This Saturday morning my alarm was waking me up at 5:15am for a 6 am practice. I watched as my teammate hobbled across the field on crutches, thanking my lucky stars that I was not the one in her place. About two months ago, she underwent the unfortunate event of tearing her ACL... for the second time. My teammate tore her ACL freshman year of high school, and then again, two years later she tore her other ACL. She was the first of 3 girls on my team, but the only one to have to go through the extensive and frustrating recovery process twice.
Oddly enough, only a few hours later, Maryland backup quarterback, Caleb Rowe, met almost an identical fate to that of my teammate. During practice, in a non-contact drill,
Rowe kicked his left foot to the calf of his right, causing his next step to land awkwardly. That awkward step did the trick and his left ACL was torn.
Two seasons ago, as a freshman, Rowe tore his same ACL. Now Rowe will be out for the season with a long road of physical therapy ahead of him, as recovery after the surgery can be anywhere from 6 to 12 months.
 |
| Maryland Backup Quarterback, Caleb Rowe |
Rowe has now joined two of my teammates and the
150,000 other unfortunate people (most of the time athletes) who tore or will tear their ACL's this year.
Each year, ACL injuries account for more than $500 million in US Health Care costs. Statistics show
ACL injuries are common in teen athletes and that girls are 8 to 10 times more likely to tear their ACL's. Statistics also show that only 30% of ACL injuries are due to contact. 70% of the time, ACL's are freak accidents like talking an awkward step and just landing funny. Of the four ACL's that have been torn on my team, only one was due to contact. Rowe will join the 70% of the freak accidents. It truly is a long recovery process and it takes a lot of motivation from a lot of different people to get back out on the field. Hopefully Rowe and my teammate will be back faster than they think, as I am sure they are telling themselves for the second time.
I think that ACL tears are becoming more common as sports become more intense and demanding. It is impressive how much more often they are found in girls then in boys, making me wonder why. The fact that many of them result from non-contact accidents is also very puzzling, to me. Hopefully your friend is okay and back on the field as soon as possible!
ReplyDeleteJen,
ReplyDeleteFine job blogging overall this term. This post, however, seems to merely point out a phenomenon without really taking a position beyond the fact that it is a shame people get injured. How does it relate to American values? These ideas will take your posts farther.