Need advice on ACL repair

[Val]

My 7 yo non herding bc injured his acl playing ball. We need to make a decision as to which acl repair is best but it seems the research is very gray. I have tried searching the board regarding experiences with repairs but have been unable to find any real information.

 

So I guess my real question is, for those of you with experience with this injury which repair did you choose and why?

 

 

Thanks for the help! I am wicked stressed about doing the right thing for my pup.

[nancy]

Don't know about dogs, but my brother had his ACL replaced last summer. Because he was over 50, he had cartilage from a cadaver rather than from himself. Guess that, at our age, dead is better than our own parts. But he was sure that it came from a cadaver from Mass General, where he was. No strange funeral home weirdness.

 

He was back at work as a paramedic and doing ski patrol at Wildcat by the time the snow fell. And he's North of the Notches, where snow falls early - and they have, today, extended the season by at least a week.

 

So, the basic idea of repair or replacement seems fine.

[CLW1]

This site compares the different surgeries: http://www.marvistavet.com/html/body_ruptu...uciate_lig.html

 

Here's a great site with info on doing a type of surgery called TPLO: http://www.lauriebryce.com/tplo/index.html

 

I had a dog that had a TPLO done about 5 years ago and it's the surgery recommended for active dogs. I chose it for that reason.

 

There's a yahoo group called orthodogs which is a really great resource and I suggest that you join it - it helped me a lot.

[2 Devils]

I chose TPLO for my cattledog and that was almost 2 years ago. We chose TPLO because of the increased benefits compared to the old surgery.

 

Less chance of arthritis, less chance from rupturing the other acl because less healing time, we do play flyball and my acd loves the game, seems to be a more stable joint overall...

 

It is expensive but we don't have to worry about her messing that one up any more.

 

We did do physical therapy with her to help get her leg back in shape though. She was walking on that leg a day after surgery.

[jvw]

I had a TPLO done. Actually, I had the surgery done on my dog BEFORE anything tore (we are lucky to live close enough to Michigan State Vet Hosp where one of the foremost knee specialists in the country practices). Consequently they did not have to go into the joint capsule. If there is damage to other ligaments besides the ACL they may not be able to do TPLO. My dogs sire had to have MRIT done instead.

 

I also will second the importance of finding a good physical therapist to do therapy and teach you what therapy to do at home. It makes a huge difference.

 

Good Luck

Jennifer

[BCBERRI]

Timber has also had the TPLO done. He has now had it done on both knees. About 8 months apart. This was about 2 1/2 years ago and it hasn't slowed him down yet... He recovered nicely and he had full use within 6-8 weeks. He is a Search dog and needs to be in top condition and I feel the TPLO didn't hinder him one bit.

[blackacre]

TPLO. The best. Hobbes had it done at 3 and he's 9 now, no problems. Well, he's periodically lame in a front leg (floating chip), but that's another story.

A

[Liz K]

Dryden had a flyball injury to his ACL. I decided that flyball was over. Did 6 months of rehab because we had a partial tear. Water therapy, neutraceuticals, rest, ice, heat, etc.. So after rehab he was not better. Not worse, just not better. Got an ortho opinion, said TPLO was the only option, he needed it now, and it would be $3000 up front. Once the cheque cleared, I could bring Dry in for surgery.

 

I had a traditional repair done on him for several reasons - I had a dog who had both ACLs done within 3 months of each other, 4 years ago. He had traditional surgery and fared quite well. Second, the TPLO is a very invasive surgery, with significant implications if there are complications. Infections become very difficult to treat in patients/dogs with infected plates and screws. If the surgeon is off by even a few degrees in how he performs the TPLO, there could be limping, difficulty sitting or rising from a seated/laying position, and problems in the hip joint because the gait is now off. Third, if Dryden has a worse injury or this surgery did not "work", I could always undertake a TPLO or a TTA with him. If I started with TPLO and it failed, there are no current surgical options of which I'm aware.

 

I sat in on the surgery with Dry. The knee joint was beautiful. No arthritis. The ligament was stretched, and had very little scarring. The meniscus was intact. Even the vet was amazed at how nice it looked. My general vet did the surgery, and I trusted him because he knows Dryden, he knows that I plan to return to sheep and duck herding with him, and to throwing the ball in our backyard, long walks, and hiking. The vet has repaired several Rotties' knees with the traditional surgery who have gone on to advanced herding titles and national competitions.

 

We still have lots of rehab with all the things we did before the surgery, so it's not over. And either decision is not cheap. I would suggest 2 Yahoo groups might be able to help you make your decision - the Orthodogs group and the Conservative Management group. I learned a lot from both groups and got a lot of different perspectives and experiences.

 

Best of luck with your decision,

 

Liz, Iago (2 traditionals at age 9 - running, jumping, and counter-surfing at age 13), Dryden (traditional 4/6/07), and Haley

[starbuck]

Luke had a TPLO in November but it's a procedure I wouldn't choose again. We found an excellent board certified Orthopedic surgeon who had done hundreds of these but the results are somewhat disappointing. While Luke had no problems with the surgery or recovery and he gets around fine, his gait is off (walks a bit peg-legged) and his foot toes out a bit. Plus, there is the very small possibility that the plate could cause him trouble in the future. I think we took a lot of risk and spent a lot of extra money without any added benifit. YMMV

[Kerales Farm]

Unfortunately, I am very familiar with ACL injuries, having had 3 dogs have seurgery---2 dogs ruptured theirs in accidents, and another who had a chronic problem that finally ruptured. What I learned was that the outcome for all these procedures is completely dependent on the skill of the surgeon, and with that being equal, one procedure does not have an advantage over another...in terms of final outcome. The advantage of the TPLO is that, when weight bearing, the joint is immediately stable post surgery. So the recovery is quicker. I had two dogs with TPLOs, one of which had also ruptured her lateral collateral ligament and part of the joing capsule. Three years later, she has quite a bit of arthritis in that joint, but she is sound and still working. My older BC had had a chronic lameness issue for over a year, and when the ligament finally gave out, I opted to do a less invasive surgery on him (due to his age). He had the modified tibial head transposition surgery done. He took the longest to recover back to full working condition. He was also the only dog I did not do any physical therapy with. The surgeon said it "wasn't needed"--he wasn't sound for almost 18 months. What a mistake!! My other two girls were back to work within 3-6 months, but they had 2 solid months of physical therapy starting a couple of weeks post surgery. I also know of dogs who have done extremely well with the traditional extracapsular techniques, but the joint is not stable until scar tissue forms--and that is quite a while. So they all have advantages and disadvantages, but the key is working with a surgeon who has had great outcomes with whatever procedure he prefers..and plan on having physical therapy to get the dog back to full use.

My .02

Leslie