Leg Injury

[medic_girl_chas]

So I'm seventeen and just got cleared by my doctor last month after finishing up a year of physical therapy. My goal after high school is to go through EMT and Paramedic school and than work my way through medical school. The thing is I got hit by a truck last sept. at school while waiting on the bus and thank God I walked away with very few injuries. I pretty much tore all the ligaments and tendons in my right leg and my knee was also tracking the wrong way. So I did almost a year of PT and it helped but my biggest fear is that my knee wont be strong enough to with stand all the physical demands of the job. I'm not the type of person that is willing to let one event mess up what I want for my life. What I'm asking is any advice on maintaining the strength in my Knee and leg?

~Chas

[Dustdevil]

What I'm asking is any advice on maintaining the strength in my Knee and leg?

Ask your Physical Therapist. That is the very best possible answer.

If you don't mind, I'd like to comment on your over all plan. It's horrible. You are going to waste three years at a very minimum after high school before you start working on your medical school prerequisites. Then you're going to be so whacked out being an ambulance driver that it will take you another 6 years at the very least (instead of 4) to finish your pre-med degree. So now -- if you ever finish pre-med (which the odds are slim to none) -- you are 27 instead of 21. For what? Again, the above is a best case scenario. It only gets worse. Worst case is you never even go back for your pre-med degree. Probable scenario is you go back for two semesters before realising you can't do it, you spend another year in EMS before realising it isn't a career, and go do something else.

Be a medic. Be a doctor. Be an Indian chief. Whatever. Just focus on one thing and focus on doing it the very best you can. Being all things is a recipe for disappointment.

[Timmy]

I agree with Dust, talk to you PT. It’s really hard to offer any advice or devise a rehabilitation program over the net, it’s a very one on one thing as everyone is different and different things need to be taken into consideration. If you’re looking to maintain strength in your knee then look at stuff like weight activities and hydrotherapy, you’d be surprised how much moving your knee does in the water. Ultrasound therapy can help strengthen ligaments and muscles but I wouldn’t recommend it because of the post injury time period. It’s important that if you suffer any pain that you stop and RICE it. But again, you need make a plan with a professional. Take Care!

[medic_girl_chas]

okay no I don't mind giving me advice on college and the reason Im doing it that away is because I plan on working my way through college. I know it will take longer that way I will have money and can go away after two years of going to a community college.

Okay, well the only problem with asking my physical therapist is I don't have one anymore. When I did my last day of it after that the doctors and physical therapist told me to keep the program up at home for three months than go back to the doctor and if everything was still going good I was cleared. I got to do three months at home because of the insurance and the fact that my dad is a paramedic so they would call him from time to time to make sure all was going well. The thing I have notice is that one leg is stronger than the other and it bugs me but it also pops which I know is probably not a good thing but since I have only been cleared for a month and would like to keep it that way I'm trying to do everything I can without having to go see the doctor again.

[spenac]

Being a medic is going to be tough on your knees. It is tough enough on healthy knees. As young as you are, if you can afford it I would say forget EMS and as Dust said focus on medical school. I would hate to have you damage yourself to the point you can no longer do EMS and then not be able to go to medical school either. Think about it, get more info here, and definitely discuss it with your parents.

[katbemeEMT-B]

I have to agree with Dust and Spenac, EMS is probably not the right choice for you. I understand that maybe you are inspired by your father who is a medic, but there are so many other things to consider here.

As Dust has already stated, your chances of making it through school beyond medic are minimal. You stated that you wanted to work your way through school. I could think of many other ways to do that other than EMS. I am currently am EMT and trying to complete my paramedic degree. It is very difficult. The wages you make as an emt or medic are not worth what you would be putting into it. You appear to be very intelligent and level headed, rethink your plan.

The other thing is that even with the best physical therapy in world, your knee will never be 100%. What you have to remember is that as an EMT or Medic, you will spend a fair amount of time on your knees or squatting. The stress would be too much for your injured knee to handle. You may not feel the effects right away, but when you do, it will be miserable. I would suggest finding something that would allow your knee to continue healing and be less stressful on it.

