Hawaii 3.5 mos. post ACL surgery - ???

One of our 4 boys is having ACL / Miniscus reconstruction surgery in July and we are travelling to Hawaii 3.5 months later - late October.

Our boys are avid water jocks here in Vancouver, BC with barefooting, waterskiing, etc.

New to surfing though and are eager. I know my son who is having the surgery will not be able to surf but hoping he can partake in more than just snorkeling.

Perhaps scuba diving, body surfing, etc?

Any one with this behind them that would know? Thinking of postponing from October to November to give him one more month of healing.

Hawaii 3.5 mos. post ACL surgery - ???

Postpone if you can. If no can, then no worry :)

A friend of mine had ACL surgery and three months later came back and placed 6th in a national fencing competition...brat. She just wore a brace on her leg and was good to go - it helps that she (and your son) was already athletic going into the surgery.

All low impact sports will be fine - make sure the brace is waterproof and gets rinsed off after being in the ocean (metal rivits rust). If he%26#39;s body surfing, tell him to stay out of the wave impact zone.

Hawaii 3.5 mos. post ACL surgery - ???

If you wait then he can really expereince the fun... if you don%26#39;t wait Maui might help to heal - it%26#39;s a pretty place.

not sure about his surgery though - why not ask the docter or search some online medical q %26amp; a%26#39;s

We have been through this twice...the post surgery rehab therapy is truly the key. Hawaii will be a great motivator to do all the movements and keep it up! Our boys took only a few months to heal well enough to walk easily, but still kept up the therapy for 6 months to be sure of full range of motion. Ask your doctor and therapist as to where your son is when the trip is closer. good luck!

I went to Hawaii 6 weeks after a lateral retinacular release. I could not drive my big divers%26#39; fins thru the water. I got split fins and those worked well--less resistance. Consider getting different fins. Well worth it.

Thanks everyone. I am going to move the holiday by a couple of weeks which will put him at 4 moths post-op. Yes, he has a brac already that he can wear in the water. It will tick him off not being able to try and surf but I am sure he will enjoy being there and doing other things - our boys are excited as they have never experienced a tropical beach with the waves.

My daughter had ACL reconstruction at age 18 (and the opposite knee at age 20!!) that was over Christmas break. We went on a beach vacation over spring break the following March and YIKES she was playing beach volleyball! She is 22 now and just surfed for the first time two weeks ago in Maui. She devised her own way to get up since she can%26#39;t sit back on her legs, and got up on her first try and looked like a pro. I surf and it is gentler than it may appear but I would see how he feels before pursuing it.

I went through this a couple of years ago, make sure he starts rehab AS SOON AS POSSIBLE! Start flexing your leg back and forth a little the next day if possible and start leg exercises soon after. Also, build up his leg muscles now, the stronger the muscles before the surgery, the quicker rehab will be. I would think at 4 mos. he will still need a light brace. You will want to avoid any activities that could incur a twisting motion, straight back and forth flexing, such as swimming with fins, should be alright, but if you do any hiking, make sure to wear the brace.

Well my son%26#39;s surgery was bumped ahead and he had it in June so by the time we land on Maui it will be 4.5 months post-op. Both his surgeon and his physio are extremely pleased with his rehab. My son has a dream of surfing on Maui. The surgeon says no and the physio said yes to surfing. We will have him checked out one more time before we leave.

Is bodyboarding something that would be much safer on the knee? Is bodyboarding still lots of fun?

Someone had suggested that the surf may be too high for any of our boys at that time of year anyway as they will all be beginners.

I would listen to the surgeon, as he/she is the one who knows what repair was done, and what amount of time is required for full healing.

Regarding the body surfing or boogie boarding, there would be less chance to twist the knee, but there is still quite a bit of kicking. Also, a big wave could potentially really throw him around. I would check with the surgeon regarding these activities also.

right Doc.....

look, everybody is different, every surg. is a different thing, what Bob and Mary experienced are fine... they are not you

You pay good money for an orthopedic doctor.... he will know best...

I have had both knees done....one took 6 months and the other 8 months, and I was in shape.. Both were different in extent.......

consult a MD/FACS and listen