Mike Horton shares part 2 of his journal chronicling his battle with his torn ACL.

Read Part 2, \"Surgery Day is Here\"

I guess this story is interesting...but I think Mike is making a huge deal out of something that's a moderate deal (particularly since he's getting an allograft - which is a much smaller deal than the standard surgery which involves taking tissue from your own body to reconstruct the ACL). I'm surprised by several "points/facts" that he makes:

1) The hamstring graft is not considered the "gold" standard; most doctors believe that the patellar tendon autograft is the "gold standard" of ACL reconstructions. I used this one.

2) There is some evidence that using cadaver tissue (as Mike is using for his own reconstruction) has a higher failure rate; which is biologically not surprising since you're introducing foreign tissue into your body. There are also (incredibly infrequent, mind you) cases where tainted allografts led to death (there was a famous case in 2003).

I'm about 2 years post-surgery and have had excellent results...but let me just say (and particularly if you have a patellar tendon/hamstring autograft) be prepared to work your ass of in rehab and make sure you're a very athletic person who likes to lift (lots of squats, etc.) Once you've had knee reconstruction, that leg will always be much more prone to atrophy than the other leg. Hence, if you have ACL reconstruction, prepare to work out basically for the rest of your life. Otherwise, there are lots of people who live without ACLs by making life-modification choices.

The surgery only gets you probably 10% of the way back to proper knee function, the rehab is 90 percent of the process. Not to sound negative, but Mike just strikes me as slightly "pussy-like" in his approach to the surgery. And moreover, I hope he's prepared to work hard post-surgery.

fishguy, thanks for reading. I must admit that when I first found out, yes, I probably was, as we say here in Atlanta, a big ole girl about the situation. I have never had any sports injury other than a tweak here or there. I had honestly never even been on crutches. In four years of high school and college, I never missed a game due to injury. It was a little disturbing to me, and my friends can tell you, I play pretty much all-out and aggressively. My psyche did undergo a shock.

Everything I presented in my story is what my doctor's office told me, as well as research with friends who've had the surgery and two personal trainers here in Atlanta who work exclusively with sports surgery rehab clients. (One is my trainer now.) My surgeon is a professional sports physician who works not only with all Atlanta sports teams but consults for a few other professional teams as well. After four references, he came out with a sterling reputation and was chosen because of that background.

We talked almost an hour and a half about the differences of grafts. He even gave me material on ALL TWO death instances with ACL allografts. (Two out of many: I consider that relatively successful.) He said that he would not recommend hamstring or patella grafts because success rates are somewhat lower for those who are active sports participants and have been all their lives. (Again, documentation to support his professional opinion was provided.) Medicine, like just about everything else, can also be a case study in trends.

As for working out for life, that's pretty much a given. I have been active in sports since basically I could walk and run, and that was part of my kid fears. Without spoiling too much of what's to come, I started running last week, week 12, and swim 1.5 miles at 5am each morning, followed by 20 minutes on stairmaster, followed by a 2-mile jog on the treadmill. (All supervised by one of the above-mentioned personal trainers.) This morning, I ran 2.33 miles in 27 minutes. Not record-breaking, but I feel good about it. That's just what I do in the morning. I also swim another mile at night and do weights at lunch. I have exercises that my roommate, JW, mentioned in the column does with me nightly as we get ready for bed. I scare people with my intensity at this, but it's working. I have even lost 15 pounds since the beginning of November. I think this is quite an anti-pussylike approach. If it's not, then I guess I need to fire my trainers, whose clients have included Shannon Sharpe (not bragging, but I'm confident Jason is setting me up for success.)

I appreciate your comments. I will work hard to present myself, and my rehab, as tougher, but I just remind you, you haven't seen the finished product. In October, I was a true mess about all this. Now, I am confident I will be playing in less of a recovery time than anticipated.

Well after reading yourresponse...I feel like I should eat my words (LOL). If there's a pussy, it's me! I'm glad that you're attacking the rehab like an crazed animal, which is the way to do it...

You clearly have the right mindset regarding the surgery/rehab and I'm sure you'll recover far faster than the average person. Don't be afraid to push yourself and accept the near-term pain...it will pay off in the long run.

Congrats and good luck! This surgery can be a blessing in disguise; while I've always been very fit my entire life; I think I'm even fitter now as a result of the surgery.

Being a Certified Athletic Trainer and not a personal trainer(sorry it a sore spot with me a personal trainer doesn't have to have a Bachelors degree, and is not consider an allied health) , My two cents is that with the autografts there is more occurances of tendonitis in both the hamstring and patellar tendon. Which in the long run weakens the tendon. That makes it hard for very active people to deal with. As far as recovery all the athletes I have dealt with at the college are back to full speed in six months that included a steer wrestler on our Rodeo team. Matt good luck I'll have to let my kids know they aren't the only ones it happens to. One girl I have is really bummed she had just got back from acl reconstruction and was practicing basketball and blew the other knee. Luckly this one didn't include meniscus.

