'The dreaded cruciate'

[Donnellys Hollow]

There appears to be a significant increase in these injuries in recent weeks. I know in Kildare we have four of our panel currently sidelined:

Peter Kelly - injured in the opening minutes of UCD's first O'Byrne Cup game
Ken Donnelly - ruptured his cruciate last May, made a few sporadic appearances during the summer and had surgery after Kildare were beaten
Mikey Conway - went off injured against Wicklow in 2009 and hasn't kicked a ball in anger since, supposedly close to a return
Dermot Earley - suffered a reoccurance last week while in recovery

Robert Kelly has made a full return this year after doing his cruciate in the league last season. With the recent news that both David Moran and Colm O'Neill will be ruled out for the year, there has been plenty of talk in the media about this particular injury. Are there any specific reasons why cruciate injuries seem to be happening more frequently?

- Are modern training methods contributing to the problem?
- Are the boots players are wearing an issue?
- Is it simply a case that this problem has always existed and it's just easier to diagnose nowadays?

There is an article in today's Examiner in which Johnny Doyle has suggested that sand-based pitches could be a contributing factor: http://www.examiner.ie/sport/gaa/doyle-links-cruciate-injury-rise-to-pitches-151256.html

[brokencrossbar1]

There appears to be a significant increase in these injuries in recent weeks. I know in Kildare we have four of our panel currently sidelined:

Peter Kelly - injured in the opening minutes of UCD's first O'Byrne Cup game
Ken Donnelly - ruptured his cruciate last May, made a few sporadic appearances during the summer and had surgery after Kildare were beaten
Mikey Conway - went off injured against Wicklow in 2009 and hasn't kicked a ball in anger since, supposedly close to a return
Dermot Earley - suffered a reoccurance last week while in recovery

Robert Kelly has made a full return this year after doing his cruciate in the league last season. With the recent news that both David Moran and Colm O'Neill will be ruled out for the year, there has been plenty of talk in the media about this particular injury. Are there any specific reasons why cruciate injuries seem to be happening more frequently?

- Are modern training methods contributing to the problem?
- Are the boots players are wearing an issue?
- Is it simply a case that this problem has always existed and it's just easier to diagnose nowadays?
There is an article in today's Examiner in which Johnny Doyle has suggested that sand-based pitches could be a contributing factor: http://www.examiner.ie/sport/gaa/doyle-links-cruciate-injury-rise-to-pitches-151256.html

A bit of all three I would postulate. 

Modern training in pre season is so geared towards "conditioning" that when players get full contact he is not really fit to take the force of a very powerful hit.  There is an over emphasis on upper body conditioning. 

There are also major problems with the boots that players wear in many circumstances.  Some teams have banned players from using blades(Man Utd being the most high profile) do to the fact that they do not turn in the ground the way 6 studs will whenever someone moves their body and consequently cause injuries.

The general better medical care of players is a factor too and the injuries are more easily diagnosed and treated.  Not that log ago if this injury happened it was a career ender and there was nothing but a goodbye note in the local player.  Nowadays players can be back within a relatively short space of time.

I think though the biggest factor is the enhanced media coverage of the games.  Every players injury is highlighted.  I remember Geezer i think it was did his cruciiate back in his early county career and was told there was nothing he could do apart from build the muscle around it. This wasn't headline news at the time and he simply got on with it.  Nowadays every broken toe nail is all over forums like this and we are much more aware of it.

[PAULD123]

Modern training has become way more intensive in the last 10-15 years. It is not surprising that there will be a corresponding increase in over-use injuries. Your cruciate doesn't grow like muscle, so the more you strengthen the muscle the harder you ask the ligaments to work. Any system will always fail at the weakest point so it seems like the ligament has become the weakest point in the modern footballer.

But there is a second aspect to modern times. Diagnosis has dramatically improved. 20-30 years ago people didn't use to look for the exact cause of medical symptoms just accepted they existed. you can perform most non-energetic activities without the cruciate so I guess there are probably a lot of former players with damaged or bust cruciate's that have no idea this was their problem, simply that they have "bad knees"!

[unitedireland]

A guy in our club has partially torn his acl (2/3) and he's just waiting on it to go. Is there much he can do apart from visiting Ger Hartman as i think he's £300 or £400 a session.

[ExiledGael]

A guy in our club has partially torn his acl (2/3) and he's just waiting on it to go. Is there much he can do apart from visiting Ger Hartman as i think he's £300 or £400 a session.

