I completely tore my right ACL, as well as partial tears both of my meniscus', on January 1, 2009 playing football. I didn't take a hit on my leg, just went to make a pivot and it was downhill from there. Due to several different factors, i had to wait a full 3 months for surgery. For a better part of those 3 months, I underwent physical therapy 3 days a week, as well as rehabbing the leg daily at my local gym. From what I gather, the stronger you can get your leg pre-surgery, the further ahead you'll be of that proverbial 8 ball.
A few details about my scheduled surgery. After consulting with my surgeon, and doing as much research as possible online (finding online medical journals proved to be very educational and insightful), I opted for an Allograft surgery, which is an ACL from a cadaver. Allografts are becoming more and more popular as more and more evidence is showing that long term, they are just as strong and efficient as the other two options, taking an autograft of your own patellar tendon from your knee, or taking a piece of your hamstring.
Some pros of the allograft:
* Using someone else's tendon means no extra incision. No extra incision usually means less pain after surgery.
* As well as less pain, it usually means the patient returns to Day-to-Day activities quicker than patients who opt for autografts.
Some cons:
* While more and more studies are showing the allograft is just as strong as an autograft, most any surgeon will still tell you the patellar tendon is still the most "tried and true" method of surgery, simply because it is.
* Also, while the allograft allows for quicker return of Day-to-Day activities, it usually takes a little longer to return to 100%. From what I'm told this is because it is not your own tissue, so it takes a longer to graft itself onto your Femur and Tibia.
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