Quadriceps Tendon Rupture, Repair and Rehab - Page 120

Will Run Again: Good to see your posts....I started land running....which was actually very slow short striding at about 6 to 61/2 months. I did water striding in the pool at about 5 months. On land I could go only maybe 10 yards at a time when I first started and after about 2 weeks of that up to 100 yards striding and 100 walking and interval that way for up to 2 miles after about 3 weeks. Now I am at a little over 7 months and can do 2-3 miles very slow with about 3/4 of a mile straight until I walk about a 1/4 mile then repeat the 3/4 mile stride run and 1/4 mile walk. I call it a stride run because it is not a real smooth long stride like us old marathoners are use to. I am using a compression light brace on my knee....I think it gives a slight improvement to hold your knee but I still experience what I would call fatigue in the quad and knee. I have found that my feeling is not any pain but just fatigue.....I guess despite all the rehab it is not strong enough yet. I strongly suggest you start pool striding first....do it frontwards....backwards... and to the sides in the pool. You will know when your ready to try land running. Just remember....it will not be the running feel ...even the slow running feel you were use to. I know I am not there yet....but I know I am making baby strides. I am doing this stride/run workout of 2-3 miles about 5 times a week. I just got one of these electro-stimulas machines to use and am going to try that along with heat and ice for 10 minute sessions twice a day and see if that helps to break up the fatigue. So this with all the other rehab stuff....I thought it would be getting easier by now but I am finding you need to do it. Too much rest at this stage is not good either....so you have to find that balance and that can vary individual to individual. Good Luck to all....I will keep you posted as I hope some of my experiences help others !!   TOM....aka....ORG !!

Nine weeks post op tomorrow. Today at PT they measured me at 122°. Monday I was at 98°. So, it seems I'm getting the range of motion back fairly quickly. PT is beginning to include some work on building my quad muscle back. So far that is mainly the leg extension machine, going 90 pounds with both legs engaged and 50 pounds with my injured leg engaged. I'm doing two reps of 10 each. The PT wants me to add 5 pounds to the one leg and 10 pounds to the two leg each week until I am pushing my full body weight with both feet and about 60% of that with one leg.
They are also working me on hip exercises as well as the theigh machine. What was really kind of scary at first was the balance board. On that they now have me doing sideways shifting of weight, then front shifting then a combination.
I find the hardest exercises in the pool. After a pool session my muscles are really sore.
I saw my surgeon yesterday. He gave the okay for limited bike riding. However he doesn't want me to do any hills for the time being. So I'll be riding the bike one day and then on alternate days doing my PT routines.
It's the little steps that make me really happy. Now I can put my pants on standing, one one leg at a time just like before the injury. I can also put my socks on in an almost natural fashion.
For those of you who are just getting out of the 0° brace, you're going to have smiles ahead. It's amazing to me how much different my legs and muscles operate one day to the next. It seems to be a steady progression. I know I am really lucky.

9 weeks for me too.

I tried one crutch walking for a few days but found it tiring and leg seemed to get weaker, though no pain involved. Have gone back to two for some of the time, alternating with one. Just doing it carefully. No point in pushing it  - you just have to stop sooner, like hill climbing on a bike, which I'm hoping to get back to before the summer is over.

Have removed the splint at last (supposed to wait until Thursday) and legs feel a lot better - the splint itself having become an uncomfortable problem. Might have to put it back on though, will see how it goes.

4 Months Update

4 months since the injury and surgey. Day to day I don't notice it.

I've been cycling for 6 weeks now, I have been quite cautious and started out by fitting a mountain bike cassette to my road bike, but now I've taken that off and am doing over 100km per week. Stil avoiding ride over 2hrs and no sprint intervals yet. Really pleased when I think back to mid March when I couldn't turn the pedals a complete revolution.

Started running 2 weeks ago. 3 x 5 minute runs in the first week, increased to 7.5 minutes this week. The knee is behaving itself.

