Is surgery necessary to fix torn ACLs? A new study suggests that’s not always the case.



ACL tears are one of the most common injuries for athletes and often they undergo surgery to reconstruct the ligament. However, a new study suggests a non-operative treatment could be an effective alternative. NBC News’ Liz Kreutz shares more.

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#Surgery #ACL #Treatment

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39 comments

  1. I tore my acl and had issues walking for a while. They recommended surgery but by the time i was scheduled to have surgery, i was walking fine and decided against it. For the first 3-4yrs certain ranges of motion and activities could cause my knee to be reinjured but after a while it came back to mostly its original strength and i havent had any real problems since.

  2. It seems like basketball is the sport most likely to tear an ACL

  3. I hate this Tom Brady hertz commercial

  4. Surgery needs more thoroughly analyzed. We really need to figure everything out regarding question of surgery or not. And we are getting better tools like more powerful data analytics to do so. The risks of surgery are greater than we might think, the risk of infection, antibiotic resistant bacteria in hospitals, and can contract other illnesses, complications, etc., many things can go wrong with surgery. Particularly as we age all these risks go higher. Frankly if I'm old and can deal with the pain, meaning its not unbearable, I'd not take the added risk of surgery.

  5. A complete tear of ACL can't heal back , but in every incomplete tear , rest and allowing it to heal naturally should be done .

  6. What did I just watch? You use a headline about this "new study" but provided nothing about it's results. Just a bunch of stats on ACL tears and surgeries.

  7. Surgery, from my experience with my clients, is typically bogus. The ends harldly ever justify the means.

  8. ACL is a huge problem in Australian rules football due to the unique direction changes required. Prior to surgery becomng an option in the 1980's it was a career ending injury as natural healing would never make the knee strong or resilient enough to recover sufficiently 5o resume playing.

  9. The gel injection after freezing your knee works wonders for 6 month then do it again 😀

  10. In 2015, I tore my ACL in a slow speed skiing fall. I went to a highly recommended doctor at HSS in NYC. He advised me to do nothing as the muscles and whatever else is in that area was compensating for the tear sufficiently for me to go on with life. He said it was a complete tear, like two ends of a cut rope – they wouldn't ever attach to each other again.

    I don't feel like there is any instability, no matter what I do. I still ski, just like before the fall. Two years ago I skied 191 days, all terrain including moguls. Last season it was 180 days. I also cycle and swim in the summer.

    I do not use a brace. Maybe I'm just lucky, but the doctor was right that no surgery was needed.

  11. I don't know why I got recommended this video but this is good info.
    I damaged my ACL last year and I opted not to go for surgery. Its been over one year, and my knee is better. I heard about how the surgery procedure is done and knowing that the chances of reoccurrence isn't that low, there was no point im to do the surgery in my opinion..

  12. Makes perfect sense…ACLs can just grow back magically. What a total BS story.

  13. Such an incomplete report… if you don’t replace the ACL then any time you do an athletic plant and twist motion with that knee without a brace (and maybe with one anyway) you’re going to collapse. The ACL facilitates that movement. Braces are uncomfortable and try to prevent normal movement (the movement you CAN do with an ACL). If you want that full physical ability you need the surgery and good physical therapy. Takes at least a year to fully-fully heal. I’m so thankful I got mine fixed. I would have been accepting much more risk of collapse (I frequently did with my ACL), and probably settling for less aggressive activities if I hadn’t. Mine was over 10 years ago now, new tendon was made from a piece of my hamstring, I think this is preferable to cadaver tendon if I remember right – I think they tend to be stronger, but check for yourself. I have not retorn mine. Thank you to everyone who made modern medicine what it is and to the medical team who did my operation and PT! Their expertise has blessed my life!

  14. So… does it regrow and reattach? Or does it just stay there flapping around in the breeze and other tendons and ligaments compensate?

  15. Theres and Australian study where the knee is braced for up to 8 weeks and the ACL completely repairs. 100s of people have been treated this way. Disappointing that they didn't mention it.

