Ligament ruptures require a decision on the best time for surgery based on the type of ligament. In general, reconstruction of anterior and posterior cruciate ligaments may take more than 6 weeks, while reconstruction of other ligaments may take less than 2 weeks.
In clinical practice, the doctor will make the appropriate treatment and choose the appropriate elective surgery according to the specific location and severity of the ligament injury, as well as the urgency and severity.
For simple ligament rupture, regardless of whether it is the first rupture or not, the principle is to carry out braking, traction, analgesia, swelling and other preliminary treatments for the relevant joints, so that the patient’s joint function is basically restored to normal, and then carry out elective surgery according to the situation.
For anterior and posterior cruciate ligaments, in situ reconstruction is required, so it is possible that the ligament reconstruction time will be more than 6 weeks, whereas for collateral ligament or other ligament injuries, fresh ligament repair is recommended, usually within 2 weeks.
If the patient has a ligament rupture combined with other areas of injury, then depending on the severity of the injury conservative treatment may not be an option and surgery should be performed as soon as possible.
In principle, ligament injuries can be treated conservatively or surgically, and it is important to consult a specialist as soon as possible after the injury so as not to miss the optimal treatment time.