The hospital signed me off as fi a few weeks ago. What programmes have people followed between 4 and 12 months?

Paul

HI,

 

4 week update:  instead of just giving me 30 degrees, he said to work to 90 and set me at 45 before we left the office.

 

Thanks to the poster who said to hang the leg over an exercise ball and rock it back and forth.  From lying on my back, put the leg over an exercise ball and roll it back and forth 2-300 times.  Got to 45 degrees yesterday, moving on to 60 today.  

 

Pool walking is slow (2 min/50 meters), did 15 laps today, and going to hold it at 15 50's for a few days and see if the knee gets happier.  

 

OD liked the ultrasound, it seems to really help the swelling in the week that I used it and I can even see a bit of a kneecap outline now.

 

thanks to all for the encouragement I get from the posts.  I hope this one does that for some of you.  Well the timer just went off on the heating thingy, so it is time to do the usound.

 

- TNT

One day shy of 2 weeks post-op and i had my first follow-up with the OD. He told me that where the ultrasound had first shown only a partial rupture, he instead found the quad tendon had fully ruptured. That would explain the extra amount of time I wound up spending in surgery. He unwrapped the dressing and the staples were removed (only one or two pinched a bit). After examing his handiwork he had me do a straight-leg lift - and I managed about 3 or 4 inches off the table. I'll be getting a Bledsoe brace by the end of the week but the doc wants to keep my leg locked straight until I go back to see him in 4 weeks :(

 

On the bright side, my tolerance for weight-bearing has been very good and with the OD's approval I can move to a cane at my convenience (maybe as early as the endof the week perhaps. Pain hasn't been an issue for me ... I never filled the prescription for Percocet that the ER doc wrote - and only took maybe 4 or 5 (and several were only half-pills) of the Atavan the OD gave to treat post-op muscle cramping. I did manage to go through most of a bottle of Tylenol in the first week, but haven't had to take anything for almost a week now.

 

I'm *really* looking forward to the lighter brace ... the Zimmer that I've been wearing is starting to get uncomfortable in this 30C+ heat.

 

I really appreciate the time everyone takes to put a few words on these pages ... the road to recovery will be long, and I get a lot out of reading how the rest of you are progressing - especially Paul (Barbarossa). I really miss getting out on my bike ... and at least I can have the vicarious experience from his postings.

 

Paul

HI All

 

 

I ruptured my patella tryna stop after a full on sprint to retreive a ball on the soccer field all i heard was a tear and blacked out for a bit from the pain next thing i am in the emergence room and my leg is mummified.

13 weeks ago i was miss diagnosed and had a miniscus repair and later the afternoon after the operation the Ortho told me i had a patella rupture which was clean off the tibia. Anyway i had a repair done a week later they drilled a hole into my shin and knee cap and placed a braided stainless steel cable to keep my patella from shifting up and destroying the repair. I have like 6 anchors in the repair itself.

 

Regardless being a sports freak by two weeks i was tryna do some sort of exercises cause watching my quad disappear was not fun. I attended physio 3 times a week did hydro thearpy and supplemented that with evening training sessions at the gym. Today my flexion is only at 65 degrees.

 

Reason for this is the metal cable restricting movement of my kneecap, its now sits 3cm lower then my right kneecap(uninjured knee).

 

My knee is still swollen and they only going to remove the cable in september, so ill be limping for the next 3 months.

 

When i first got injured i didnt realise the serverity of my injury and how crippling it could be on my mind as well as my body. I am glad to see that there is people out there who can confess to full recovery because sometimes it really feels like a loosing battle.

 

This forum helps provide hope thanks guys, from a avid sportsman and athlete.

