{"id":7448,"date":"2019-06-28T06:47:15","date_gmt":"2019-06-28T06:47:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/simplyhealth.today\/?p=7448"},"modified":"2021-04-14T18:40:29","modified_gmt":"2021-04-14T18:40:29","slug":"14-factors-that-put-you-at-higher-risk-of-acl-tear","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/simplyhealth.today\/14-factors-that-put-you-at-higher-risk-of-acl-tear\/","title":{"rendered":"14 Factors That Put You at Higher Risk of ACL Tear"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Every year, more than 250,000 Americans experience an ACL tear. This painful injury to the knee ligaments can have varying degrees of severity. Some patients may heal from minor damage, without the need for surgery<\/a>. The resting period for a torn ACL can be anywhere between four to six weeks, depending on the extent of the injury.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, it’s more common for severe tears to occur. Severe damage reduces the structural integrity of the knee after it heals from the injury. As a result, the patient is more prone to dislocations from minor events, such as suddenly changing direction while walking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Orthopedic surgeons repair ACL ligaments using tissue grafted from your hamstring. Most patients experience a positive outcome from their operation and return to normal knee function within eight to 12-weeks after the surgery. Patients must undergo extensive physiotherapy to recover knee mobility post-surgery., Failing to rehabilitate the ligaments correctly may result in posture or walking problems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are eight factors that place you at a high risk of an ACL tear.
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1. Competing in Sports<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

If you spend most of your time in the office or playing video games at home in your spare time \u2013 then the chances are that you aren’t going to experience an ACL tear anytime soon. Athletes and sportspeople are the highest risk group for incurring an ACL tear. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sports like football, ice hockey, and lacrosse all involve sudden changes in direction. Cutting, pivoting, and sudden deceleration, are all movements that place pressure on the ACL from an unusual angle. If the foot remains planted during the action, due to cleats sticking into the ground for example \u2013 then the ACL may experience a shearing force that tears the ligament.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ACL tears often occur alongside other knee injuries in the same accident. Other injuries may include meniscus <\/a>tears and damage to the MCL as well. Athletes and sports people need to take preventative measures to avoid injury. Warming up correctly and the use of supportive knee sleeves will reduce the chances of damage occurring.
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2. Females are at Higher Risk<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Studies show that females experience ACL tears more often than men. According to research, women are four to six times more likely to endure an ACL tear than men who compete in the same sports. More than 5-percent of all female athletes and sportspeople experience the injury during their training or competition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On rare occurrences, it’s possible to injure your ACL doing a random task, like getting out of the car or slipping on a patch of ice on the sidewalk. However, the reason why females are at higher risk comes down to genetics. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Women have wider hips than men, and their knees face at a more acute angle to the feet than men. Therefore, there is more imbalance in the knee structure of women than men.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a result, women are more likely to experience an ACL tear, due to genetic <\/a>factors that increase their risk of these types of injuries.
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3. Previous Ligament Injury<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Some individuals who experience a low-grade ACL injury, don’t require surgery <\/a>to repair the tendon. Given enough time and rest, the ligament slowly returns to health. In some cases, it may take up to 6-weeks for the swelling and discomfort in the joint to dissipate. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Patients with injuries to any of the ligaments in the knee can expect to develop significant signs of swelling, and the edema may spread toward the ankle as well. After the recovery period, the patient’s ligament will not have the same strength and resilience as before the injury. In most cases, the ligament weakens, and studies show that the patient is 15-percent more likely to incur further damage to the ACL.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Repetitive trauma to the ligament eventually degrades the strength of the fibers in the ligament, and the patient experiences a complete tear of the tendon. It’s unclear how many sprains may result in a complete laceration, as the results differ from person to person.
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4. Trauma to the Outside of the Knee<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

ACL injuries occur when there is an impact or shock to the outside the knee while it is in the hyperextended position. Under normal circumstances, the ACL will allow the knee to hyperextend beyond the meeting of the tibia. In most cases, this movement is not an issue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, when the loaded joint comes under direct pressure from an impact on the outside of the joint, moving toward the inside, then the ACL may experience a tear \u2013 especially if the athlete suffers a twisting movement while their foot remains planted. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When an athlete receives an ACL tear due to trauma <\/a>to the outside of the knee, it may also accompany other ligament problems as well. It’s not uncommon for athletes to tear the MCL, and damage the meniscus as a result of these types of injuries. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Depending on the extent of your injury, your doctor may advise you to take time to let the swelling subside before they make a diagnosis.
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5. Age<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

While an ACL tear can occur at any age<\/a>, it’s more inclined to happen to people who are between the ages of 15 and 45-years old. People in this age group tend to live more active lifestyles than people over the age of 45. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

People over the age of 45-years old are also less likely to take part in the activities that could result in the development of an ACL tear. Combat, contact, and extreme sports all lose their interest to men and women as they start to mature and raise a family.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Young people under the age of 15-years old are also less likely to develop an injury that would result in an ACL tear. Young people have supple tendons, allowing them to absorb the impact of injuries better than adults. Young people also lack the same levels of strength and skill in sports that may result in the occurrence of a severe injury like an ACL tear.
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6. Muscular Imbalances<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The ligaments in the knee, act as support structures to prevent the joint from moving in the wrong direction. However, muscular imbalances<\/a> can reduce the strength of the joint, exposing the affected individual to a higher risk of developing ligament tears. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

An excellent example of muscular imbalances occurs in women. Women tend to have overly developed quadriceps, the muscles at the front of the things. As a result, they place inward pressure on the knees, reducing the structural integrity of the joint, while exposing the ligaments to injury.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Structural imbalances in the feet and ankles also play a role in the degradation of the knee joint. People who have flat feet lose the support of the arch, causing their ankles to sag toward the ground on the inside of the foot. As a result, the knees bow inward and place pressure on the knee joint. If you have flat feet, visit your podiatrist for shoe inserts that provide arch support to your feet.
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7. Overtraining<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

As an athlete, you have a limit on the progression of your training by the time it takes you to recover between workouts. Athletes that endure long daily training sessions build their tolerance to their physical output over the course of spending decades practicing their chosen discipline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, regardless of how much skill you have in your sport or activity, you can only do so much work before your nervous system starts to wear out. When the CNS starts to experience fatigue, you lose fine adjustments in your motor skills that may not seem apparent in everyday activities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, when it comes to the sports field, those minor differences can have severe <\/a>consequences. When the nervous system does not work efficiently, the motor mistakes made by the athlete can result in them placing their foot wrong or making some biomechanical error that results in a knee injury. Always rest and recover after training and competition before you get back to your next workout.
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8. Not Warming Up<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

One of the most significant contributing factors to the development of an ACL tear is not warming up before activity. When our ligaments and muscles are cold, it takes some time to push blood through the muscles and warm up the tissues. It’s for this reason that most athletes stretch and warm-up before their training.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, there may be times when you might participate in a random activity where you don’t warm up properly beforehand. Let’s say you are out in the yard with your son, and he kicks you a soccer ball. You fade right to take a pass, and the sudden direction change causes your knee to twist, resulting in a tear to the ACL that sends you plummeting toward the ground. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Warming up with a light stretch and knee bends is an excellent way to avoid knee injury. Stand with your ankles <\/a>and knees together. Bend slightly at the knees and rotate the joint in a clockwise motion for 20-circles, then repeat in the other direction.
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