If you’re suspicious that you’ve injured your Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL), you’re not alone! An ACL sprain or tear is one of the most common knee injuries you can sustain. Your ACL is responsible for keeping your knee stable. When you injure your ACL, you lose the ability to control knee movement, or to control the movement correctly. If left untreated, abnormal ACL movements can lead to osteoarthritis and chronic knee pain.
The Spine Correction Center team is here for you! Our highly skilled pain doctors are committed to helping repair your ACL injury and get you back to your normal activity levels.
What is an ACL Sprain or Tear?
An ACL injury generally falls into three different types of sprains or injuries:
- A grade 1 sprain is when you stretch the ligament but don’t tear it. Your knee may exhibit some swelling and tenderness but the joint itself doesn’t feel unstable during activity or give out under you.
- A grade 2 sprain involves partial tearing of the ligament, resulting in instability that may cause your knee to give out while exercising.
- A grade 3 sprain means you have completely ruptured or torn the fibers of the ligament. Surprisingly, the knee feels tender, but you don’t experience pain consistent with the extent of your injuries. Swelling varies from minimal to excessive. When the ligament is completely torn, it can’t properly control knee movements. This inability to control movement causes the joint to feel unstable and give out under you.
ACL Injury Symptoms
The best way to diagnose knee pain, swelling or abnormal movement is to visit Spine Correction Center in Fort Collins for a free consultation. Some common symptoms you may observe if you have an ACL injury include:
- Pain with swelling
- Tenderness
- Difficulty walking
- Decreased range of motion
- Popping knee joint
- Feeling of instability
- Knee gives out from under you
Don’t ignore these symptoms! A temporary decrease in swelling or tenderness could tempt you to resume normal activities, but doing so when you’re still injured could worsen your condition and keep you sidelined much longer.
Causes of ACL Injuries
The most common causes for injuring the ACL, according to the Mayo Clinic, involve the following:
- Rapidly alternating your direction of movement
- Abruptly stopping
- Decreasing your speed while running
- Improperly landing from a jump
- Colliding with someone or something
ACL Injury Treatment Options and Stem Cell Therapy
Initial treatment for ACL injuries is targeted at reducing the pain and swelling in your knee, restore your normal joint movement, and strengthen the muscles around your knee. Before Stem Cell Therapy was available, most people suffering from ACL sprains or tears would have to rely on frequent medications and sometimes surgery to eliminate their pain. Fortunately, Stem Cell Therapy offers a natural, non-invasive, non-surgical, non-pharmaceutical treatment option that can keep you out of surgery and reduce your pain.
Spine Correction Center is one of the few clinics in the country to offer amniotic stem cells for Stem Cell Therapy. Our goal is to relieve pain through natural healing while promoting long-lasting results. You should notice initial improvement within a few weeks and see a steady progression toward a pain-free life as your healing advances. Stem Cell Therapy allows you to return to your active lifestyle prior to the injury.
The Stem Cell Therapy procedure is performed right in our Fort Collins office. You and your Spine Correction Center physician will discuss the benefits of Amniotic Stem Cell Therapy to determine if this procedure is the best option for you. We couple the treatment with rehabilitation (if needed) provided by our integrated team, to correct the reason you sprained your ACL in the first place.
Other treatment options for ACL injuries include:
- Rest
- Physical therapy
- Hot and cold therapy
- Reconstruction or replacement of the torn ligament
- Joint injections
The Initial Visit
When you arrive for your first visit, a Spine Correction Center team member will spend time with you collecting your patient history. This information helps your doctor know how significant your ACL injury is and how best to treat you. As you get started with a treatment plan for your knee pain, we’ll most likely give you some at-home tips to shorten your recovery period.
Thank you for considering Spine Correction Center to help with your ACL injury. Feel free to read some of our patients’ success stories to see what others have said about us.
Free ACL Injury Consultation
Spine Correction Center provides specialized treatment plans for ACL injuries in Northern Colorado. We can help you understand where your symptoms are coming from and what it will take to improve. Contact us online or call (970) 658-5115 today to schedule your free consultation!