Hi All, Full QTR on 1/4/12  surgery on 1/11/12. Slipped on a patch of snow/ice delivering a package. I'm a driver for UPS. Left foot slid forward and right foot stayed planted. Heard a pop and felt swelling immediately. I could not stand up,layed in the snow until my supervisor and another driver came to the location and got me on my feet. Also pulled of a piece of the patella.  I'm at 5 months post-op. Pt has gone well, I think, but my strength is not very good. I can only do about 15 lbs. on a seated leg extension. Squatting and lunging pretty painful still. I can walk semi-normally, but knee buckles with pain if I take a long stride. My agility is gone, knee buckles if I step backwards,to the side, or have to take a quick step. My job requires that I carry packages up and down steps for 9-10 hrs a day. Before injury I had aching knees from years of pounding at work. Probably tendonitis.  Concerned about making it all the way back, and having my knee hold up long term. Any ideas? Recommendations?  Hope you are all well. Great site here!

First of all congratulations on everbodys rehab and welcome to the new guys and gals on the this site. Im 13 weeks and 1 day post op. I feel pretty good overal with no pain in the knee. Im walking pretty close to normal with no buckle of knee anymore. Im at 90 rom on a bad day and 110 on good days. Im still working on rom. I had an appointment with the PA today and he has released me from the brace. He seemed excited that i was sitting there with with my knee at 90. He asked me to raise my leg so i did with no lag. he seemed impressed by that and the muscle redeveloping in the quad area. Ok here is the big moment. He actually ordered me up some PT!! lol.. Im pretty excited about PT because Ive been reading all the postings on hereabout people starting PT at 3 to 8 weeks post op. Ive been going hard with the home stuff so im sure that was a difference maker. Oh and dont forget the pool 3 to 4 times a week.  I still cant run and walk down steps without using rails.. Things are moving along slowly and Im ok with that because i cant risk not recovering 100%.. My career as a police officer and army reserves depend on it.. good job everybody and as usual "Stay in the fight"

 

Steve

week 10

Due to be signed off tomorrow, and to start physio.

I've already ditched the brace. Had first proper shower standing up on both feet, for the first time in 10 weeks. Came out in a rash - the shock of the clean.

Been walking on TWO FEET without support for a few days! Not far, then back to one crutch and sometimes two.

In the morning the leg feels almost normal but by evening I'm tired and the leg goes puffy and aches. Not pains just aches and tired feeling. Went up and down some stairs several times today for the first time. Slowly and carefully with 2 crutches.

So I'm getting there - as we all will - some faster some slower. Though there have been depressing days when things have felt unchanging for too long.

Eight weeks post op. Visit to OS this am. Removed cast!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yea!!!! What a great feeling. But need to wear a leg immobilizer while upright and moving. Can put weight on leg while using crutches or walker. Most of time supposed to be sitting with leg extended doing knee lifts. At 60 degrees. Also work knee cap back and forth and knead area around knee to soften scar tissue.

And, for the first time, can fire quad very slightly while sitting. Also learned to fire hamstring and quad at same time, but only slightly.

Next visit in two weeks. ROM check; etc.

My husband had his 6 week post op visit to the Surgeon who has told him to get rid of his brace except for venturing outside, eg shopping.  He won't need to wear it at home anymore, (he just wears a support stocking over the knee),  which I might add he & I are very happy about!!  

 

The same week he had his 1st visit to the physiotherapist who confers with the Dr about losing the brace because it inhibits and delays the progress of getting the brain to work with the leg.  He has been given home exercises to start the quad muscles firing and goes back in a week.  We're taking the slowly, slowly, but progressive,  approach and feel very confident with our physio guy as he has good background credentials (ex Olympian and now treats current Olympians).  Even with his extensive background of 'fixing' athletes  etc., he said this injury is very rare.  There are lots of other tendons to tear/sever, but the quad is not a common occurance - so you're all a rare breed - although a title you're rather not have.

