Common Ski Injury- ACL tears

Winter is almost upon us and for many people that means heading north to the Poconos or Catskills to hit the slopes.  Downhill skiing has become an increasingly popular sport in our area.   It is a great aerobic and anaerobic workout for the muscles of the lower extremities.  Unfortunately, with most aggressive sporting activities there is a potential for injury.  The most common injury for a skier is an injury to their knee.  About 30-40% of all skiing injuries occur to the knee joint.  The most significant knee injury that occurs is a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL). 

The reason that this ligament often tears while on the slopes is usually due to the skier’s binding not releasing the ski from the boot in adequate time while that person is falling.  This creates great torque on the knee, so much so that their ligament is not strong enough to withstand the force and ligament tearing takes place. 

ACL tears usually require surgery.  An ACL reconstruction is a procedure that has become more common in the sports world.  The surgery takes a few hours, however, the rehab following the surgery takes months. 

There is a program known as Sportsmetrics that was created years ago to prevent  these types of injuries from occurring in athletes.  Over the years the program has gotten great results.  Jersey Physical Therapy has become a Sportsmetrics certified site with multiple individuals that have received their training certification for this program.  If you would like more information on this particular program, feel free to contact us.