ACL Injury? We Can Help!
If you’ve been following our blog posts, you already know about the benefits of chiropractic care for athletes, but what if you’ve already sustained an injury? Some of the most common knee injuries we see are ACL injuries, and they are also probably the most well-known. Though an ACL injury is common among athletes, the anterior cruciate ligament injury can happen whether a person is active or not. There are some steps you can take to prevent an ACL injury, and chiropractic care can help.
THE KNEE’S ANATOMY
The knee joint is made up of four bones: the tibia, fibia, patella, and femur. Additionally, there are tendons from muscles of the shin, calf, and thigh that are attached to this joint. Two fibrous discs are located inside the joint, and they provide a surface which the bones move upon. There are four main ligaments that help with joint stabilization; they are the medial collateral ligament, the lateral collateral ligament, the posterior cruciate ligament, and the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL).
ACL STATS
The ACL assists in knee stabilization by preventing excessive forward movement of the thigh bone on the shin bone. The American Orthopedic Society for Sports Medicine estimates that 150,000 ACL injuries are reported annually in the United States. The same organization also estimates that ACL injuries cost up to $500 million each year, and are also more common in women than in men.
CAUSES OF ACL INJURIES
As we already mentioned, ACL injuries are not limited to athletes alone. They most commonly occur with these actions:
- Suddenly changing directions
- Quickly stopping
- Slowing down when running
- Awkwardly landing
- Direct collision or forceful contact
Though many of these actions take place while playing sports, you can imagine how they would occur in everyday life, too.
ACL INJURIES AND CHIROPRACTIC CARE
Chiropractic care helps the nervous system to function as it should. The nervous system is the control center of the body, and that includes healing processes. So, at a very basic level, chiropractic care can help the healing process of an ACL injury. Take this example: a chiropractic adjustment of the knee joint helps restore the motion and function of the knee, which will help promote the healing process. This is especially helpful for ACL sprains, which is when the ligament has been stretched too far. If you have suffered an injury such as a torn ACL, chiropractic can help with the healing process, but it cannot recreate the connection between torn fibers.
If you have an ACL injury, contact us for a consultation. Though we can’t reconnect torn ligaments, we can help to restore proper motion, function, and healing to the knee.