 

The progress has been fantastic even in only a few days.  Two weeks ago he couldn't even think about using crutches (he had a walking frame), but now he's moving freely with crutches, finally weightbearing , and has even walked 2/3 steps, albeit gingerly, without aids.  He can now also lift his ankle off the bed, and it doesn't feel like a lump of wood.  He is very well aware there is still a loooonnnggg way to go but it's good for the morale to see and feel changes and that things can improve.  Next step is to get into the water for some hydrotheraphy,..... next week we'll start that for sure, ..    and I've promised him that I won't push him under just to see how long it takes for him to get to the top - but he's not convinced!!

 

I relay ('cause he's usually busy on his work computer!) some of the comments on this blog about problems other people have experienced, ie different pains, annoyances, slow/fast progress.  It's all very informative and puts our minds at ease.  Thank you.

 

Good luck to everyone else with their recovery - this is a real bummer of an injury, and I do sympathise.

10 weeks - I got signed off yesterday so it no more doctors, just physio.

Walking improving much faster than I expected. Hardly 2 weeks since my weak foot first touched the ground! Don't need crutches any more except when I get tired - or coming down stairs - going up is fine (with care). Can't walk far though, or lift weights, but it's coming along!

8 months Post Op.

 

They say that every journey begins with the first step.  Mine began with a slip and fall on a golf course October 6th 2011.  The result was a total rupture of my left quad. Since then my recovery has echoed many of the others.  I have followed all of your progress for the past 8 months thanks to this forum. 

 

I am a retired Law Enforcement Officer, 60 years old, living in Ontario Canada.  But first I want to thank my wife and children for seeing me through this nightmare.  Thankfully my wife was there to nurse me back to health and I was finally released from the brace on January 5th 2012.  I couldn't have done it without her.  My children were there to help around the house, take up and down Christmas lights and even carry things up and down the stairs.  Thank you to them all  !!!!

 

So, my recovery has been slow probably because my OS requested the hinged full leg brace be on for three months.  Thankfully I never experienced ANY pain and was able to put full weight on my injured leg right from the beginning.  They say its was because of the total rupture that I never experienced the pain like the others.  I suffered through 2 leg braces because the Velcro straps would loose their adhesive function.

 

Thanks to my Physiotherapy Team I was able to achieve 90 degrees of ROM by Christmas.  I still go to physio every second day for massage, ultrasound, and stretching.  I work out on the weights and can  press 180 lbs 10 times for three reps on my injured leg.  My ROM is in excess of 140 degrees.  I still have stiffness in my knee and swelling when I work it to hard.  Walking up stairs has become easier but going down is still a challenge.  I get popping in my knee but are working on having that resolved. 

 

So, I drove home from the golf course last October after my playing partners dropped be off at my car.  Trying to get into the drivers seat resulted in me falling down again and yelling out for help.  The club employee helped me into my car and I drove 1/2 hour home.  The club gave me a rain cheque for 9 holes...funny!  No one could have known the type of injury that occurred.

 

I play golf now once or twice a week.  I wear a knee brace for support, probably more for emotional security while playing. My golf game hasn't suffered that much with the exception of my putting.   

 

People constantly remark how well my recovery has gone.  They say that I'm walking well again but only we "Quad Rippers" know that every step we take is a constant reminder of the accident that we suffered.  I won't play the golf course where I suffered my accident again, its a memory that I would rather not relive.

 

I will continue to read this forum every day and I hope that my message will bring some encouragement to others who have recently had this terrible accident.  They say that if I had a hip AND a knee replacement my recovery would have come around quicker.  That's an indication how serious your injuries are.   

 

Keep your spirits up and I have a rain cheque for 9 holes at Tyendaga if anyone is interested.

 

Frank

Another Update.

I am 7 1/2 months post surgery.  I will have my last PT session this coming Wednesday.

Good News Items:

Had my first kite boarding session last week.  Light wind, and flat water. Was out for 45 minutes.  Kind of the equivalent of making some easy turns on an intermediate groomer.  It was great to hear and feel the water running past the board again.  Everything felt good before during and after the session.

ROM of knee is 85 % or so of the uninjured leg.  I cannot pull my ankle to my glute but feel it is a reasonable goal over the next 6 - 8 weeks.

