Some of you know I had the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in my left knee reconstructed last Thursday. Today the dressings came off so I decided to show off my scars.
There were a lot of layers to unwrap! From the outside in...immobilizer (an almost full leg brace that well, immobilizes), ACE bandage, white gauzy wrap, dressing, and "tape" which I guess they used instead of stitches or staples.
Right leg. Click photo to view left leg.For the faint of heart or generally squeamish, I took pity on you. The photo to the right is of my right leg...if you want to see the "gore," click away. But honestly, it's not that bad.
The surgery was done arthroscopically resulting in five small incisions rather than one large incision from the top of the knee to the bottom. A lot of the bruising was caused by swelling that drained from the knee to the shin. I also have a nice long narrow bruise along the upper back of my leg caused by the immobilizer pushing against it while elevated.
The photo was taken before I had a chance to clean up...not that it made a lot of difference in appearance. The yellow stuff isn't coming off and the skin is too sensitive to scrub. I'm also still wearing my surgeon's initials which he used to mark which leg was being operated on during the pre-op check-in. The white fluff is part of the gauzy wrap. You can see more of the wrap at the top of the 2nd photo.
The general nitty gritty details of the surgery itself can be found here. I had an allograft. I'm not sure what kind of tendon was used. using the extensor hallucis longus tendon, the tendon that runs from the big toe up the leg.
I'm able to hobble short distances without crutches. I get to ditch the immobilizer and use an ACE bandage which is much more comfortable! Still on pain meds (Hydroco) and taking it easy by catching up on my recorded programs. I'm starting to work on my exercises which are super easy. Will work from home most of next week with a follow-up visit to the surgeon on Monday, May 2.
Two totally awesome ladies from church tag-teamed to "move-in" with me for the first 48-hours after surgery. Another ordered me a pizza from Dominoes and had it delivered to my apt yesterday. Others kept in touch through email/messaging to check in on me from time to time. Finally Chippy came over today to help me get the dressings off and stand by the tub fetching the various items I needed. Thanks guys!! You've helped make the first days of recovery so much easier. I appreciate it!
