This is one of the most common questions our physios get asked by patients who have ruptured their Anterior Cruciate Ligament. Every patient and circumstance is different. People under 40 years old, who plan to remain active- we usually recommend seeing a specialist knee surgeon to discuss options. ACL reconstruction surgery is a choice you make to help improve your lifestyle and quality of life for the future. ACL reconstruction surgery is not an emergency procedure and should never be rushed into.
A proportion of patients with ACL ruptures do remain high functioning without having ACL reconstruction surgery. These patients usually achieve this with high levels of rehab and exercise to ensure their knee strength, balance and proprioception is top notch. Another portion of patients who do not have ACL reconstruction are those who do not require their knees to do lots of twisting and turning movements- for the vast majority of day to day activities they will not notice a problem with their knee.
