With football season upon us, the inevitable truth is that injury season is upon us as well. With that in mind, The RASC newsletter will discuss common sports injuries, and for the first few installments, football specific injuries in particular. The first one we will discuss the the "season-ender," the rupture of the Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL).
The ACL is a ligament (a piece of connective tissue that connects two bones together) that spans the distance of the posterior femur to the anterior tibia. In football, this ligament is often damaged (ruptured) when a player attempts to cut, or when the knee is locked and it is hit by another player. When ruptured the tibia is able to move forward with respect to the femur beyond the normal range-of-motion because the ligament prevent this motion from typically occurring. It is almost always a surgical case as the ligament needs to be replaced to ensure future stability of the knee complex. Following surgery, months of physical therapy are required to stabilize the knee and prevent future recurrences.
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