After being treated at an orthopedic practice near his home, Kevin Ply still had severe knee pain. David Huxtable and Kendall Thompson still had pain and instability long after knee surgery at other orthopedic practices. None of these patients was satisfied with what they were told about their knees or the treatments they had received.

When Chadwick Prodromos, MD, wanted to publish a book on anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction to help orthopedic surgeons improve outcomes for every patient, he selected a “dream team” of ACL experts to write the chapters.

Like most medical practices, Shelbourne Knee Center is helping to stop the spread of coronavirus by reducing the number of contacts between providers/staff and patients. In-person office visits are available only for essential needs:

Ten months after tearing her right anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and her meniscus, wrestler Sierra Pienkowski competed in the Indiana High School Girls Wrestling State Finals. She came in seventh in her weight class. The next month, Sierra took first place in the Indiana Frosh-Soph State Wrestling Championships.

Every two years, experts in anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) treatment from around the world gather to share and discuss the latest science and clinical work during the international ACL Study Group meeting. At the January 2020 meeting in Austria, K. Donald Shelbourne, MD, an orthopedic surgeon at Shelbourne Knee Center, gave two presentations on the center’s innovative approach to ACL treatment:

Isolated posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) injuries are rare, with about 1 PCL tear for every 20 anterior cruciate ligament tears. Lack of knowledge of the natural history of isolated PCL tears has led to controversy about the most effective treatment, and a tendency to over-treat with PCL reconstruction, especially if posterior laxity exceeds 10 mm.

After anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction, weak quadriceps are common. “There are many different theories about why patients can’t get their strength back after ACL reconstruction. I wanted to look at the effect of knee range of motion (ROM) on return to quadriceps strength,” says Sarah Eaton, PT, DPT, ATC, LAT, a physical therapist/athletic trainer at Shelbourne Knee Center.

A stiff, arthritic knee and the loss of extension that usually accompanies it can be debilitating. Despite a widespread belief that little can be done about stiffness other than surgery, appropriate physical therapy can relieve and even reverse stiffness.