Knees Take a Beating During Football Season
Maybe this isn't exactly how
your football fantasy ends, but for many football players, it is. With the
season in full swing and the Superbowl
right around the corner, it's almost impossible to make it through a game
without hearing about a major injury. Just take a look at the current list of injured players
and you'll see what I mean. There are over 100 players listed with a
variety of injured body parts, but the most common football injury you'll see
involves the knee. When the NFL season rolls around, injured players
become crucial as teams vie for a spot in the Superbowl.
The most excruciating of all football injuries? It's got to be the ACL tear.
The ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) is a ligament of the knee which helps
stabilize the body and helps you change direction quickly. When torn, usually after
a bad twist, the injured party usually hears a 'popping' sound and then
experiences extreme
pain and swelling. Anyone who moves in a lateral motion (tennis players,
skiers, football players, anyone who walks, etc.) is at risk for an injured ACL, but football
players have the highest risk. One study of
college students reported that a college football player has a 16%
chance of ACL injury. "This represents a 100-fold increase in injury
compared with the general population."
Why are football players so
susceptible to knee injuries? One explanation comes from New Science which reports on
"a condition called SARA (sexually acquired reactive arthritis) in
sportsmen, particularly footballers. It seems that footballers have so much sex
that they're particularly susceptible to the condition, which in turn makes them
more susceptible to...knee injuries." File that under 'Things That Make You Go Hmmmmm.' Whatever the cause, ACL injuries usually mean players are out for the season
to receive treatment. The treatment usually depends on the type of injury,
but almost all players will have to go through some type of rehabilitation or
even surgery. According to Dr.Callahan, of
the State Medical Society of Wisconsin, about two-thirds of patients with an ACL injury won't require
reconstruction and can usually become fully functional with aggressive
rehabilitation. The rehab involves range of motion exercises,
gentle knee extensions, as well as stretching. It could take up to six
months to get full strength back in the knee. These days, an ACL tear doesn't necessarily mean invasive surgery. The latest
innovative technique involves ACL
shrinkage. This technique actually tightens a partially torn or
stretched ACL without incisions. This means the patient will recover much
faster and will be able to walk without crutches as soon as two weeks after the
surgery. Unfortunately, there isn't any way to prevent ACL tears or to predict when
they will happen. Football players are especially at risk because of the
amount of lateral motion involved in just about every game. However, this
is hope. Researchers
are attempting to determine whether the muscles surrounding the ACL can be
re-trained to better protect it during high risk activities like landing from a
jump or twisting. Other helpful prevention techniques include careful
pre-season training to help develop the strength of the ligament.
Treatment and Prevention
Reconstructive surgery is an Arthroscopic surgery, which involves using a camera
that allows the doctor to repair or reconstruct tissues
around joints. Once the doctor makes an incision in your knee and removes
a portion of your knee cap, he then inserts Titanium screws to replace the torn
ACL. This also requires lots of recovery time, as well as rehabilitation
to restore full range-of-motion to the knee.
