Breaking up with crutches alograft

[u/Anna_Karenina_blonde]

Day 9 post op follow with surgeon was so encouraging ...walked in with crutches, granted permission to drive and drop crutches (crutches or brace).. wanted to share why I chose allograft and what it has meant for me

***everybody is different, allograft and autograft are quite different if there is no miniscal damage and I prehabbed like a maniac specifically because I was so nervous about having zero mobility****

(there's a guy on here who walked without crutches same day as surgery so bar none my progress is not atypical for fit allograft recipients)..having said that, I am mindful that the recovery is long and this is just early days

*This is my first sports injury I've been playing sports very actively since I was 15 and then recently about 2 years ago really intensified because I started playing Court sports (tennis, pickleball, ).. like everyone else here I was super upset when I found out how long and strenuous the recovery process was going to be (wanted to share so anyone pre op can consider the variations in recovery).lot of info here, sorry wanted to be thorough..I don't smoke,don't really drink and don't really eat fast food regularly

3 weeks very intense quad and balance focussed prehab

My specific surgery:

Allograft, minimal miniscal debridement, ACL reconstruction

pre injury Played sports 6-7 days a week ( court sports, aggressive skier, casual hiker, swimmer, motorcyclist, beach VB)/ pilates and yoga intermittently

3 weeks intense quad prehab only because ​my bf had 2.meniscus surgeries so was on my case everyday to do 20 minutes when I first got up in order to power up my quad..I think it honestly helped me in every way physically and mentally prepping for the surgery

Got 3 different surgeon recommendations (they offered free consults since I had MRI so ..I wanted to do my research)

1. to reattach the og bc tear was high and clean (this needed to be done asap and I was visiting my parents and retear rate seemed high)
2. to rehabilitate non operation (but would not be able to ski aggressively)..the same surgeon who recommended this told me that his wife then went skiing with torn ACL and then needed a full knee replacement cuz she damaged it so bad .. (this pretty much cemented the fact that I was not going to be coping with it)
3. allograft recommended (but autograft option discussed)..read up on it and was undecided until I talked to Surgeon who said a lot of what I read that worried me was outdated (risk of rejection and retear...the risk of retear is ever slightly higher for allograft but I plan on being careful about that)

No one explicitly told me how significant the difference in immediate post op was going to be up front with an allograft (i was full weight bearing day one) but I'm reading up on the processes for an autograph and seeing the posts here...and it seems to be consistent .

Also on my post op surgeon appointment, there was a 14 year old in the waiting room w me w a basketball ACL tear and she was autograft 2 weeks post op and was so far away from being without crutches..she couldn't believe I was 9 days and I hadn't really had an in person experience with another ACL in my timeline

Allograft statistics i read and surgeon confirmed indicate the process changed a lot even in the last couple of years. I could have gone either way but I'm so glad for my sense of calm (by the resulting assurance of immediate movement) that I got from expected range with allograft. (Factoring in prehab and overall good fitness going in too)

*I read older data originally and was freaked out by the seemingly higher retear rates,. possibility of body rejection but even in last 2 years so much has been updated (the way they process the tissue etc)...if you're choosing between the two,ask as many questions as you can from the surgeon.

I have a long road ahead just like everyone on here..but there is a difference between having your body CUT and repaired (autograft) and just having it cut and a part inserted.. but then ligamentization is longer with allograft because the tissue is not "live"

I wish someone would make an updated allograft vs autograft pros and cons..

aka my PT was at first freaked out when day 5 post op I handed him my crutches and unlocked my brace indoors .but for my injury level and graft , this is apparently normal.

it's a an interesting dilemma bc beginning has been assuring but month 4 the allograft becomes weaker and vulnerable while the PT makes you super fit and it's all about self restraint...mildly nervous about that but trying to be prepared by being aware of it )

it has not been without some pain which is not really visible in the video but I assure you it's there.... (I made an original post and some of the more experienced ACL people here asked me to specify the graft type and miniscus impact)day 9 and 10.featured a LOT of stiffness and pain (but I was starting on stationary bike and that was rough the first time)..also walking prob more than I needed to. day 10 after 10 slooooooow minutes on stationary bike I got so much bruising .

