Posterior Cruciate Ligament or PCL is one of the important ligaments of the knee. A damaged PCL can make the knee joint unstable. PCL surgery is carried out to treat torn PCL or multiple torn ligaments, and unstable knee joint, when medicines and physical therapy do not work. Repair of Posterior cruciate ligament is generally not successful so it should be replaced with a new tissue graft.
Minimal Invasive PCL Reconstruction Surgery
In the PCL surgery an small incision is made and arthroscope (similar to an endoscope, has a camera and light source in it) is inserted to analyze the damaged PCL, then other incisions are made to insert instruments to replace the damaged PCL with a new tissue graft which is taken either from the body of the patient himself or from a deceased donor. The tissue graft is then attached to surrounding bone with staples to keep in position and then the incisions are sewn back.
Now with the use of arthroscope, PCL surgery can be performed by minimal invasive technique i.e. as oppose to open surgery small incisions are made and patient feels less pain, also recovery of the patient after the surgery is quicker.
Recovery Period
After the surgery crutches can be used for next 2-3 days after the surgery. Most of the patients can start walking in 2 weeks and can start running in 6weeks. These activities should be performed gradually and over exercise should not be done. An important aspect is rehabilitation program which can run for 6 to 12 months.
Rehabilitation Program
An essential part after the surgery is a detailed rehabilitation program which depends on the extent of injuries of patients and can go for 6-12 months to bring back the patient to his normal condition and to enable him to participate in sports activities. Physical therapy is started after 1 to 4 weeks after the surgery. This rehabilitation program helps to strengthen the knee and help the patient to control his movements.
PCL Injuries
There are four main ligaments in the knee joint which are responsible for the stability of the knee joint. Ligaments hold the bones and keep them together and stable. It is situated in the backside of the knee. Posterior cruciate ligament maintains the tibia in its position below the femur. PCL injury is not very common and generally it happens when there is powerful force on knee as in case of athletes/ sportsperson or during motor accidents. The common causes of PCL injuries are
- When there is a powerful impact on knee
- Extensive pulling or stretching of the ligaments.
Symptoms of Posterior Cruciate Ligament injury are-
- Patient feel pain after the injury and swelling may also be observed
- Stiffness in the knee
- Patient feels problem in walking
- Unstable knee
Dr. L. Tomar is doing regular Posterior Cruciate Ligament (PCL) procedures, using minimal invasive technology. Dr. L. Tomar is one of the best PCL reconstruction surgeons having vast expertise of managing complicated arthroscopic surgeries with the support of his experienced and skilled medical team & state of the art infrastructure at Max Balaji Hospital, Patparganj.
