ACL Reconstruction on weight bearing leg

[DoubleBogeyman]

Hi

Great site, so much useful info.

I'm struggling to find an answer to the following question though. 

I am in week 12 post ACL reconstruction and removal of meniscus. The surgery was my second ACL reconstruction, but first on my left knee (right handed, so weight bearing knee) 

I have been advised not to play golf until end of this year. However, I have been playing golf without the AC ligament for 4 years now, and have a large build up of muscles that have compensated for the missing ligament. I have been seeing a personal trainer for 6 weeks now, and he has mentioned that there is significant over development of unusual muscles, and he agrees that this has been brought on by the (above mentioned) compensation. 

My question is, has anyone had the same surgery on the weight bearing leg?? If so, how long until you returned to golf?? Plenty of people have had it on the non loading leg. But it would be great to hear from anyone with knowledge specific to this injury, and a bonus if they can relate to my current circumstance. 

I plan to make my return to golf for our annual  "Chubbs Peterson Memorial" on the 13th of August (14 weeks post surgery)

Regards

DoubleBogeyMan

[El Mucho]

Hey,

2 time ACL reconstruction on my load bearing leg.

My surgeon recommended the same no golf for about a 6 - 7 months post surgery. It takes that long for the graft to fully vascularize and for you to redevelop the muscles surrounding the knee.

For myself there was significant atrophy in the quad and surrounding muscles post surgery. It took 6 months + of rehab to get the muscle back. To this day there is still a small but visible difference in the definition and tone of my quad muscles.

Hope this helps.

 

Edited July 27, 2016 by El Mucho

[rehmwa]

had recon on both knees at one point or another

half a year is a good checkpoint - (depends on your fitness, and doctors tend to be VERY conservative, but think about what the finish of your swing does to your knee)

that follow through leg gets the load on the swing finish and it also gets a good TWIST - that is just exactly what a new graft Doesn't need for healing - and it doesn't take a very extreme move either

Once you can return to golf - I'd try partial swings and light follow thru (with the knee brace) and be VERY aware of discomfort.  I'd also set up with a more open foot too to minimize the amount of twist it experiences

one nice thing - if you are young enough and fit enough, these recover fully (performance and comfort, not structure - that's gone forever, especially that missing meniscus) - as long as one works through the recovery like they should (which most don't) - I don't need a brace for anything (tennis, running, skiing, obstacle courses, etc) - the initial recovery was huge and fast, but the final bit of recover did take a while.

(what kind of reconstruction:  cadaver graft?  patellar tendon graft?  hamstring graft?

cadaver grafts are tricky - you feel great immediately and the tendency is to do too much and inhibit the healing)

 

Short answer - if you have a good physical therapist, that person is likely the best person to advise you about playing at the 14 week point or not.  IMHO - probably better than the doctor.

[Piz]

I had an ACL on my left knee back in 1990.  I also had surgery for a torn medial meniscus in 1979.  In both cases I was good to go once the physical rehab was complete.  I did wear corrective inserts, for a period of one year, to improve my pronation.  Twenty-six years later I'm still wearing out my right shoe faster.  The biggest post-op adjustment, for me, was mental.  In the back of my mind are some bad memories.  Every once in a while I pivot on my back foot and yank one left.  I've slowed my tempo, considerably, over the years in an on-going effort to re-write that buried line of code that says "Don't put weight on your left foot!"  While I'd much rather not have torn my ACL in the first place; I can say that I've learned much more about the golf swing, and my swing, than I may have without the injuries, operations, and physical rehab.  The biggest thing is trust.  You trusted that knee once...you can learn to trust it again.  And hey...what is the worst thing that can happen?  Another knee operation?  Piece of cake.

[MrFlipper]

14 hours ago, DoubleBogeyman said:

Hi

Great site, so much useful info.

I'm struggling to find an answer to the following question though. 

I am in week 12 post ACL reconstruction and removal of meniscus. The surgery was my second ACL reconstruction, but first on my left knee (right handed, so weight bearing knee) 

I have been advised not to play golf until end of this year. However, I have been playing golf without the AC ligament for 4 years now, and have a large build up of muscles that have compensated for the missing ligament. I have been seeing a personal trainer for 6 weeks now, and he has mentioned that there is significant over development of unusual muscles, and he agrees that this has been brought on by the (above mentioned) compensation. 

My question is, has anyone had the same surgery on the weight bearing leg?? If so, how long until you returned to golf?? Plenty of people have had it on the non loading leg. But it would be great to hear from anyone with knowledge specific to this injury, and a bonus if they can relate to my current circumstance. 

I plan to make my return to golf for our annual  "Chubbs Peterson Memorial" on the 13th of August (14 weeks post surgery)

Regards

DoubleBogeyMan

ACL torn and meniscus damage in left knee here, but a while ago (back in days when this surgery required a cast for 3-4 months). After I got out of the cast and started rehab (lots of muscle atrophy and weakness), I was golfing within 2 months, total rehab completed 6 months later (repaired knee was then stronger than the non-repaired knee, brace needed only for twisty stuff like basketball and tennis). You've been through the rehab before so you know how that feels.

I came back to golf too early. My doctor and PT guy were okay with it, but I felt weak and dragged the leg when I got tired, maybe 6 holes in at the start. They had me wear relatively smooth soled tennis shoes (like Stan Smiths) so I wouldn't catch my knee while pivoting. Didn't hurt my knee but I changed my swing so I could play, not good, and then it took a few months after rehab was completed before I could unlearn those habits (like the opening up of the left foot as mentioned above). So I would suggest that you don't golf until your rehab is far enough along that you don't have to make any adjustments to play; that would have been roughly 6 months after coming out of the cast for me. 