Strength continues to improve.  I can now do a 1 legged rise out of a seated position in a normal height chair.  This is not easy for me with the uninjured leg so I view this as significant.

I am enjoying cycling and I can now handle 60 to 90 minute sessions on flat to gently rolling terrain without bringing on swelling or undue soreness. Riding pace is improving as well.

Bad News Items:

I am still walking with a bit of a limp, especially down any sort of incline.  Normal everyday walking is not as fluid as it should be.

Walking up stairs is still an effort and the difference in strength between the two legs is noticeable.

Walking down stairs requires concentration and is not at all fluid.

Running is still out.  Even short running sessions and jumping drills result in swelling, soreness and weakness.  I have been a runner for a long time and it has always been a fairly natural activity for me. I hope that my last run was not the one in August of 2011 where sustained the injury. 

Had my Quad Tendon repair surgery 4 days ago and am already bored... , after ready through these postings it's clear that I've still got a long way to go.

 

My injury wasn't nearly as interesting as most of those posted.  I had my second knee surgery on April 16 (left knee).  Was doing so well with my recovery and had completed my 6 wk check-up with flying colors.  The following Sunday, I took a step and WOW!  Terrible pain that nearly drove me to the ground.  Also resulted in a long string of very colorful expletives that I'm glad the grandkids didn't hear!

 

Unfortunately, this happend when I was on my way to see my husband in the hospital.  He had just been admitted with side effects from radiation therapy received some months ago.  We spent the next week with him the hospital and me wearing an old knee brace (just an Ace bandage type).  When we were finally able to get home, I was able to contact my Ortho surgeon and get an opinion on what I'd done.  I can't tell  you how grateful I was that this could, in fact, be fixed.....! He put me into the surgery the next day.

 

So here I am, wearing my brace and restricted to 30 degrees of motion.  Have been sleeping in the darn thing but hope that might change in a week or two. Will see the surgeon again on 10 days and we'll see what happens next.  Probably some gentle PT to get me started back toward recovery of my flexibility and strength.... am I being too optomistic about how soon that will happen?

 

I'm starting to realize that knee replacement surgery was a "piece of cake" compared to this injury.... Not how I wanted to be spending my summer.

 

Good luck and good recovery to all. 

Texasrancher: Sorry for your double-whammy. As far as when your doctor will allow PT, mine made me wait 6 weeks before I could start PT. I have read some posts here though where the docs allowed PT to start earlier. I think most want things to heal solid before you start PT though. My doc said that meant six weeks in the leg brace, locked in the straight position.

Your comments remind me of the emotional trauma this injury causes. I found that I had to quit replaying the moment of the injury in my head, because it caused me such turmoil. I suspect none of us will ever forget the moment of our injury though. Let's just hope that the rawness of it eases over time. 

Hi Texasranch, you sure are having a tough time.  I'm personally not a victim of this nasty injury - my husband had that joy!  He is nearly 7 weeks post-op and was very pleased to get rid of the brace last week (6 weeks in a straight position), but like Tomnorths comment our Surgeon was also adamant that the brace stays on for the 6 weeks with minimal weightbearing, and to use it now only when venturing outside the house, eg shopping etc.,  

 

The transformation in just one week has been terrific, with a few exercises from the Physiotherapist, a little confidence has developed and is now weightbearing, using crutches instead of a walking frame, and getting around really well.  I can now leave his side (first time in 7 weeks) knowing he can atleast get in and out of bed without assistance/leg on and off a stool. 

 

But initally it was the mental boredom that had me worried.  Being an Engineer he is always doing things - thankfully we could set up a comfortable computer station so atleast he had something to do.  He's doesn't read novels, not interested in board games/cards, doesn't do crosswords and the like.  Being a Consultant there wasn't any of his 'work' to get his teeth stuck into.    But, with a bit of humour and friends visiting with a beer,  we got through the 6 weeks.  Now he has some Engineering work to do and can do it from home,  he's back in his element.