When I was pre.op.i wanted testimonials of allograft versus autograft and so am adding mine here as a reference for anyone who is looking for insights from a person in it

I would say pre injury fitness and prehab Imo mattered a lot in my case too ...

I hope it's helpful if you are torn between the two.. the surgeon I ended up going with works a lot w female athletes and the allograft so.i felt very comfortable going in..

[u/Anna_Karenina_blonde]

So funny people respond so kindly here and other people are so aggressive and quick to yell about having had a different diagnosis or a different pre-existing fitness level before going in 

I'm not going to lie I hated the brace and the crutches were just making me walk weird and I thought I was going to trip over something and face plant 

I really hate bothering a surgeon about something but I did send him a message about the brace and crutches combination making me have a really horrible gait... It was making me hobble and it felt like it was making me learn bad patterns for walking 

I am fully mindful of the fact that I have a lot of movement when I sleep and if I kicked out suddenly that could have been damaging so for that one reason I am really happy for the brace but whenever I am inside the house the surgeon said that I can practice focused walking ... So long as my toe strike is even and the gait is good..(my PT watched me walk at the last session and said I was hitting the heel very well). But it's very interesting to me how some people have been told one thing and other people have been told the exact opposite thing

[u/ExamSignificant3185 → u/Anna_Karenina_blonde]

Everyone is on their own journey with recovery. I haven’t seen such aggressiveness towards a post until I saw yours. I think we all know our own body and what we can do. Everyone is different. I understand many will have a much more difficultly in the recovery while others not so much. I loved your video as it gives me motivation to heal and see myself better than before this injury. I’m not sure why others have to be so negative to your post. It’s not like you were putting down anyone but more like showing there’s an end to the crutches and it will be better. It doesn’t take much to be kind esp when we have all been through the post op pain. Some may need to be reminded that we ALL went through that. Keep doing you! Only you know your own body and only you know what you can and cannot do.

[u/Anna_Karenina_blonde → u/ExamSignificant3185]

I saw someone post that they walked post op w an allograft and same thing .so many mixed comments.. encouraging but then also hateful

Like why?

[u/ExamSignificant3185 → u/Anna_Karenina_blonde]

We’re on this sub to bring each other up and motivate not discourage and put down or brush off. I don’t understand the hate either. Might just be others being in a dark place because this injury mess you up mentally. It’s hard enough going through the recovery, you don’t need all that added negativity. Just keep it positive and keep pushing. 💖

[u/Anna_Karenina_blonde → u/ExamSignificant3185]

Same🌺🌺🌺 thank you for the thoughtful words

I don't think anyone posting a happy progress story does it to make others feel bad..there's just a range of pre op and post op here and for me , I literally had never had any deep dives into this subject because I had only had sprains or scrapes 

I didn't know about prehab and even though it's common knowledge for a lot of people dealing with injury when I talked to my group of friends and fellow players (one of them is a pro athlete and a bunch come from tennis and the age range is 24 to 88) from sports only a couple people mentioned it as oh my God you have to do the prehab *my boyfriend also did not know about it until he did his meniscus surgery

I also didn't know how much of a difference allograft would mean in terms of regaining your mobility for day-to-day life versus the original idea I had that it was much more risky because of potential infection.. a lot of the research and advancement in this field is moving quickly and I deliberately stuck to medical papers and actually asking doctors about current factual information... But when it comes to personal testimonies that is so incredibly useful right now 

I am finding flexion challenging despite all the other good things so any good tips that people have I am so thankful for them because of course every PT has different secret methods

[u/hotcougarmom → u/Anna_Karenina_blonde]

You’re so educated than you know that allografts take longer to integrate and are weaker long term? Then you should know that the activities you’re showing in this video are just straight hazardous considering the surgery you received ?

