TP HCMMr. Dat, 24 years old, repeatedly ruptured two cruciate ligaments over several months due to lack of treatment, causing loose knee joints and difficulty walking.
Mr. Dat, living in Dong Nai, ruptured his cruciate ligament 5 months ago while playing soccer. The local doctor prescribed surgery. He was afraid of surgery so he refused, but continued to live and exercise, recently tearing his anterior cruciate ligament.
On April 17, M.D. Nguyen Van Luu, Center for Orthopedics, Tam Anh General Hospital, Ho Chi Minh City, said the patient had torn two of the four knee ligaments, but not other structures such as cartilage. The meniscus and articular cartilage have not been damaged. The patient was assigned to reconstruct both the anterior and posterior cruciate ligaments with autologous tendons using the all in side technique.
The doctor uses a tendon in another location on the body as a bridge to attach the two broken ends of the ligament together. This method preserves blood vessels and remaining nerve receptors in the ligament root. Thanks to that, after surgery, the tendon graft recovers sooner and quickly becomes part of the natural ligament. Because there are still nerve receptors in the ligament base, when the patient returns to sports, feeling in the knee joint will recover almost completely.
Doctor Luu (right) operates on a patient. Illustration: Tam Anh General Hospital
According to Dr. Luu, “all in side” is an endoscopic, minimally invasive ligament reconstruction technique that helps minimize the risk of infection and reduces pain during and after surgery. Thanks to that, patients can start physical therapy early and quickly restore mobility.
With ligament reconstruction surgery, rehabilitation plays a very important role. Specialized movements are divided into monthly schedules, helping to protect the tendon graft and restore maximum ligament function, reducing the risk of ligament re-rupture. Patients need to ensure strict compliance with the physical therapist’s instructions during exercise.
The second day after surgery, Mr. Dat could bend and stretch his knee comfortably and walk lightly. The doctor predicts that after two weeks, the patient will be able to bend the knee about 100 degrees; After 6 months, you can exercise again at medium intensity; From the 9th month, you can play light sports.
The patient walks without crutches and is ready to be discharged from the hospital. Image: Tam Anh General Hospital
The knee joint has 4 ligaments: the anterior cruciate, posterior cruciate, internal and external ligaments. These ligaments connect the femur to the bones in the lower leg, helping to stabilize the knee joint, preventing abnormal movements of the bones.
Dr. Luu recommends that in case of ligament rupture, especially multiple ligament rupture after a sports injury or traffic accident, the patient should go for examination and treatment as soon as possible. Delay in treatment can cause loss of old ligament roots, blood vessels and nerve receptors. Patients also face the risk of meniscus tears, articular cartilage damage, promoting early development of osteoarthritis; Knee joint laxity, muscle atrophy, difficulty in rehabilitation after surgery.