 

All I can say is 'try' (a huge word I know), to be patient and not to hurry the mother nature healing because you could come unstuck if it doesn't have time to mend properly before trying to bend it.....that was my biggest fear, having the darn thing rip again before time. 

 

Sleeping with brace was really annoying so we stuck a pillow between us in bed for two reasons:  1.  it provided a buffer between us so I didn't accidentally hit the leg.  2. he could bend and put his good leg on the pillow when lying on his side avoiding touching the brace.   So had two positions that made him fairly comfortable.  Sleeping flat on his back and on one side atleast.

 

Good luck and hope to read further posts that you and your husband are getting along ok.

Thanks everyone for the useful information. I found this thread a little after my surgery and has helped me a lot!

 

Injury 4/15/2012 - It was late at night, raining and my car had broken down in the middle of the road. While pushing the car I slipped and fell directly on my left knee. At first I didn't know what happened. I got up from the ground and started limping around trying to mend my car. I realized something was wrong but it wasn't until a few hours later did I decide to go to the ER.

 

The ER was not much help, they took a few x-rays but didn't really give me much information. They gave me a knee immobilizer, crutches, and sent me home saying that bones weren't broken and I just had a strain in my quad. At this time I was in a lot of pain, my quads were burning. Later I received a call from the ER and had asked me to return saying that I may have a dislocated patella. After returning to the ER  a resident tried to pop my kneecap in place but couldn't. This worried me and eventually a orthopedic surgeon resident told me that I may have a quad tendon rupture.

 

Surgery 4/25/2012 - Before the surgery I went to a orthopedic surgeon who immediately knew that it was a quad tendon rupture. Surgery took around 1.5 hours. I didn't have an MRI before the surgery so I didn't know the extent of the repair until after it was completed. The surgeon had said it was a full rupture. They gave me general anesthesia and a local nerve block for pain. I woke up with a blesdoe brace locked in extension and feeling groggy. After a few hours in the hospital I was sent home.

 

The first 3 weeks were really tough. It was hard for me to get used to walking around with my leg locked in extension. Also I was in a lot of pain after surgery. At first I was prescribed with nyucenta which did not help at all. I was written another prescription for oxycodone which helped a lot. I was able to get off pain killer a few days after surgery.  2nd week I was given antibiotics to fight off a potential infection at the incision site. On the 3rd week the orthopedic surgeon removed the staples from my knee, and told me that I should begin PT.

 

I started PT with around 30 degrees ROM, brace set to 30 degrees and walking around with crutches. I am now at 95 degree ROM, brace set at 110 degree and walking with a cane. I am able to walk without the cane but I still have it in my hand just in case I lost stability. During PT I have been walking around without brace which is scary, my knee feels weak and I get nervous. I guess it will take some time to get stronger.

 

It will be 8 weeks since my surgery this week. I have an appointment this week with the orthopedic surgeon and can't wait to see what he has to say. My PT said that they may cut me loose from my brace, which would be nice.

Edited by jasonthomas - 6/18/12 at 12:02am

Thank you, tomnorth and Jemma for your responses and information. It really helps to "talk" to others who have walked the same path. 

 

This site is an amazing resource and I appreciate that is it available.  Reading through nearly 4 years of messages on injury/surgery/recovery/PT/moving on, has helped me understand that I have a long road ahead.  I do much better with information and perspective - keeps me from making poor decisions (like removing my brace or walking without my "cage"). Well, actually, I did that yesterday and it was pretty stupid.....  Think I was still in a bit of denial.  Knee surgery was so easy, compared to this.  After 4-5 days, I was walking (carefully) without any assistance.  Started my PT three days after surgery, etc, etc, etc....  Well, that isn't the case now, is it? 

