Knee injury (again), need some advise

[zio]

Hey guys,

After hurting my knee again I've made an apointment to see my doc this afternoon. Last time it was my right knee,and after the MRI they said my cartiladge is deteriorating in that knee, but luckily no ligament damage yet. This time it's my left knee and the injury feels different. We'll see.

At the advise of Kiwi, I've started considering knee braces. Actually, I'm pretty sure I need them now for most any physical activity. Anyone have experience with getting these prescribed from a physician? I've got a good orthopedic surgeon, will he be cool with me telling him which ones I want (i.e. CTi, Asterisk), or will he give me one of his preferred devises?

I also want to know what questions to ask my Primary Care Physician today, and what things to say to make sure I get the right care.

If they don't cooperate, I figure I'll try and pick up a pair of Asterisks on my own ($549/pair way more attractive than $750-$1000 ea.). I'm especially encouraged by Thumps' review. So far, I've hurt them doing so many various activities like ice hockey, paintball, backpacking (40 lb packs), and finally dirtbiking.

Looking for advise from docs, sports medicine specialists, billywho, etc. Thanks in advance!

-zio

 

[KiwiBird]

After paying the out of pocket sums for the MRI, MRI intrepretations, XRays, Dr visits and so on my CTi2s cost more than the Asterix braces. That said I'm very happy with the fit, service and lifetime warranty of the CTi2.

 

[IBWFO]

From the standpoint that you "Don't" need ACL/MCL replacement, you need to get your doctor to specify that knee braces would be a "Peventative" measure. You might check with your insurance carrrier to see if they will cover CTI IIthem. (mine did not)
I have had both of my ACL's replaced and wear the asterisks now.
Some insurance companies DO NOT cover you if you tell them you Race/ride and will sometimes consider you "High-Risk and charge you accordingly, so be careful what you say. I said I did mine playing basketball and tennis.
Find a good doctor's name from fellow riders or racers and they can make things easier for you.
Regards

 

[zio]

No ACL injury this time, either. Same type of injury (something that starts with a "p".. patela something). My insurance won't cover braces, and her opinion was that they weren't that great a preventive measure, but rather to be used more for post-op. She wasn't discounting their effectiveness, but just wasn't sure that I'd all of a sudden stop getting these types of injuries. She thought that at some point I'll need reconstructive surgery & wasn't 100% behind the idea of me dropping that kind of money to postpone the inevitable (I think that was her opinion.... not positive). I guess her conclusion was that if I had that kind of dough, go for it but don't expect them to be foolproof (me being the fool).

 

[IBWFO]

I'm assumimg "she" is your doc and not your insurance carrier.
My doc said the same thing about the braces. I know that with my 1st ACL injury the brace wouldn't have done a thing to avoid the tear, but the second one I'm not sure about. I wear them now and my son will be wearing them within a month. The patella is a far more serious injury.
The younger you are the better on reconstruction, and you will only be as good as your re-hab.


D

 

[zio]

Thanks for the replies. Yup "she" is my doc, sounds like yours and mine agree. I'll be buying Asterisks as soon as I can afford them :( Nuts, I hate spending money!

 

[KiwiBird]

OK, I just had a great weekend so I'll be mellow about this as it seems to come all the time.

Screw the Doc and Ins reports that say the braces don't work - I KNOW THEY DO FROM 1ST HAND EXPERIENCE. I have had huge bruising from the straps when the braces have hit their stops, the braces have saved me from a DEFINITE broken leg when I hit a culvert. There is a tremendous increase in confidence.

However, you may still need to get surgery and, most likely, you WILL need to do PT.

I hope my opinion is clear. Thank you for listening (you could hear me, right?).

 

[zio]

Originally posted by Kiwi Bird
I hope my opinion is clear. Thank you for listening (you could hear me, right?).

Huh? can you expand on that? ;) I agree w/ ya... this was my PCP, not the orthopedic guy. She didn't in any way say they didn't work, she just wasn't completely sold on the idea that this would be a guarantee that I'd never hurt my knee again. And in our conversation I mentioned all the times I've hurt them, and the stupid nature of some of the accidents. She didn't address dirtbiking specifically, nor did she seem to care when I mentioned it. I had asked her if they really do prevent injuries, period. She did endorse them as beneficial & even recommended I buy them if I had the money, but not to lose sleep if I didn't- she was just was being her usual careful self & was very conservative.

I've read enough to fortify my initial gut feeling that they are a good idea.