Oh dear......

I just visited orthopedic at HUKM this morning. Hai...really big time now!!! It is confirm, my ACL is partially torn as suspected at last inspection!!! Now i got 2 options:

1. Is to carry out only physiotherapy, to make my muscle stronger, in another word, make my leg muscular la.

2. Has operation called Knee Autroscopy, ACL reconstruction KIV and Meniscal Repair. But before i carry out the operation, i also require to do physiotherapy for about 6 months because right after operation, my muscle will shrink. So need to "create" a bigger left leg now.

How the operation being carried out? Check it out here yourself. But roughly in this way:

The patient, the surgeon and the anesthesiologist select the anesthesia used for surgery. Patients may benefit from an anesthetic block of the nerves of the leg to decrease postoperative pain. The surgery usually begins with an examination of the patient's knee while the patient is relaxed due the effects of anesthesia. This final examination is used to verify that the ACL is torn and also to check for looseness of other knee ligaments that may need to be repaired during surgery or addressed postoperatively. If the physical exam strongly suggests the ACL is torn, the selected tendon is harvested (for an autograft) or thawed (for an allograft) and the graft is prepared to the correct size for the patient.

After the graft has been prepared, the surgeon places an arthroscope into the joint. Small (one-centimeter) incisions called portals are made in the front of the knee to insert the arthroscope and instruments and the surgeon examines the condition of the knee.

Meniscus and cartilage injuries are trimmed or repaired and the torn ACL stump is then removed. In the most common ACL reconstruction technique, bone tunnels are drilled into the tibia and the femur to place the ACL graft in almost the same position as the torn ACL. A long needle is then passed through the tunnel of the tibia, up through the femoral tunnel, and then out through the skin of the thigh. The sutures of the graft are placed through the eye of the needle and the graft is pulled into position up through the tibial tunnel and then up into the femoral tunnel (Figure 11). The graft is held under tension as it is fixed in place using interference screws (Figure 12), spiked washers, posts or staples. The devices used to hold the graft in place are generally not removed. Variations on this surgical technique include the "two-incision" and "over-the-top" types of ACL reconstructions, which may be used because of the preference of the surgeon or special circumstances (revision ACL reconstruction, open growth plates).

Ok, after talking long on Curing Options, now we talk about COST.

Knee Autroscopy - RM 500
ACL reconstruction KIV - RM 1,000
Meniscal Repair - RM 500 - 1,500 (not confirm yet, but in this range)

Total Cost - RM 2,000 - 3,000, at Government Hospital. No insurance coverage yet for Hospitalization, even if i get one right now, it will not cover also. So, it means "makan sendiri" lah

Luckily, i am a regular blood donor. Therefore is FOC except for those additional equipments that required in the operation, not cover. Let me remind you, even if you are regular blood donor, it is only FOC within 4 months time from your last donated date. Which mean i need to continue donating my blood, anyway i am doing that every 2 weeks or month, not a problem for me.

The conclusion of my Medical MRI Report:

Features are compatible with a left medial meniscal tear involving the posterior horn as well as the body and associated partial tear of the ipsilateral ACL.

My MRI Report

Part of My Knee MRI