 

Now at 6 days post surgery and, thankfully, I am not having pain just a little ache.  Was fortunate, after surgery, in that excellent pain management was available to me and I did spend one night in the hospital.  Think my Ortho surgeon may have "tweaked" things to make that happen as one of the nurses mentioned that I was a Day Surgery patient....  

 

Am spending my first day on my own and have made a resolution - no more being stupid, no more denial. My husband is on his way to out-patient treatment for his post radiation issues and having to do that alone, since I can't drive/ride, yet. Things are pretty complex to manage and I simply can't put myself at additional risk. So, a textbook recovery for me.  I will do what the surgeon says, take as much time as it requires, be patient, play computer games (which I enjoy), and take up knitting again.  Guess I know what the family will be getting for the next several holidays! 

 

We have a BIG family reunion happening the first weekend of July.  I will behave and I will be careful and I will take advantage of all the assistance my family makes available to me- and they would carry me from place to place, if they needed to! 

 

So, again, thanks to EpiSki for this site and I look forward to continued help, here, during my recovery and I'll stay in touch about how I'm doing. 

Mountaingirl

 

I am also about one year out, a 59 year old male. I was walking on the beach and came to some big rocks. Was walking on the rocks, slipped on one side of a small stream and my left foor jammed the other side. I was in immense pain from a full rupture. I still have some aches and pain after sitting long times usually. Stairs are also hard, especially going down. I haven't flown since my accident, not sure about that pain. My ROM is good, walking is usually good, sometimes knee feels like it will give out(uneven ground especially), but have always caught myself. I also walk a bit slower than I used to, not sure why. Going back to the Oregon Coast in August, probably will stay off the rocks, also need to thank the volunteer firemen that carried me a mile off the beach. My knee also still swells after using it all day. Hope the pain subsides for you as time passes.

Edited by beachcomber - 6/18/12 at 9:27am

Now at ten and a half weeks post surgery. PT is going really well. Range of motion is at about 130°. People say my walking looks normal. But, you and I know it's not. I can do both up and down stairs fairly easily with just a little touch on the rail. Now that the swelling has gone down considerably just an occasional buckle at the knee while walking. My only real pain occurs when going upstairs, or other actions that put pressure on the front of my foot. The pain is at both the right and left sides. I think this too is a factor of the swelling going down and different knee area structures rubbing against each other. My PT suggested during stretching of both the hamstring and Quad to see if this improves that problem.

I am able to ride my mountain bike easily. The only problem is the pressure on my knee when getting on or off. I'm trying to be very careful and not fall of course, which isn't necessarily my typical mountain bike style. My last ride was for an hour and a half. No problem with Post ride swelling or pain. I'm hopeful this will really speed the quad strength recovering. I'm also working at strengthening at the gym.

It still is amazing to me how fast the recovery progresses once the knee brace is released at around six weeks, and then remove several weeks later. And, it also seems true that we all end up in about the same place at 10 to 12 weeks no matter what our doctors chose as the initial process of recovery (weight or no weight on injured leg; six weeks in a straight brace or some range of motion after three weeks).

Agree. Walking improving very quickly. I have less pain than you by the sounds of it, but my leg feels rubbery and weak. Haven't got back on my bike yet - a bit nervous about falling towards the bad leg side. I guess I'll have to just do it, but without clips or SPDs. Driving OK, I could probably have started it a lot sooner. Better late than never.

Skip,

 

In terms of biking you may want to consider a trainer to put your bike on ( I set mine up outside so that I could be riding "outside" ). On the trainer, you will not have to worry. Falling to the injured leg can have pretty nasty consequences.  I fell down my stairs 8 weeks post op and got to enjoy another surgery and the second time the recovery is much slower ( yes, its hard to believe ).  Be careful out there.