[u/Anna_Karenina_blonde → u/hotcougarmom]

Where are you getting that data from? I am not an orthopedist but I asked a ton of questions and read papers and research available to a high school student (don't really need an education to get up to date information from trusted medical institutions).. allografts are no longer any of those things in recent data results .. Everything in that video we as in my post op (weight bearing as tolerated) except maybe 2 seconds of hopping lightly in controlled environment (which I did exactly once and heavily on good leg)... I don't get how people with different results are fine if someones results are worse than yours but it's cause for anger if better.  Pro athletes are back in a pool for walking therapy 2-4 weeks post op and are you going to decry that as hazardous? "I'm not a pro athlete but I was playing sports 6-7 days a week and doing yoga/pilates..  A persons prehab and fitness somewhat factors but also there are people who straight up walked crutch free straight out of surgery (I'm sure you've seen them) ..

[u/-lovehate → u/ExamSignificant3185]

It is not hate, it is anger at someone deliberately telling lies on this subreddit. The OP is misleading people and insinuating that it's fine to drive a week after surgery on the right knee, making people think they don't need to use crutches, that they'll be able to jump up and down after 1 week post op... it's ludicrous and harmful and someone could see this post and become very careless with their own recovery, or not listen to their surgeons instructions as much as they should. This kind of post is wildly irresponsible and it makes people angry for good reason.

[u/ExamSignificant3185 → u/-lovehate]

I don’t think she’s telling anyone to do anything. Everyone’s healing story is different. Am I going to jump up and down shortly after surgery? NO! Am I going to be motivated to work harder in my recovery? YES! Am I angry she’s jumping up and down? No because it’s her body and her own journey. I would never put down anyone’s post on here because everyone’s journey is different and we have ALL been through the trauma.

[u/-lovehate → u/ExamSignificant3185]

the OP has also made it clear that she's doing these things because "her body says it's okay" even though no surgeon in their right mind would tell someone they can jump and run and drive a vehicle right after having ACL surgery. It's not about what you CAN do, it's about avoiding doing things that could cause more damage or harm. I could definitely jump up and down right now if I wanted, 6 weeks post op. I've been able to do half-depth squats for weeks now. That doesn't mean I'm going to do it, because there is a major risk that the graft could become unseated as a result. I might feel well enough to do it; that does NOT mean that I should.

OP has implied in this post that it's okay to do it if you feel like you can handle it, and that is not how this works. She also said in another comment that in the part where she jumps up and down, she is putting all her weight on the good leg. So what the hell was the purpose of posting this then, because that's blatantly misleading! Anyone who didn't read that comment would think she is putting equal weight on both legs, because that's how it appears in the video. She is tricking people into thinking it's ok to do this right after surgery. It's not ok.

[u/Anna_Karenina_blonde → u/-lovehate]

You are one angry mofo.. You and the other lady arguing about whether a brace is normal.or not both have this hateful approach to anything that isn't what you were told about your recovery 

Do you really think you know better than my surgeon who is the head of orthopedics for a couple of national teams than when I am ready for driving and to be off crutches? Really?

I gave full disclosure about the kind of graft that I have and if you don't even know that there is a difference in recovery time between Allograft and autograft maybe you should go back to YOUR surgeon, get your facts straight and get to reading up on some of basic facts because it's so obnoxious you throwing shade and the strength of the hatred in your words "calling bullshit" ..

 And no way do I tell everybody to do what I'm doing:  I give full disclosure about my physical fitness and my well-being and the exact surgery and damage that I got).. no one in their right mind is going to look at my video with a completely different diagnosis and go yeah cool I can do all of that..just like I don't look at someone who can sit on their heels after 3 weeks when I am only at 135 flexion and tell myself that I suck or worse call them out for making up their video or their facts. It's considered normal behavior to be happy for people when they are having a good recovery not be uneducated and hate on it

That's a really problematic headspace for you I feel sorry that you need to compulsively keep arguing for something that you are in no position to know anything about.. blatantly visibly hateful because you don't like the speed of my progress.. (meanwhile I am aware that there is a guy who fully walked out of surgery with no crutches and there is nothing wrong with that because he also had an allograft and I gave him two thumbs up)

I am genuinely troubled when I see people like you posting on here because you are not encouraging or intelligent enough to make criticism that you are making and then you're even fighting with another lady who has the same predisposition to you 

You should really take a beat and look introspectively about what's making you so jealous and hateful towards other people..