I had my acl reconstructed 8 yrs ago. I also have this problem occasionally. It kind of feels like your knee is hyperextended? I usually have to back off on what I am doing at the time whether it be sports or weight training. If it feels like it is giving out you should probably get it checked. Ice and ibuprofen usually work however I have had to get a Cortisone shot to help with the discomfort. Not sure if this helps at all. Knees can be tricky..

Thanks for your input:) I guess I was thinking (or hoping) that I would be back to sports now with no problems. I really only feel about 70% back, as the mobility I had before is not quite there yet. Do you wear a brace at all when you are playing sports? I wore one the first week I was back to playing and then I stopped wearing one, MD said it was pretty much only for peace of mind and that if it was going to be reinjured that a brace would not prevent it. Thoughts on that?

I don't wear a brace. I have but I really don't think that it helped much. You may just be back too soon and pushing it too hard. I was back playing soccer in 9 months but I was really pushing too hard and I wish I would have waited. I have since had a second surgery. I would really take your time and develop the muscles around your knee especially your quads and hamstrings. Do not skimp on your PT. I really regret it now. I didn't put 100% effort into rehabbing my knee but the damage has been done. It isn't too late for you however.

What led up to your second surgery? How long after your first surgery did that happen? Yeah, I am probably pushing it too hard....As I am sure you know, it is SO hard to not push it when you are ultra competitive. What is giving me the hardest time right now is sand volleyball, which is where I initially tore it....

I totally understand where you are coming from. Sand volleyball is tough and now that I think about it I did wear a brace when I played. The ground is just so unstable it made me feel better and in that case to me it helped. My second surgery was 5 yrs after my first. I lift weights and workout and was just having a lot more pain than usual. Especially running outside. My knee gets so swollen to this day running on pavement. Anyway, I went in and they saw that 1 of my screws was backing out of the bone (which they removed) and I had a lot of scar tissue that needed to be removed. It helped a little but I will probably have to deal with it. I hope you have better luck than I have...

Maybe tonight I will try playing with a brace and see if that helps at all....I am a little worried because the ortho doc did say if I injure my knee again I will be done with sports, and well, that would just not be good. I have never had a problem with swelling like you have, just some random pain. I have also had some really hard to describe almost numbness or tingling sensations lately.....probably just little things that I need to get used to and learn to live with:) Did you ever have any trouble with your other knee? Seems like everybody I talk to who has torn an ACL has eventually torn the other knee as well. Thanks for sharing all your info with me:)

I have not had any problems with my right knee (knock on wood!). So there's hope! I definitely put more pressure on my right knee when my left is giving me trouble which you should really try not to do, try to keep weight distribution and everything equal. The whole left side of my knee is numb and they said that was normal for my surgery. They may have just knicked a nerve during yours or maybe scar tissue occasionally presses on it?? You should take the time to get your full range of motion back and really strengthen your muscles. They say what you don't get back in the first 6 months you will have a hard time ever getting back as far as muscle goes. Why put your sports in jeopardy for the rest of your life if you only need to hold off a couple of months for rehab now? (unless you have the playoffs coming up!) I was a goalkeeper in soccer and played with a broken finger so I can understand that situation but a knee is a little harder to live without...

By the way where are you that you get to play beach volleyball in March?? I'm stuck in Wisconsin : (

I am actually in Wisconsin as well:) I play indoor sand volleyball during the winter....Felt pretty good last night, actually. I think the aches and pains I have are just something I need to learn to live with. I am a little bit worried about softball getting started here soon and how fast, or not fast, I am going to be getting down the first base line:) Where in WI are you? Maybe I have played against you:)

I live in Sun Prairie, work in Madison. Where do we have indoor sand volleyball?? I was worried about the run to 1st base as well but survived! It was a little uncomfortable but the more I did it the better it got. The thing that hurt a bit was sliding into 2nd which happened to be on my bad knee. I would test it out by running some sprints before that 1st game. You will definitely have aches and pains here and there probably for the rest of your life but if you are like me you aren't going to let it stop you, maybe slow you down a little at times.

Not exactly sure where that it, but I am thinking it is not close to me:) I am near Milwaukee, in a small suburb. We play indoor sand volleyball at Kellys Bleachers in Wind Lake. They have really nice indoor sand courts in the volleydome. Three courts. They also have their sand outdoor courts for the summer....Pretty good competition up there if you play on the right nights....Do you play a lot of softball?

I used to play softball, mostly just coed recreational leagues. I'm the type of person who can play any sport and am decent. I think it's because I just love competition. The only sport I was really good at was soccer. I've even played sports on the boys teams. We don't have any indoor sand volleyball leagues in Madison. I unfortunately have to wait until summer..

Hi im going to have ACL surgery myself and just wanted to get some advice...were u able to take ppart in physical activity 100 percent..like running??
THanks

Hi michianderson,

You mentioned above that you had to have a screw removed from your knee... I recently had the screw used in my acl removed too. The doctor said this wasnt the norm, and in his 20 years as a surgeon had only removed one other...he didnt really make me feel too confident with that statement!! He removed it because I had mentioned having a really sore front area of my knee, which was strange because my graft was taken from my hamstring, and also I had a major pain on and around the main scar on my leg. He took an xray and realised the screw which is meant to be flush with the bone was infact protruding 3mm from it causings aggrevation (apparently)

How was your knee after your screw was removed? I cant tell whether my knee feels a bit less stable because of it, or whether it's all in my mind...

Also, to everyone out there...has anyone had an issue with the area around the main scar on your leg sinking?! My leg seems to have lost a lot of tissue around the scar area, which has given me an ugly u-shape in my leg...not nice!

i have pain in my screw area. doctor said he will take it out for me after 1 year from surgery date. 2months away. my scar is sinking also and I feel like the screw is close to the skin. I play soccer and that is the only pain I have, I am not going to wear my brace any more when I play because it causes rubbing in the scar & screw area.Do you think it will be ok. I am 10 montjs from surgery and a vasity player in H.S. and want to play in college.

I was thinking that my surgery could have gone better than it did, but after reading some of these posts I feel lucky. I tore my left ACL 10 years ago playing soccer. I opted to use my hamstring as the graft and after 6 months I was back to playing sports (basketball, football, volleyball, paintball). There were incidents where I knew I was pushing it a little too much and was able to pull back to avoid reinjury. After about 8 months I was back to full activity. The only problems I experienced all happened during the first couple of months in rehab. It seemed like I was always pulling my hamstring (not sure if it was due to the surgery or just trying too hard) and I would experience knee pain in my good knee due compensating for weakness in my knee that was operated on. I used my knee brace as much as possible up until the 8 month mark and I believe it helped me out tremendously. One thing to remember about knee braces is that they are not all the same. I know some people that have use off the shelf knee braces or purchased one on eBay. I was fitted for mine. The only thing that I now notice about that knee is when I cross my legs (operated knee on top) it feels awkward. I tore my other ACL playing basketball this past summer and I now have the pleasure of looking forward to surgery this December. For those of you looking at surgery, I can not stress enough how important your rehab is. I do feel lucky with the results of my surgery but I know I should have done more rehab to strengthen my quads. I truly believe that I would have been out of my brace and back to sports earlier had I been more dedicated to my rehab.