Verdict on the Knee

Well, unfortunately, the knee is not sprained ... and in fact, it's messed up pretty good.  The MRI results came back to Dr. Tom over the weekend and while he couldn't clearly see everything, he called me on Saturday to tell me "You're gonna need some kind of reconstruction!  You got the ACL and some other stuff going on in there.  Do you have a preference on knee guys?"  He gave me a list of 3 and because one of the 3 has children at Oakview, I went with Dr. Paul Siffri.  I met with him on Tuesday to get the verdict - and it wasn't good.  Apparently, I tore the ACL and both the meniscus - the lateral meniscus has a "bucket tear" so he has no idea if he can repair that.  He basically looked at me and said, "You couldn't have screwed it up much worse if you had tried!"

He recommended this charcoal compression thing and alot of ice over the next few days!  So, here I sit!

Barrett's comment to me after the appointment:
"You do realize that when NFL players have this same injury, they don't get back on the field - they go right to the broadcaster's booth!  And that's after they rehab in the Bahamas for several months!"

Looks like I have a long road ahead.  Dr. Siffri told me "If you were 20-25 years old, we would take a portion of your hamstring or calf to rebuild your ACL."  I quickly asked "Well, what's the option for someone not 20-25 years old?"  He said "In that case, we use a cadaver ACL."  To which I quickly replied "Well, let's make sure it comes from a 20-25 year old because I don't want a 70 year old ACL."

He told me that it will be an "extensive recovery that will take several months and it could be another year before you play tennis again!"  I told him "I can  have that equipment sold on 'Let Go' by Friday."  I doubt he has met another patient like me!

In the end, surgery is scheduled for Valentine's Day, Wednesday, February 14, 2018!  He hopes to repair both meniscus, but really won't know what he can do for those until he gets in there and sees the damage.