 Poster: A snowHead
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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When I did mine, which was mid March I had the op on the 4th May so about 8 weeks.
From what I recall there are basically 2 options: Have the op immediately or wait for the swelling to go down. During my wait I was advised to and rebuild some strength in the leg to help with post op rehab.
To be honest my choice would be to wait for the NHS appointment and do some pre-hab while waiting.
The only downside is that makes 2026/27 skiing a little delayed but depending on age, fitness and luck you could be skiing by the January - I skied at a dryslope and Dome in the September and Tignes in the November although that would not be for everyone.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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@Daishan, Have you considered not having the surgery? My son skied almost every ski day for five years without an ACL and didn't know it. When it came up in a scan that it wasn't there, he decided that he hadn't missed it, so why bother risking surgery? He cycles over 100 miles per week with never a murmur from the knee.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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It's been 3 weeks since the accident and I can't fully trust the leg to always take my full weight, at least not enough for real off piste skiing, so I don't think leaving it is an option.
I've got a physio appointment tomorrow so will ask about that and strength building exercises.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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@Daishan, I have pondered the question of leaving it but I'm basically not super keen to be in the gym exercising and maintaining strength. I did mine in 2013 at about age 47 so that's given 13 years of skiing including passing some tech exams and a lot of back country.
I think for me it was probably the right decision. But the rehab was a killer and in reality it took 3 years to get everything back.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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@Daishan, if you're considering private I would be looking at surgeons closer to home.
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My Daughter blew her ACL (yeah, 2 kids with blown ACLs) snowboarding and had the surgery in the UK. (Switzerland was an option). 8yrs later, she says that she still doesn't fully trust it.
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Jonathan Bell. Wimbledon Clinics
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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@holidayloverxx, +1, https://jonathanbell.co.uk/ features a skier on the home page! He even organises back to skiing days for his patients
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@munich_irish, yes. I went on one on 2013
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Having blown my ACL playing rugby when I was living abroad in a fairly undeveloped place, I didn’t really have the option of getting it fixed straight away. The advice at the time was to build my legs up as much as possible:
a) to get back to playing sport and exercising without an ACL, and
b) so that when I eventually did have surgery, recovery would be quicker.
It was excellent advice. I managed to play football for about a year or so without an ACL. After moving back to the UK, I had reconstruction (NHS, but in a private hospital – very much the patient-choice era), and I was back playing badminton and football within roughly nine months.
Didn’t ski on it for a good few years afterwards – circumstances, but I’ve never felt it on the slopes. These days I get the odd twinge in the knee generally doing day to day things though that’s probably more about mileage than the ligament itself.
Interestingly, the only instability I ever felt when I didn’t have the ACL was during lazy normal movements – for example going downstairs and fully locking the leg out, when it would suddenly feel unstable. Anything with a bit of flex, where the muscles were engaged, was absolutely fine.
Out of curiosity I looked up my surgeon recently – he’s still practising in the Manchester area.
Last edited by snowHeads are a friendly bunch. on Tue 3-03-26 15:17; edited 1 time in total
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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And his wife is an ace physio, also specialising in knees.
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If around Birmingham, Marcus Green at Edgbaston Priory. Did a fab job for me.
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You know it makes sense.
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Thanks for all the advice and comments.
For those that don't know me I live in Lincolnshire, I'm a reasonably fit 41 year old male.
I'm not massively keen on going abroad but thought it was worth a look as they appear to be pretty good, but I wouldn't seriously consider it without some recommendations from trusted people.
£8k for going private is affordable but more than I'd like to spend.
I'm trying to work out how much total recovery time getting the surgery sooner might save?
If I start doing plenty of strength training now then get the surgery on the NHS in 18 months will the training offset some of the recovery time?
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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@Daishan, I’ve had both done and was skiing again at 6 months with full confidence coming back around 8 to 9 months.
You want a surgeon who does a high volume of ACL reconstructions.
If you’re already fit with strong legs, prehab probably won’t change the healing time of the graft, but it can make the early rehab smoother and help you hit strength milestones faster.
The key is being disciplined during rehab.
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Poster: A snowHead
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@Daishan, I'm lucky being in France (less lucky being 56, age makes a difference) => lots of physio before and after.
My physio, who is very experienced, reckons that the pre-hab is incredibly important and massively impacts the re-hab and results.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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@Daishan, I think you'll be paying more like £9 if going private. Some places say £8, but I could not find any local (south Manchester) and with a highly rated/experienced surgeon for that... On the plus side, excellent via Spire, in and out in a day... plus NHS waiting list was estimated at 50-weeks 
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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In terms of surgeons, def a knee specialist and one who is interested in sport. ACL repair is very common, but assessment for ‘active’ older people less so.
I’d echo the other comments on as much prehab as possible, find a good physio and take their advice.
In terms of timing, the surgeon will comment on whether there is too much swelling and thus need to wait… physio should also have an idea.
As for ‘do you need reconstruction’ , it really depends on your current and future needs. My surgeon said that there’s a big range in the extent to which any individual uses their acl… so anecdotes are not evidence!
You may also consider a good kneebrace ( eg donjoy armor) as an alternative…. But it does depend on what your actual injury is
Fwiw I’ve just torn my left acl, and also have some meniscus damage, local physio in tignes strongly discouraged further skiing unless ‘necessary’ ( so no more in Tignes, but I’m hoping to use my new brace for a bucket list trip to Utah) . Surgery when I’m back from that.
Oh, and i tore my right knee last year… so I’m used to the process now!
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