I've been around folks who played sports without ACLs, they had really strong muscles around the knee like it sounds you have. So maybe you are okay in your time frame, it all depends on what your doctor says. 14 weeks post surgery (assuming you were not in a cast, so I compare to my time post cast) seems really soon. But I am sure not a doctor. And if you are a monster at rehab, you could get back quickly. Good luck!

[DoubleBogeyman]

Hi all

Thank you for your input, it is all greatly appreciated.

What I am gathering is a general consensus that 6 months at least is needed before going back to a full swing. Even then, it will take considerable time to get back to my normal game.

 

However, it fills me with confidence that you are still all avid golfers, and seem to be doing great now.

 

I think I will stick to chipping and putting for the time being. Who knows, maybe thats not such a bad thing.

 

Thanks for all your advice, happy golfing :)

[woodzie264]

On July 27, 2016 at 3:20 AM, DoubleBogeyman said:

Hi

Great site, so much useful info.

I'm struggling to find an answer to the following question though. 

I am in week 12 post ACL reconstruction and removal of meniscus. The surgery was my second ACL reconstruction, but first on my left knee (right handed, so weight bearing knee) 

I have been advised not to play golf until end of this year. However, I have been playing golf without the AC ligament for 4 years now, and have a large build up of muscles that have compensated for the missing ligament. I have been seeing a personal trainer for 6 weeks now, and he has mentioned that there is significant over development of unusual muscles, and he agrees that this has been brought on by the (above mentioned) compensation. 

My question is, has anyone had the same surgery on the weight bearing leg?? If so, how long until you returned to golf?? Plenty of people have had it on the non loading leg. But it would be great to hear from anyone with knowledge specific to this injury, and a bonus if they can relate to my current circumstance. 

I plan to make my return to golf for our annual  "Chubbs Peterson Memorial" on the 13th of August (14 weeks post surgery)

Regards

DoubleBogeyMan

The sime answer is no. Most orthopedist are not going to allow you to take full swings until 6 months s/p ACL Reconstruction and continue restrictions until the 9 month mark at a minimum. We used to let guys go back closer to 6 months after surgery, but more recent studies show a dramatic decrease in re-rupture if we wait an extra 3 months, which in the big picture is a small thing to prevent needing a revision. 

The new graft is weakest from months 2-3 and this is the time of highest incidence of re-tear. At 3 months I'd let you putt and greenside chip (if braced). Don't screw it up now! Be honest with your doc and ask him what he's comfortable with given he knows the specifics of your sugery

Edited July 28, 2016 by woodzie264

[kenstl]

On July 27, 2016 at 0:20 AM, DoubleBogeyman said:

Hi

Great site, so much useful info.

I'm struggling to find an answer to the following question though. 

I am in week 12 post ACL reconstruction and removal of meniscus. The surgery was my second ACL reconstruction, but first on my left knee (right handed, so weight bearing knee) 

I have been advised not to play golf until end of this year. However, I have been playing golf without the AC ligament for 4 years now, and have a large build up of muscles that have compensated for the missing ligament. I have been seeing a personal trainer for 6 weeks now, and he has mentioned that there is significant over development of unusual muscles, and he agrees that this has been brought on by the (above mentioned) compensation. 

My question is, has anyone had the same surgery on the weight bearing leg?? If so, how long until you returned to golf?? Plenty of people have had it on the non loading leg. But it would be great to hear from anyone with knowledge specific to this injury, and a bonus if they can relate to my current circumstance. 

I plan to make my return to golf for our annual  "Chubbs Peterson Memorial" on the 13th of August (14 weeks post surgery)

Regards

DoubleBogeyMan

Great question and reading these answers has been very interesting.  I lost my ACL playing ball in college in my left knee and I have been without it ever since, I am 51 now.  Unfortunately I think my time of getting by without one may be ending as lately golf or any movement more than walking, is causing pain, and the knee is feeling very unstable as of late.   I look forward to reading more responses, it may be time to go see a Dr.  

[woodzie264]

@DoubleBogeyman, you're somewhere around 8 months s/p surgery now, right? How's the knee doing? Have you been released for golf? 

[DoubleBogeyman]

Hi mate,

yes month 7 now! I went back to golf in September. Initially the driver was left in the bag, and I stuck to a shortened swing so I wasn't rotating through the knee as aggressively.

I am now back to pretty much a full swing, and the knee is feeling great. The only problem I have now is having the confidence to really rock forward onto that knee after striking the ball. This results in the odd massive slice, but only time will fix this issue. 

Somebody on here mentioned opening up the front foot on my set up. This has been amazing! Doesn't effect my natural swing too much, and allows me to rotate through the end of my swing nicely.

 

[woodzie264]

49 minutes ago, DoubleBogeyman said:

Hi mate,

yes month 7 now! I went back to golf in September. Initially the driver was left in the bag, and I stuck to a shortened swing so I wasn't rotating through the knee as aggressively.

I am now back to pretty much a full swing, and the knee is feeling great. The only problem I have now is having the confidence to really rock forward onto that knee after striking the ball. This results in the odd massive slice, but only time will fix this issue. 

Somebody on here mentioned opening up the front foot on my set up. This has been amazing! Doesn't effect my natural swing too much, and allows me to rotate through the end of my swing nicely.

 

Glad all is well! Yeah, in time the confidence will return.  Hit'em straight!

[HitAndGiggle]

I think much depends on the specifics of your surgery. I gad total ACL reconstruction of my back knee (rt knee, right handed). It was an allograft by an excellent surgeon. I was walking a week later and I'm sure if it had been my lead leg it'd be fine. My left knee is now arthritic but still not much of a hinderence.