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By Mayo Clinic staffYou're likely to meet with your surgeon a few days before your ACL reconstruction. Bring a list of questions to remind you to cover everything you want to know. Make sure you understand the procedure and its risks. Be prepared to discuss with your doctor which tendon you want to use for the graft — either your patellar tendon (which attaches to the front of your shin bone just below your knee and the bottom of your knee cap) or hamstring. Your doctor can discuss the pros and cons of each with you. If your own tendons don't provide the best replacement for the injured ligament, your doctor may recommend an allograft, which is tissue taken from a cadaver. The cadaver is carefully screened and tested to minimize your risk of disease transmission from the graft.
You'll be given instructions about presurgical restrictions and other things you need to know. In most cases, the surgery will be done as an outpatient procedure, so you can go home the same day.
Be sure your doctor knows of any medications, vitamins or supplements you're taking in case something could interfere with the surgery. In general, to prepare for your ACL reconstruction, it's recommended that you:
- Stop taking aspirin or other blood-thinning medication. Your doctor may ask you to stop taking it a week or longer before the surgery to reduce your risk of bleeding.
- Take only the medication your doctor tells you to take on the day of surgery, using only a sip of water.
- Check with your insurance company to determine whether the procedure is covered and if there are restrictions on where you can have it done.
- Don't eat or drink 8 to 12 hours before surgery, especially if you'll be under general anesthesia.
- Bring someone with you. Besides offering support, another person can be there to listen to postoperative instructions and drive you home. It may take several hours for the effects of the anesthesia to wear off.
- Clark JC, et al. Primary ACL reconstruction using allograft tissue. Clinical Sports Medicine. 2009;28:223.
- Anterior cruciate ligament injuries. In: Canale ST: Campbell's Operative Orthopaedics. 11th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Mosby Elsevier; 2007:2496.
- Muscle and tendon injuries. In: Brunicardi FC, et al. Schwartz's Principles of Surgery. 8th ed. Columbus, Ohio.: McGraw-Hill; 2005. http://www.accessmedicine.com/content.aspx?aID=820647. Accessed Sept. 30, 2009.
- Fu F, et al. Current trends in anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction part 1: Biology and biomechanics of reconstruction. American Journal of Sports Medicine. 1999;27:821.
- ACL injury: Does it require surgery? American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. http://orthoinfo.aaos.org/topic.cfm?topic=A00297. Accessed Oct. 1, 2009.
- Friedberg RP. Anterior cruciate ligament injury. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Oct.1, 2009.
- Spindler KP, et al. Anterior cruciate ligament tear. New England Journal of Medicine. 2008;359:2135.
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