December 5, 2015

3 1/2 Months Post Op

Range of Motion:  I have reached full range of motion!  My knee is not quite as flexible as my good knee but I consider it to be full range.  I feel a pretty good stretch when I sit on my heels but I'm able to do this without much pain.  So I do this for at least 10 minutes a day to continue to work out the stiffness.  Here's a video showing my range of motion:

Physical Therapy:  According to my PT protocol I can do many different types of exercises now.  These include:

Swimming
Elliptical Trainor
Stationary Bike
Hamstring curl weight machine
Standing SLRs with a theraband
Forwards and backwards walking on a treadmill
Wall squats and leg press (no flexion past 45 degrees)
Small step forward, lateral, and retro step downs (no flexion past 45 degrees)

I am now going to physical therapy twice a week where I specifically work on exercises to strengthen my bad leg.  I also work out at the gym 4 to 5 times a week where I do upper body, core and cardio exercises.

Though I can do a wide variety of exercises now, I still must avoid exercises that cause excessive shearing or overloading of the graft.  Shearing motions are caused by squats, lunges, and leg extension type exercises with large degrees of flexion (that is why I'm currently limited to 45 degrees).  Running or jumping exercises cause overloading of the graft.

This isn't my knee but this is basically what
the ultra sound machine looks like.
Scar Tissue:  My physical therapist suggested trying ultra sound to help break up the scar tissue.  So I've been doing 10 minutes of ultra sound twice a week at physical therapy.  Some studies show ultra sound can help break up scar tissue and speed healing.  I've had 3 sessions of this and I feel some improvement.  However, I don't know if it's because of the ultra sound or just the natural healing process, but I'll take it!

There's still some swelling present.  My knee cap
is not quite as defined as the other one.
Pain and Swelling:  I have very little pain now.  I still feel the familiar twinge in my femoral condyle where I had the graft but I think it's continuing to get better.  I still have a puffy area of swelling above my knee.

Other Thoughts:  I felt good enough to attempt a shopping trip at the mall.  After a couple laps around the mall and multiple stores my knee began to tell me that was enough (my wallet appreciates it).  My leg started to get tired and felt weak.  And my knee started to ache and swell a little more than normal.  Altogether, I was pretty happy with the trip and the amount of walking I was able to do.  The next day I didn't feel any worse.

9 comments:

  1. Sounds like there is lots of progress. Great video, sitting with legs crossed!

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  2. I'm watching your recovery! Please post some updates and keep us posted! I'm still thinking what to do with my knee, but think the ACI is the way to go.

    Thanks

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  3. Thanks for the comment! I wish there was a quick fix for this type of injury. When I weighed the choices (or lack there of) ACI seemed to be the only good option. Good luck with whatever you decide to do!

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  4. Megan! My surgery is Tuesday and you give me so much hope :)

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  5. Good luck! Let me know how it goes. I'll be thinking of you!

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  6. I am going on 8 week post op of patellar ACI. I know exactly what you are going through. It had been the worst 2 months of my life.

    Mary

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    1. Mary, I hope you are doing well. Hang in there! It will get better. The first two months really are the worst. I felt so much better around month 3 when I started walking normal. Just think--you are over the hard part.

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  7. I am about to have this same surgery after several failed surgeries, I had microfracture sugery a few months ago and I didn't do well. I am active army and to be quite honest, This one is scary, I have had 3 ACL surgeries and a few other scopes, but seeing your video is awesome, my email is sniperdaddy01@yahoo.com, I would love to pick your brain from time to time as I go through this. Brandon is my name

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    1. Hi Brandon. Thanks for the comment. I researched microfracture as well. My surgeon said he doesn't do microfracture much anymore because he hasn't seen great results with it and it doesn't last very long. Plus it does not work on larger cartilage lesions. Hopefully ACI will work better for you. Email me anytime with questions: megan.galus@gmail.com. I wish you the best of luck!

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