It also looks at strategies that can help your child heal after ACL surgery.
Treatment depends on how serious the injury is.
Injuries are graded from 1 (a minor sprain) to 3 (a full ACL tear).
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Grade 1 injuries do not require surgery.
Non-Surgical Treatments
Non-surgical treatment options are more appropriate for lower-grade injuries.
First and foremost is theRICE method.
Wearing a braceat the joint can keep the knee stable while the ACL injury heals, if needed.
This is something that would be provided or prescribed by a practitioner after your child is evaluated.
Physical therapy (PT)may also be helpful in some cases.
It may be sufficient enough to treat a relatively minor ACL injury.
Types of Surgery
In most cases, ACL repairs technically arent repairs at all.
They involve reconstructing, or replacing, the affected tendon with a new one.
In both children and adults, this is usually done as anarthroscopic surgery.
A tiny camera is threaded through these openings so that the surgeon can view the ACL on a monitor.
Long, thin surgical tools are also inserted.
In addition, the surgeon drills small holes to replace the damaged ACL and reconnect the joint.
There are two types of surgery used to place the new tendon: autograft and allograft.
Each has its benefits and drawbacks.
In either case, ACL repair is considered a minimally invasive surgery.
Since the tendon is your childs own, the risk of infection is reduced.
Autograft surgery tends to be less expensive than allograft surgery.
On the one hand, this means a shorter time in surgery and an initial recovery thats less painful.
(These areas of bone growth only close in the mid- to late-teen years.)
This is no longer a significant concern.
Today, surgeons often perform whats called atransphyseal ACL reconstructionon young people.
A surgeon will often use a slightly different technique for a child than they would use for an adult.
This is to spare still-growing bone tissue.
They may think surgery is the end their treatment, but its not.
Guidelines from the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons do not recommend routine long-term bracing after ACL surgery.
PT is a significant commitment that typically lasts for weeks and months.
Many factors will be key to your childs success, but perhaps none is more important than family support.
Prognosis
The prognosis for teens and children who have ACL surgery is generally good.
Holes drilled during surgery may affect the growth plates in the affected knee joint.
The ACL repair isnt the end of the road, though.
In some ways its just the beginning.
But there are risks that are perhaps more serious if you wait.
Talk to your healthcare provider before making a decision.
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