ANTERIOR CRUCIATE LIGAMENT (ACL) RECONSTRUCTION
The ACL or Anterior Cruciate Ligament is a strong ligament located in the anterior, or front portion of the knee. It runs from the femur (thigh bone) to the tibia (leg bone) connecting these two bones together. The purpose of the ACL is to control the movement of the knee joint. It acts to limit side-to-side motion as well as prevents the knee from straightening beyond its normal range of motion. Injuries to the ACL can occur in a number of situations, including sports, and can be quite serious, requiring surgery.
No. These deeply discounted package prices are reserved for patients who self-pay in advance for surgery, in full.
Payment is due 14 calendar days prior to your surgery date. If after the cutoff, your account is not settled, your case must be postponed.
The typical interval between first request and surgery is about 30 days. This allows our surgeon’s staff to make all the arrangements, order lab and EKG testing (not included in the package) prepare your orders for surgery and aftercare, and find an opening in the surgeon’s scheduled block time.
In person and telehealth consultations are possible with the surgeon to whom your case is assigned. These usually occur within a week of your first contact with us.
Of course! Just call and ask. (435) 673-8080.
What’s Included:
Facility fee, graft and hardware costs, surgeon and assistant surgeon, and anesthesiologist. We also include the time in the recovery unit at no additional charge. Your initial visit and one post operative visit is also included in the package price.
Please be advised that if you decide not to follow through with surgery after the initial consultation and/or delay your procedure more than 6 weeks, you’ll have to update the consultation at a cost of $375.
What’s not included:
- Lab testing before and after the surgery, as needed
- Electrocardiogram (EKG) depending on age. If you had one elsewhere in the past 6 months and it read “normal”, we can forego this expense
- Imaging costs X-rays and MRIs can be obtained anywhere.
- Physical therapy services
- Medications you’ll need (oral or IV antibiotic infusions if an infection arises)
- Wound care
- Bracing supplies
- Additional doctor visits (a pre-operative visit with the surgeon, in person, and any required post-op follow ups after the suture removal to monitor your progress
- Additional surgical intervention if a complication arises
- Additional imaging or hospital care if a blood clot develops
Call your surgeon immediately and they will reschedule your case, if necessary.
You could develop a respiratory infection, a urinary tract infection, COVID, or some other condition that may necessitate postponement. There is no penalty when this happens.
Preparation for Surgery
- Medical Evaluation: Your surgeon will conduct a thorough evaluation, including physical exams, imaging tests like MRI, and a review of your medical history.
- Preoperative Instructions: Follow any specific instructions provided by your surgeon, such as physical therapy exercises to strengthen the muscles around your knee.
Discussion of Allograft and Autograft
- Allograft: Uses donor tissue for ACL reconstruction, offering shorter surgery time and no additional incisions. Risks include disease transmission and slower graft integration.
- Autograft: Utilizes your own tissue, typically from the patellar tendon, hamstring tendon, or quadriceps tendon, for faster integration and no disease transmission risk. However, it involves a longer surgery and additional recovery for the donor site.
Stopping Blood-Thinning Drugs
- Medication Management: If you are on blood-thinning medications, your doctor will instruct you on when to stop taking them, usually several days before surgery, to minimize the risk of excessive bleeding during the procedure.
- Supplements: Inform your doctor if you are taking supplements like fish oil, vitamin E, garlic, ginger, or ginkgo biloba, as these can also act as blood thinners and may need to be stopped before surgery.
Fasting Prior to Surgery
- Pre-Surgery Fasting: Fast for a specified period before surgery, usually starting at midnight the night before. No food or drink, including water, to reduce the risk of aspiration during anesthesia.
Having a Companion to Drive You Home
- Post-Surgery Transportation: Arrange for a responsible adult to drive you home after surgery. Anesthesia and pain medications can impair your ability to drive.
Post-Surgery Appointments
- Two-Week Appointment: Return to your surgeon to remove sutures.
- Six-Week Appointment: Check your progress and adjust your recovery plan as needed.
Physical Therapy
- Frequency: Attend physical therapy sessions 2-3 times per week.
- Duration and Goals: Follow the APTA protocol, which outlines the duration of physical therapy and recovery goals to regain strength, flexibility, and range of motion.
What to Expect Following ACL Surgery
- Pain: Some pain is normal after surgery.
- Restricted Activity: Activity will be restricted for several months.
- Walking with Crutches: You may need to walk with crutches for up to six weeks.
- Wearing a Knee Brace: A knee brace will be necessary for at least one week.
- Range of Motion: Expect to regain range of motion in your knee within a few weeks of surgery.
- Return to Sports: Athletes typically return to their sports within six to twelve months.
Risks for Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) Reconstruction
- Bleeding and Blood Clots: Surgical procedures carry the risk of bleeding and blood clot formation.
- Continued Knee Pain: Some patients may experience ongoing knee pain.
- Disease Transmission: If using an allograft from a cadaver, there is a small risk of disease transmission.
- Infection: There is a risk of infection at the surgical site.
- Knee Stiffness or Weakness: Post-surgery stiffness or weakness can occur.
- Loss of Range of Motion: Some patients may experience a loss of range of motion.
- Improper Healing: If the graft is rejected by your immune system, healing may be impaired.
Yes, and we’ll help you make all your arrangements.
- We have arrangements to try to obtain free flights through a non-profit volunteer pilot organization. We can do this with 10 days’ advance notice in most cases.
- We have discount codes for the Holiday Inn in town. This hotel is literally 1.5 miles from the surgery center and 2 miles from our clinic.
- We’ll arrange to send your after surgery medications to your home town pharmacy for pick up before you leave.
No problem, we can help with those plans as well. When you have an surgery with us, we’ll need to make sure you’ll be safe and comfortable after surgery. We’ll arrange cold compression therapy that requires an AC/DC adaptor/transformer and frequent stops to stretch and refill the ice reservoir on the road.
We’ll ask about the vehicle you’ll travel in to ensure you have a way to elevate and stretch out in the vehicle on the road while someone else does the driving.
In person and telehealth consultations are possible with the surgeon to whom your case is assigned. The initial visit is included in the surgical package and is valued at $375.
We can also obtain the flights from the volunteer pilot non profit if you’d like to come for initial and follow up visits in person. One follow up visit is included in the surgical package at a value of $175. Any additional visits are charged at the time of service to your credit or debit card.