It is usually normal for your knee to feel numb and tingly after ACL surgery. This is because some small nerves are cut during the surgical procedure. Don’t worry, we’re not talking about the really important nerves that allow you to bend and straighten your knee, but the nerves that allow you to feel things around your knee. This video below explains all the reasons why your knee may feel numb and tingly after ACL surgery. For more information, read this blog about 5 tips to help you recover after ACL surgery.
Read Lauren’s blog: Why is my knee numb and tingling after ACL surgery? | Curovat
There are also 5 great blogs written by Lauren on our site where you can learn more about surgery and injury recovery.
If you have had an ACL injury or surgery, download Curovate from the links below. Curovate is a physical therapy app that offers daily video-guided exercises, progress tracking, in-app chat with a physical therapist to answer your questions about surgery or injury, and the ability to measure your knee’s range of motion using just your phone.
If you need more tailored help during your surgery or recovery from your injury, check out our Virtual Physiotherapy page to book your 1-on-1 video session with a physiotherapist.
1. Horteur, C., Cavalié, G., Gaulin, B., Cohen Bacry, M., Morin, V., Cavaignac, E., & Pailhé, R. (2020). Saphenous nerve damage after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction: Decreased area of numbness after ligamentoplasty using the quadriceps tendon compared to the hamstring tendon. The Knee, 27(4), 1151–1157.
2. Inderhaug, E., Strand, T., and Solheim, E. (2015). The impact of sensory deficits after hamstring autograft harvesting for ACL reconstruction. Knee surgery, sports traumatology, arthroscopy: Official Journal of the ESSKA, 23(4), 1060–1064.
3. Kjaergaard, J., Faunø, L. Z., & Faunø, P. (2008). Loss of sensation after ACL reconstruction with hamstring graft. International Journal of Sports Medicine, 29(6), 507–511.
4. Nerve Blocks for Surgery – Yale Medicine. (2020, July 02). Retrieved from https://www.yalemedicine.org/conditions/nerve-blocks-for-surgery
5. Ochiai, S., Hagino, T., Senga, S., Yamashita, T., Oda, K., & Haro, H. (2017). Damage to the infrapatellar branch of the saphenous nerve in anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction using vertical skin incision for hamstring harvesting: risk factors and influence on treatment outcome. Journal of Orthopedic Surgery and Research, 12(1), 101.
6. Sanders, B., Rolf, R., McClelland, W., and Xerogeanes, J. (2007). Prevalence of saphenous nerve damage after autogenous hamstring harvest: an anatomical and clinical study of tailor branch injury. Arthroscopy: The Journal of Arthroscopic and Related Surgery: Official Publication of the Arthroscopy Association of North America and the International Arthroscopy Association, 23(9), 956–963.
7. Wang, H. D., Zhang, H., Wang, T. R., Zhang, W. F., Wang, F. S., & Zhang, Y. Z. (2018). Comparison of clinical outcomes after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction with hamstring tendon autograft versus soft tissue allograft: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. International Journal of Surgery (London, England), 56, 174–183.
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