Basketball is a very competitive sport that allows many teens the chance to showcase their skills and even get scholarships to college that they wouldn't have received otherwise. Unfortunately, an ACL tear can devastate their budding career unless orthopedic surgery is taken to prevent this issue from worsening. 

Why Basketball Players So Often Tear Their ACL

The ACL is an important ligament in the knee that helps to keep it strong and stable while a person competes in a sport. Unfortunately, this ligament is put under a lot of strain during various types of sports. For example, a basketball player who has to leap, stop suddenly, jump to shoot, or leap to grab a ball puts this ligament under heavy strain and may experience a slight tear or a complete rip.

If this happens, pain will shoot through the knee, and the teen is likely to collapse right on the basketball floor. Unfortunately, this likely means that they are going to struggle to stand or walk and, after recovery, may find it hard to compete in the same way that they did before on the court. Thankfully, orthopedic surgeries can help to repair this problem and restore much of a teen's mobility.

How Orthopedic Surgeries Help

Surgeries for an ACL tear focus on reconnecting the fibers in a way that helps them to heal together more fully. If left to heal on its own, the ligament may not connect properly and could be weakened to the point where another tear is inevitable. Thankfully, surgery can strengthen the ligament and let it heal in a way that other types of treatments cannot properly manage.

Recovery after surgery will require a teen basketball player to stay off the court for a while. Even surgery cannot speed up the healing process, and it can take months or even up to a year for the ligament to get back up to normal strength. But with the help of this treatment, the healing should go smoothly and minimize the risk of future tears in their knee.

The teen will need to be careful with how they treat their knee in the future, and they may need to visit an orthopedic specialist to ensure that the ligament isn't getting damaged without them realizing it. Another surgery may be necessary if minor damage occurs.

To learn more about orthopedic surgery, contact a physician in your area who can help.