I have a problem with personal trainers overstepping their boundaries a bit in terms of rehabilitation. I find that if you look at some of the state practice acts, they are probably committing a bit of fraud and providing services outside their scope of education and experience.

Its not that I dont think they have the knowledge regarding cardio and exercise methods/physiology. They will instruct perfectly. Its having the background to know the subtleties between progressing exercises specific to individual injuries. For health and wellness issues, see a personal trainer. For sporting or specific athletic injuries, see an athletic trainer or physical therapist.

As a P.T. I always like working with athletic trainers in conjuction. They see what happens on the field... during longer term rehabilitation, I think the eyes of a P.T. can assist in treating when initial injuries (i.e. femur fracture or patellar tendinitis) may actually cause a patient to compensate and develop a secondary injury/malaligment to, i.e. the pelvis. Doing some strong postural and lumbosacral segmental assessment with these secondary injuries and treating them in conjunction with the initial injury being treated by an ATC can work wonders.

I just think in terms of injury recovery and rehab- to most personal injuries- a weak knee is a painful knee is an exercising knee versus an ACL with meniscus, versus ACL with MCL, versus the terrible triad. Also, just understanding the functional anatomy behind the different surgical techniques makes a HUGE difference.

Anyways- with ACL injuries and any potential patellar malalignments- I am a huge fan of electrical stimulation- are you getting that as part of your continued rehab at all?

The first couple of weeks, about 5-6 or so, they used electrical stimulation. That was tough. My PT Kristie would crank it and say "tell me when" and I would just grimace and she would realize I was going to try and take as much pain as possible. Stupid, uh huh, but that's me again. I push every limit I can. My roommate the last two nights has hidden my car keys so I don't sneak back to the gym because I overdid it a little this weekend and am still hurting.

My physical therapists have been phenomenal. You'll read about them in the upcoming installments. I am extremely fortunate in all aspects: good doctor, therapists, trainers, and friends. I had three separate surgeries this year, all non-related and only the knee was a sports injury, and have done well with two of them. (The other was bad because I found out the hard way I have a latex allergy I never knew!) I come from a medical background and rebound easily, even for a 5-10 point guard, haha.

Seriously, the support I have been given has been such a fortunate instance for me. Now, if I had only had a boyfriend it would have been even better, but my buds are great.

Thanks to each of you guys for reading and for the comments. I appreciate them and always welcome any new perspective or challenge from someone who's experienced what I am right now. Fishguy, you're right: the injury/surgery has made me more intense in working out but also realize a few more important things. I've lost 14 pounds since the beginning of November and now stand, truthfully, at 179. Goal is 170. (Nice to get into skinny jeans again, lol!)

Hey Mike, thanks for sharing your story. I just had my second ACL recon in late January. Now that I've have had both knees done, there aren't any more to do! (and don't say that I could tear a repaired one, that's just not an option for me)

Both of mine were patellar autographs, and the one I had done 2 years ago has recovered 100% (as far as I can tell). I'm currently at 5 weeks with the most recent, and it's been going pretty well. Can't wait to get back to my sports - running, racqueball, Taekwon Do and motorcycling.

If you're interested, I've keep a little journal on my site with regards to my ACL surgery experience. Check it out if you wish.

http://www.jaylarson.com/journal

Good luck with your recovery, and look forward to future installments of your story.

Jay

hey im new to this site. I was searching the web for my knee injury and found this place. Well first let me start with my story. I tore my left acl,latteral meniscus and mcl at boot camp for the USMC.I thought my dream to be a Marine was done. Well they let me gradute seeing that we had 2 weeks left. they let me go home for 10 days and than i had to come back for surgery.THe surgery was done with a hamstring graft and removal of damage meniscus. When i woke up from surgery i was drugged up and couldnt feel it. Well next day it was hell. I couldnt move my left leg at all. I began to think i wouldnt walk,run,or swim like i could before and for that matter be a Infantry Man or a Recon Marine. well i was in the hospital for 5 weeks with therapy until i could walk. I went home for 14 days and than back to base. there i began a 4 month rehab period. the doc told me i would not be able to even do Infantry let alone recon. Well i gave it my all everyday. I was able to run 3 miles in 20 mins 6 months just after surgery. Im about to graduate infantry school and i apssed the recon screening like 4 weeks ago and my next school is recon school. Sometimes it gets hard cuz it'll swell or it'll just hurt on hikes. theres been times where i think i cant do it. But i push on. Im really worried abou8t recon school cuz i know its gonna be tough on my knee. I guess thats what lead me here. I needed some support. anyways for those dealing with the same issues or just beggining to. Its gonna be hard but if u want it u can get right back to where u before. so just push on. Semper fi. Michale figueroa USMC

Hey Semper: Shows what a strong will can accomplish!