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Posterior Cruciate Ligament Injury
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The posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) is a band of ligaments running at the back of the knee connecting the shinbone to the thighbone. It provides support to the knee joint while at the same time it keeps the tibia from moving too far back and away from the joint. Compared to the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), it is stronger and less prone to injuries.
The ACL and PCL ligaments cross each other to form an X to allow for safe flexing and extending of the knee.
Knee specialists in Nairobi, Kenya at NSOC provide effective Posterior Cruciate Ligament (PCL) injury treatment including advanced rehabilitation therapy and surgery if required. Our facility equipped with the most advanced, cutting edge equipment to treat pain.
Signs and Symptoms of PCL Injury
Compared to ACL injuries, PCL injuries don’t cause as much pain or disability, but they can still be severe in some cases. In most cases, the affected individual won’t feel a popping sound that is associated with ACL injuries, nor do they have debilitating pain.
Only these conditions may be experienced as a result:
Pain in the knee: the pain is rarely severe except in severe cases, it will mostly be discomforting pain instead that prevents the person from regular activities
Swelling or inflammation: when the ligament is sprained, it becomes inflamed and the inflammation can extend to the back of the knee
Weakness in the knee: since the PCL provides support, its injury causes a weakness in the knee especially when walking, causing the individual to experience a wobbly sensation.
What are the causes of PCL injury?
A posterior cruciate ligament injury can happen many ways. It typically requires a powerful force. These injuries are most common during:
Motor vehicle accidents. A “dashboard injury” occurs when the driver’s or passenger’s bent knee slams against the dashboard, pushing in the shinbone just below the knee and causing the posterior cruciate ligament to tear.
Contact sports. Athletes in sports such as football and soccer can tear their posterior cruciate ligament when they fall on a bent knee with their foot pointed down. The shinbone hits the ground first and it moves backward. Being tackled when your knee is bent also can cause this injury.
Diagnosis of PCL injuries
During the physical exam, your doctor might press on your knee to feel for injury, looseness or fluid in the joint from bleeding. He or she may move your knee, leg or foot in different directions and ask you to stand and walk.
Your doctor will compare your injured leg with the healthy one to look for any sagging or abnormal movement in the knee or shinbone.
Other tests which may help your doctor confirm your diagnosis include X-rays and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). It is possible, however, for these pictures to appear normal, especially if the injury occurred more than 3 months before the tests.
If it’s unclear how extensive your knee injury is, your doctor might use a surgical technique called arthroscopy to look inside your knee joint.
Comprehensive treatment of pcl injuries
Treatment depends on the extent of your injury and whether it just happened or if you’ve had it for a while.
Primary treatment involves managing the swelling and pain in the knee. This can be done through medication or home remedies to control the symptoms of basic Posterior Cruciate Ligament (PCL) injuries.
Over-the-counter medications like ibuprofen help to reduce pain and inflammation around the knee. Ice compressions and a knee brace can help reduce the inflammation.
Improve your mobility
Surgical Treatment
If you have dislocated your knee and torn multiple ligaments including the posterior cruciate ligament, surgery may be used to remove or repair it.
This surgery usually can be performed arthroscopically by inserting a fiber-optic camera and long, slender surgical tools through several small incisions around the knee.
Rebuilding the ligament. Because sewing the ligament ends back together does not usually heal, a torn posterior cruciate ligament must be rebuilt. Your doctor will replace your torn ligament with a tissue graft. This graft is taken from another part of your body, or from another human donor . It can take several months for the graft to heal into your bone.
The most advanced doctors and specialists at NSOC offer unique, individualized approach to manage your Posterior Cruciate Ligament (PCL), knee pain injury. We use the most effective pain management options and utilizing the latest technologies available in Kenya.
