18 year old step son has a possible acl tear

by james
(tennessee)

my stepson is in his senior year of football,he plays offense and defensive line. He has a possible ACL tear, we are awaiting his MRI. His x-rays are negative and he is wearing a brace and has had a cortizone shot and says his knee feels strong and pain free, if he wore a brace and had cortizone should he still play football?

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18 year old step son has a possible acl tear

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Sep 24, 2008
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return to football
by: Bart - SII

This can be a hard decision to make. A brace may help to stabilize the knee, and the corizone will likely keep his pain down, but without the ACL, there will be abnormal stresses on the knee cartilage with football activities. His knee will not be as stable, but muscle activation may be able to get him through.

I have seen athletes who can play without an ACL and have no problems, and I have seen athletes who can't walk up the stairs without an ACL. I have also seen athletes who tear the ACL, go on to finish the season and then have surgery - they usually end up with significant meniscus tears and sometimes problems with regaining their joint motion after surgery. Is it because they played without an ACL? Not sure.

I would discuss with your doctor the pros and cons of playing and see what they have to say - it may help in making a decision on whether or not it is worth continuing the season if his ACL is torn.

Bart

Oct 02, 2008
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RE: 18 year old step son has a possible acl tear
by: Anonymous

I support the response provided to your question. There is no blanket prognosis, every case is different. My son is in a very similar situation. He is a senior in high school and he ruptured his acl during a football game. The injury happened non-contact. Other than the torn acl the knee is in good shape (if that makes sense) - no tears to the meniscus, no bone bruise, no effusion in the joint, no pain and no swelling. We went through the pros and cons and our surgeon believes my son can get through the rest of the season wearing a custom functional acl brace (a must if he is to continue playing). That is becasue of the muscluar development in his legs and the position he plays (DL). He suggested that he has about a 2% chance of tearing his meniscus by playing on it. So we are going to give it a try.

Oct 14, 2008
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my son also
by: Anonymous

My son also tore his ACL during football and is also a senior. Really bad thing for him is he also plays basketball. He is 6'9" tall and has colleges interested in him for both football and basketball. It happened in practice and came about from a really stupid thing my son was doing but I guess that is why these things are called accidents. Does anyone know what method of reconstruction is best. Taking tissue from yourself or a cadaver. Sounds like the rehab is long and tough. My son is totally bummed!!!!

Sep 14, 2009
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Safest position in football to play after ACL reconstruction
by: Anonymous

Our son tore his ACL and had reconstructive surgery using cadaber tissue. He is 11 months post-op and feels ready to play football, he plays tight end and used to play defensive end, his coach will not give him a chance now to play defensive end, as that was the position he was playing when he tore his ACL. He had the most sacks on the team and schools were looking at him, now his coach doesn't care about his future, our son feels his knee is stronger than ever. He is willing to take the risk. We feel our son knows his limits.

Sep 14, 2009
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Sep 15, 2009
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senior RB acl tear
by: Anonymous

My son is also a senior this year and tore suffered a complete tear of his acl in the 2nd game-he is a running back. He had close to 300 yds his first game. We do not know what to do. Obviously surgery will happen when the season is over. In the meantime, we did order the brace and he is having rehab now to see if he can play again or not. The surgeon is not for that option, but.... I know we are very fortunate, but it is still a total bummer. We do not know what to do. We do not want to do more damage, but what if he can have one more game this year?

Sep 24, 2009
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ACL tears
by: Anonymous

As a parent I understand how difficult it is to see you child feel so devastated. It does not always seem fair that the harder you try to find the right answer the more variables there are. I feel that I need to support his decision as I wonder what was done before ACL repairs. Our surgeon to ready and eager to perform surgery to make sure they are not sued later?