  16. Caveat Emptor, This is at best an example of very incomplete information . MRI “healing “does not equal functional healing, and there are many other factors that orthopedic surgeons consider to evaluate ACL function, and to determine whether or not patients are indicated for surgical treatment or are at risk for additional knee injury from an ACL deficient knee, ( such as cartilage damage, other ligaments etc. which can make the knee much worse), especially if patients attempt to participate in pivoting and cutting sports on an ACL deficient knee.

    It is true that not all patients with ACL tears require reconstruction, and many can successfully be treated with rehab and non operative methods. It is also true that an ACL reconstructions can re-tear.
    Ethical orthopedic sports surgeon ( and most are ) know this, (there are thousands of high quality peer reviewed articles published on this topic), and would / should communicate the appropriate information and risk /benefit to their patients to give them the opportunity to make an informed decision.

    Unfortunately a lot of the story of ACL tear management was left out, and instead it left me thinking people are going to watch this segment and think ACL reconstruction surgery is unnecessary because one article showed MRI “healing”, one patient re-tore her ACL after reconstruction, and then opted for non surgical rehab, and was ok going back to basketball, and one family medicine( non orthopedist ) sports medicine specialist implied that surgeons may recommend surgery based on financial incentives , which is overwhelmingly not the case if one is dealing with an ethical orthopedic surgeon. So I would take this report with a grain of salt and find a good, ethical orthopedic sports medicine surgeon to counsel you if you tear your ACL.

  17. SAME GOES FOR MOST SURGERIES. IT’S A RACKET.

  18. Anyone actually read the study? It has a very poor methodology. If it’s completely torn, it won’t magically reattach. If it’s partially torn that’s another story. But many people can still function without an in tact ACL, but it’s recommended to get it repaired if you plan on engaging in athletic activity.

    -a doctor of physical therapy

  19. I’ve torn my mcl and acl
    And meniscus in my left knee, no surgery. I’m 40 and play sports competitively. Stay away from surgeons, get in the gym

  20. Lol the proof was an anecdotal story from a 55 year old hobbyist 😂 give me a break

  21. What if they have necrosis.?

  22. I work in outpatient orthopedics, assisting in ACL reconstruction surgeries. This news is very patient-specific. Age is a huge indicator, so is lifestyle. A 15YO soccer player who wants to play again should get surgery, a 55YO weekend warrior may want to hold off. But both will do PT before surgery is even booked because the stronger you go in, the better the outcomes.

  23. The study used Bauerfeind braces which are also the only braces allowed in the NBA. Have used them for running and they really helped me a lot.

  24. I’m 3 tears in, had two repairs and my current tear I have not repaired and am only 24. Not sure if I will repair it. If I didn’t deal with so much pain, I’d never have it done. Hope the magical solution comes soon.

  25. this news report seems irresponsible. it's just one surgeon. my understanding is a fully torn acl will never grow back in it's own.

    i tore my right acl and waited a year to have surgery. during that year my knee buckled two times when i landed after jumping.

    i had the surgery fourteen years ago and no knee problems since.

    talk to a doctor you trust don't just go by this news report.

  26. Pele and Maradona are soccer legends. Messi is, maybe Ronaldo. Megan from the US women’s team, no.

  27. What about the sponge implant aid, zero mention

  28. I had a bucket handle medial meniscus tear and was recommended surgery, but chose to opt out of it and did PT and recovered in 6 months

  29. Kaiser is the worst practice with Orthopedic surgeries. Now they comment about ACL. Nice Joke 😂😂

  30. Complete or partial tear????

  31. Tore my ACL 2 years ago and did PT right after the injury. So glad I didn't get surgery

  32. This is me! No suregery no problem!

  33. She's pretty good hooper.

  34. But HOW does the body manage to successfully realign and reattach the ACL?

  35. It all depends on the patient. People watching this could be swayed not to listen to their doctors because they think they are only out for the money. This is a bad thing. People should listen to their doctor. Just ask them about non surgical options like physical therapy and braces. However if you are a pro athlete. Surgery would be the best option because you want to play at 100% and not 80%. But if you just want to stay active 80% of your physical ability could be enough to live that lifestyle. Surgery isn’t a silver bullet that works 100% of the time. There can still be pain and pro athletes can injure ligaments that were replaced.

    Lastly just because one study says something doesn’t make it scientific fact. It needs to be rigorously peer reviewed first.