If there is no cartilage damage or loose tissue around the knee cap he can return to playing if his leg muscles are built up sufficiently. I'm in the same situation (was told at Ulster Independant Clinic it was 80% gone) and have been back now 18 months after a year out. Conor Mortimer played with a partially torn ACL for the last 5/6 years but his recently ruptured putting him out for the year.
Most of the points here are correct regarding correct diagnosis, the ligament now being the weakest point of the leg and certain types of pitches. Would never dream of wearing blades again also.
Don't think the training has much to do with it before you take a powerful hit as the majority of ACL tears happen in very innocuous incidents, very often with no contact at all.
Heard this discussed on the radio this week and a top physio suggested there is a lot of ignorance regarding conditioning and weights now which he thinks contributes to the problem. Very often players are working on their quad muscles over and over and forgetting about the hamstring which leaves the knee unstable to begin with. He said the uneven distribution of muscle means it's only a matter of time until the knee gives way.

[Banana Man]

A guy in our club has partially torn his acl (2/3) and he's just waiting on it to go. Is there much he can do apart from visiting Ger Hartman as i think he's £300 or £400 a session.

If there is no cartilage damage or loose tissue around the knee cap he can return to playing if his leg muscles are built up sufficiently. I'm in the same situation (was told at Ulster Independant Clinic it was 80% gone) and have been back now 18 months after a year out. Conor Mortimer played with a partially torn ACL for the last 5/6 years but his recently ruptured putting him out for the year.
Most of the points here are correct regarding correct diagnosis, the ligament now being the weakest point of the leg and certain types of pitches. Would never dream of wearing blades again also.
Don't think the training has much to do with it before you take a powerful hit as the majority of ACL tears happen in very innocuous incidents, very often with no contact at all.
Heard this discussed on the radio this week and a top physio suggested there is a lot of ignorance regarding conditioning and weights now which he thinks contributes to the problem. Very often players are working on their quad muscles over and over and forgetting about the hamstring which leaves the knee unstable to begin with. He said the uneven distribution of muscle means it's only a matter of time until the knee gives way.

what can you do to build the hamstring up? is there such exercises?

[AZOffaly]

Yes. The leg curls that you do for the quads can be reversed (Lie face down on the bench) for the hammies.

[ExiledGael]

There are certainly such machines in the gym (leg curls) so bit of an even spread between that and the leg press will help. I was actually told by a physio to use the leg curl machine for hamstring but never use the one for quads as she thought it made the knee dangerously unstable.
Just type hamstring exercises into google and there are dozens of variations on stuff you can do at home even.

[Puckoon]

Surely the leg curl is solely for the hamstrings - and the leg extension is for the quadriceps? There can't be a leg curl for the quads - can there?

[maximus]

It's leg extension for the quads

[ExiledGael]

It's leg extension for the quads

That's right, sort of looks like same machine though.

[RMDrive]

Stability and proprioception are key as well. Stand on your damaged/weak leg only and move from pointing your other foot as far forward as possible to moving it as far back as possible, to moving it to the side. (Not a great description but hopefully you'll know what I mean)
Do it really slowly and check how stable you are. Are you swaying all over the place or is it all a smooth movement? There are various exercies that will improve your stablity.
Went through this last year (no tear, just stretched and twisted ACL) and going through it again now (partial tear).

[screenexile]

Pfffffffffffftt!! Just out of hospital this morning after my 2nd ACL repair in 3 years. Both happened very differently. One was I went up for a high catch from righ to left, I misjudged just how high I was and when my right foot planted the knee just gave way.

A month ago I was running up the side of the pitch, layed off a pass and was hit late while my left foot was planted and the knee just buckled as my foot had nowhere to go. Both occasions I was wearing 6 studs and if I were to blame anything I would say it's pitches.

It's a hoor of a injury though and a nightmare to come back from. I'm 29 now and will be 30 by the time I'm allowed to play again and that is IF I do the full rehab. I'm not sure if I have the stomach for it anymore after I came ck after 6 months the last time but never really felt comfortable until 12 months. It's a long time in football especially at this stage. Will just have to play it by ear!

[BarryBreensBandage]

Pfffffffffffftt!! Just out of hospital this morning after my 2nd ACL repair in 3 years. Both happened very differently. One was I went up for a high catch from righ to left, I misjudged just how high I was and when my right foot planted the knee just gave way.

A month ago I was running up the side of the pitch, layed off a pass and was hit late while my left foot was planted and the knee just buckled as my foot had nowhere to go. Both occasions I was wearing 6 studs and if I were to blame anything I would say it's pitches.

It's a hoor of a injury though and a nightmare to come back from. I'm 29 now and will be 30 by the time I'm allowed to play again and that is IF I do the full rehab. I'm not sure if I have the stomach for it anymore after I came ck after 6 months the last time but never really felt comfortable until 12 months. It's a long time in football especially at this stage. Will just have to play it by ear!

Good luck with the recovery - would have to agree that it the playing surface has a lot to do with it.

I tore my cruciate playing gaelic on a council pitch - a year later, one of my clubmates got exactly the same injury on the same pitch.

Turns out that a lot of people use the pitch to practise their golf, leaving huge divots in the ground. Have heard of another few injuries of this kind on that pitch since.

[brokencrossbar1]

Barrybreen, you must have caught your leg in a divot because it wouldn't have been from getting hit when you were running!