as “giving out periodically”
- Grade III (severe): complete tearing or separation of the ligament to bone connection, which leads to any even more unstable knee joint.
Treatment
- R.I.C.E : rest, ice, compress, elevate !!!
- Anti-inflammatory medications to decrease inflammation and pain
- Knee brace to provide additional stability for a short period.
If the ligament has only suffered a grade I or II sprain, surgery is not always deemed necessary depending on a few things. For instance, if the range of motion is adequate, the activities of daily life aren’t truly affected, and there is minimal to no pain.
Physical therapy is a great conservative treatment to help decrease the pain, work to increase the needed range of motion, and strengthen the surrounding musculature to help provide overall knee stability.
If one happens to be so unlucky to experience a Grade III ligament injury, arthroscopic surgery is highly recommended. This surgery repairs the torn ligament and enables the person to rehabilitate their knee back to “normal”.
SO WHAT DO I DO AFTER SURGERY?
PHYSICAL THERAPY is once again the answer, and rather quickly at that! After a few days, physical therapy should be performed to assist in decreasing pain and stiffness, as well as initiating those surrounding muscles to turn on post-surgery!
By: Cierra Washington, ATC