7 weeks Post Op today.  Had 1st PT appt. yesterday.  Started the session at 55 ROM end of session 60 ROM.  I had a decent headstart becuase I was walking with the brace at 120 degress for about 3 weeks.  This assisted with minmizing the atrophy and gave me some rnage of motion.  I know everybody seems to get to 90+ ROM at 9-12 weeks.  I would be intersted in feedback from this group as to how much time you spent at home re-habbing yourself in the 6-12 week timeframe; any exercise you can do before you can get on a staionary bike.  PT suggested Quad squeezes, rolled up towel under the leg, good leg bent, squeeze and hold bad leg in locked psotion fro 10 seconds.  Do this exercise until fatuigued (10-20 minutes).  Next a heel slide or smilar or exercise on exercise ball (20-30) reps.  Last, sitting with bad leg having over table or bed, place good leg over bad leg and stretch the bad leg back towards bed/table.  (1 minute 6-8 times per day)  Does anybody have any other good stretching or other exercise fro this early satge?, and how much time do you spend at home each day with these type of exercioses fro optimun results? I know everybody is different, just trying to get an idea, Thanks

Regarding the highlighted stretch above, I started out putting the good leg behind the bad and providing some resistance with the good leg while the bad leg tried to pull the good leg in. This was a great stretch. I would do this a couple times a day for 5 minutes at a time. The other stretch I found to be really great was to lay on my back in bed and wrap a strap around the foot on my bad leg. I then would hold one end of the strap in each hand. I would first pull my leg in as far as I could by my leg power and then pull on the straps with both hands to get the leg stretched even more. I found this stretch to be really effective. I would do this once or twice a day for five minutes at a time.

11 weeks - waiting to start physio next week.

I've done no specific exercises at all except improving ROM by pulling my leg up when in bed on my side and leaving it as tight as I could without it hurting. Was at 120 by week 8, nearly full range now. I've been doing a lot of walking though, especially since I removed the splint. It seems self limiting - too much and I have to have half a day off resting with my leg up.

I've got a feeling that if I did more exercise like PDub's above, I'd just end up having to spend more time in between resting!

Maybe the physio is going to make me try harder next week.

Hi fellow quadrippers. This is my first posting although I've been  reading the posts for a few weeks. I'm 5+ from a complete quad rupture surgery. I would like to thank everyone who has posted their experiences and thoughts. One observation is the complete range of post-op therapy. Although everyone seems to get to the same point eventually, I don't think anyone had a re-rupture from early ROM. Anyway here is my experience: While visiting my daughter I fell backwards off the third step of stairway and landed on a hardwood floor. Had surgery the next day at Beaumont hospital near her house. Surgery went well and went home with immobilizer. I live two hours away from OS and went back for 2 and 4 week post-op checks. At 4 weeks appt he looked at knee for 30 seconds and said looks good see you in two weeks. After I said wait I have some questions. He got mad and seemed put out that I wanted to know how long I'd be in immobilizer and when to start PT. Said I'd be at 0 until week 8 and then see about PT. So I got a new OS near my home. Boy what a difference!! Saw him Tuesday. He looked at the knee said to bend it. This was scary as I was told to not bend it for 8 weeks. But I did and it went to about 45 degrees. Then he said that some OS just get in the way of healing. Showed me the heel slide, quad tightening, and straight leg extension and lift. Said to do this on my own and PT only if needed later. Said I could leave brace off around the house and sleeping. What a refreshing difference from the arrogant surgeon to someone who wanted to take the time to explain and talk with me. Seems like a get out of jail card. What I'd like to ask is does this sound ok? Are there any other exercises I can do? Thanks

brew 22

 

Sounds like your second opinion ortho is the "protect rom early guy" there are a lot of others on here that used the same same concept with no problems. My orhto was was like your 1st. he protected the injury with little flexion in the brace (30-40 6 weeks) and every week i increased the brace 10 degrees. I was allowed full weight bearing right after surgery. I didnt start PT until 12 weeks. Im at 14 weeks with 100 rom and weight training. walking 2-3 miles a day and a lot of swimming.

 

pdub

 

one of my favorite stretches is lie down on your stomach with a strap around your ankle, pull your leg towards your head getting a real good quad stretch. works for me..