Posterior Cruciate Ligament (PCL) Tears Treatment in Kenya

The posterior cruciate ligament (PCL), is one of four ligaments important to the stability of the knee joint. PCL tears make up less than 20% of injuries to knee ligaments. Injuries that tear the PCL often damage some of the other ligaments or cartilage in the knee, as well. In some cases, the ligament can also break loose a piece of underlying bone.

Symptoms

Signs and symptoms of a PCL injury include:

1. Pain.
Mild to moderate pain in the knee can cause a slight limp or difficulty walking.
2. Swelling.
Knee swelling occurs rapidly, within hours of the injury.
3. Instability.
Your knee might feel loose as if it’s going to give way.

If there are no associated injuries to other parts of your knee, the signs and symptoms of a posterior cruciate ligament injury can be so mild that you might not notice that anything’s wrong.
Over time, the pain might worsen and your knee might feel more unstable. If other parts of your knee have also been injured, your signs and symptoms will likely be more severe.

Causes

The posterior cruciate ligament can tear if your shinbone is hit hard just below the knee or if you fall on a bent knee. These injuries are most common during:

1. 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.

2. 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.

Treatment

Treatment of PCL tears is controversial, and, unlike the treatment of an ACL tear, there is little agreement about the optimal treatment for all patients.

Initial treatment of the pain and swelling consists of the use of crutches, ice, and elevation. Once these symptoms have settled, physical therapy is beneficial to improve knee motion and strength. Nonoperative treatment is recommended for most grade I and grade II PCL tears.

Surgical reconstruction of the PCL is controversial, and usually only recommended for grade III PCL tears. Because of the technical difficulty of the surgery, some orthopedic surgeons do not see the benefit of PCL reconstruction.

Others, however, believe PCL reconstruction can lead to improved knee stability and lower the likelihood of problems down the road.