Cruciate Ligament Operation...what to do?

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rowdreyer

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I am in a dilema! I bought a horse 8 months ago after a couple years break from serious riding, he turned out to be a bad purchase with a history of unpredictable behaviour. He threw me off last October causing a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament that will need surgery. Hopefully all will be resolved on horse front soon and he'll be rehomed. My dilema is whether to have surgery now or not, I'm riding regulary (other peoples) and am feeling fit and my knee is OK although weaker than it was. I really want to have a horse again and want to get back into eventing to a Novice level this summer. If i have surgery now I've been told I'll be off horses for 5 months and then I'll have to start again with a new horse. Should I do this and then get a new horse (start through winter again!) and miss another summers riding or should I put off surgery to later and get another horse now? Has anyone here had ACL reconstructive surgery? I'm 26 and childless I want to make the most of my riding time before I settle down to do the baby thing, but i do feel I'm putting off the enevitable! What to do????
 
yes, i've had that op. i was back in the saddle sooner than my surgeon expected, i did do a LOT of physio because i was desperate to get back to riding. it depends how bad it is i guess... i couldn't straighten my leg, walking hurt, riding was impossible and genuinely agony, so i had no choice... no way could i have waited. it gives me no trouble now as long as i keep it strong with exercise.
i don't know if you're going private or NHS, but if the former, i'd really recommend the surgeon who did mine - he's in Birmingham, does a lot of the top footballers apparently (it's a classic footballing injury), Mr El-Safty. he did an amazing job on mine, and it was a real mess. pm me if you want his number.
if you think yours will stand up to this season, then i'd probably wait till this winter if it was me, though.
 
I am lucky I have private health care and good surgeon (Tim Spalding) he's keen to do surgery as I've lost ACL completely and I am very active but I've been hitting physio and gym hard to speed up recovery after injury and actually feel OK and quite strong, maybe I should get new horse and plan to rough him/her off over winter after we've had a chance to get to know each other and hopefully get some competition in?!
 
I've tried one but really hated it, felt very cumbersome! I'm OK without I reckon as along as I keep muscles strong. How long did you take before getting back in the saddle, was it really painful?
 
well it depends how you feel really, so long as you're not in alot of pain when riding/jumping then theres no reason you can;t wait till the winter to have the op. so far as the brace is concerned i'd say if you're going to use one only use it when riding/jumping etc since if you wear one all the time you'll loose the muscle strength. i think that using at least a neoprene one would be a good idea if you're doing something that places a strain on the knee as you don;t want to compound the problem by damaging any other soft tissue around the knee or you really will be scuppered!
 
Had mine done two years ago reconstructed ACL, tendon and cartlidge was back riding about 3 months later, just took it steady with mounting, used a block and dismounted one legged; but I'd got used to that anyway cause my knee joint would collapse trying to mount or dismount before the op anyway. Blew mine out ski-ing.

Don't regret having mine done for a moment. Couldn't get on with life without it. I couldn't run or jump or even climb over a gate until I'd had it done. It's great now. I haven't been riding for a while and if I do too much on it, I can still develop a bit of fluid on there, but it's just so much better.

It's a bit like horses the more dedication you can put into the physio after the better and quicker your recovery and results will be.

Good luck.
 
I'm currently recovering from that operation, along with having my MCL pinned and cartlidge stritched up. Had a bit of an incident trampolining
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I was back on a horse after a month or so, just walking. Its now 9 weeks down the line and my horse has come back off his holidays and I am riding properly(ish) again. Physio has told me not to fall off though so the jumping is on hold for the moment!
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Mine was nessecary because it was completely messed up so I didn't have a choice but to have it straight away. I think I would get it done now if I was you simply because there is never going to be a convenient time to have it done, at least if you have the op now you wont have to put riding on hold once you have a new horse. I hated having to give mine up!
 
Spooky, just talking about having a brace fitted tomorrow! Lost my cruciate in a car accident last year and it only became apparent when I dismounted like debradley. I'm waiting for the ACL reconstruction (already had menicectomy and acl stumps removed) and have spoken to the guys on here and all give good vibes. Plus a doctor, physio and porter at work have recently had the surgery and are all doing ok, but as my surgeon says, the after care is really imortant ie: physio and gym. My surgeon wants me at the gym 3x a week......its a killer, but my quads and hams feel much better now, but know my knee is to unstable not to have the op, so the delay in competing will be worth it
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