Good luck in whatever you decide.

[medic_girl_chas]

Thanks for the advice. My parents know and they support me 100% and they don't want to see my dreams blow up in smoke because of something that can be fixed that and I worked hard to get where I am now. I know its hard on your knees but I know a medic who did the same thing at the same age as me and he is currently doing just fine. He did warn me that he worked his butt off after the fact to keep the strength up.

thanks you guys are truly eye open in a number of ways.

[Just Plain Ruff]

Please do not consider this post a negative post towards you but strictly for someone in the situation. This is not directed personally at you, you asked for advice.

I think you need to give up the medic thing as it will be very hard if not impossible for your knee to support the demands of the job on the ambulance. Unless you work for a service that provides you with more than enough help such as a fire truck with 4 fireguys, a bls ambulance and you in the als ambulance so you don't have to lift or put stress on your legs.

Best case scenario is that you never re-injure your knee and worst case scenario is that you are taking some patient down a flight of stairs and your knee gives out, you and the patient and your partner and whoever else is downstream gets taken for the ride of your life and now not only are you permanently disabled but you have a whole group who are injured.

I also know that I would be leary of any partner who had a history of a catastrophic knee injury which your injury can be considered catastrophic since it took you over a year to get thru PT and then they sent you home to work for 3 more months on your excercises. I would be very leary of working with you and your knee because I know myself and I'd want to take the brunt of the lifting and such because I'm an all around good guy but I'm wiser in my old age and I would be very uncomfortable with your history.

If I was on the hiring end and knew of your injury I'd probably pass you over for someone who did not have your injury baggage.

So getting to my point(took a while I guess) but my point is this, I think you should re-think your plan on working thru med school. Just get student loans(they are extremely easy to get, heck with my credit rating when I started school they gave me one) just get the loans to get thru medical school. Forget the ems stuff and be the best damn doctor student you can be. I think in the end you will be a happier and healthier person.

Consider this, as a physician you can get a lot better medical treatment for that damaged knee than you will get as a medic and the risk of re-injuring that knee is tremendously less than the chance of re-injuring it as a medic.

Take this advice from someone who had multiple back injuries. I re-injured my back 5 times while working as a medic and not once since I started working as a consultant. Poor analogy but it's what I have to work with.

[wynter]

Well...while I agree with everyone else..here is my opinion..and it is exactly only that. This is coming from someone who, despite shitty wages and benefits..has found a long time career in EMS. I am currently a basic and planning on R.N. within the year. Anyways; my advice to you is this. I just had back surgery in Feb '07 to repair 3 herniated discs. My Neurosurgeon says that I just have shitty luck and eventually it will come to rods and spinal fusions no matter how good of care I take of my back. The same is with your knee..you just don't know what will happen..we know what the probable chances are with the demands of the job. Anyways, back on track..I look at it this way Medic or Medical School, it's up to you, but, if you are anything like me..I'm going down with a bang. If I can't avoid the situation no matter what, I'm gonna go down doing what I love to do. In your case..if you wanna be a Doctor..go straight for Medical school and skip the Medic..Good Luck!

[DwayneEMTP]

Meh...I don't know if being a medic or not is the right choice for you, but I don't believe the knees need to make this decision.

I've fully dislocated both of my knees, at different times, as well as a separate patellar dislocation on the left (which hurt way more than the full dislocations) resulting in two separate surgeries.

I'm 43 (that's 78 in Dustdevil years) and at times they ache a bit, and I don't spend any more time than necessary squatting or kneeling, but otherwise there has never been a time when I needed them to work and they didn't.

Do I wish I hadn't injured them? Sure. Are they the focus of my physical being? Nah..not really.

Find a good exercise program, most any cardio program will do, and they'll most likely be fine.

And you can rest assured that this advice comes from a trained medical professional with several hours of experience looking at joint trauma on the Internet. (In other words, ask your doctor!)

As for your career...Trust the 'council of elders' above. You don't want to hear it, but if you stick to EMS topics, (certainly avoid sex or gambling), their advice is usually pretty good.

Dwayne