Not everyone who gets a bone or joint injury sustains it while engaged in sports. Equally as often, hard-working men and women and everyday people suffer debilitating injuries at home or work. At Laredo Sports Medicine Clinic, we have successfully treated patients from all walks of life who happened to get hurt off the field. Our June 2018 Patient Success Story is just one of those all too common tales. The second in our series of patient success stories tell the experience of Agent Carlos Acevedo, who found relief from several injuries at Laredo Sports Medicine Clinic. LSMC is proud to showcase Agent Carlos Acevedo as our June success story.
Originally from the Valley, Agent Carlos Acevedo has served with the U.S. Border Patrol for ten years and is dedicated to long distance running. Due to the highly active and physically rigorous nature of the job, Carlos has experienced several injuries during his time as a Border Patrol Agent. The first injury occurred in June 2010, when Carlos was trying to remove someone from a cell, and six men fell and took his knee in with them. Carlos had his knee checked out by doctors after that incident and was informed that he sustained a sprain. However, Agent Acevedo noticed persistent pain while on his daily runs. He returned to his doctors with his concerns. An MRI was ordered, and the results showed that his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) was torn. In October 2011, Carlos underwent surgery with a surgeon in San Antonio to repair the torn ACL in his knee. After surgery, he returned to Laredo to begin physical therapy with Dr. Miguel Solis, Jr. at Laredo Sports Medicine Clinic. By February 2012, Carlos was released from physical therapy with his knee feeling 100%. Although there were some small limitations in movement, he returned to running and even began running marathons! Agent Acevedo went back into the field at work, and in April 2013, he sustained another injury. This time was not as bad as the last. Carlos had suffered a nasty sprain in his right ankle. He chose to drop in for another visit with Dr. Solis at LSMC to discuss his options. Dr. Solis started Carlos on physical therapy again and informed him that he could either continue wearing an ankle brace and maintain his prescribes stretches and exercises, or he could undergo surgery to fix his ankle, although the operation only had a 50% chance of success. Carlos chose to forgo surgery and continue physical therapy to heal his ankle.
His most memorable injury on the job occurred in April 2017. On a chilly night at 1:30 am, Agent Acevedo was chasing subjects caught with bundles of drugs. While running, he tripped and had a run in with the railroad tracks. The MRI taken after the fall showed the separation and detachment of the ACL Graft done in October 2011, as well as a tear in his meniscus and a small tear in his shoulder. Carlos returned to the doctors at Laredo Sports Medicine Clinic for treatment. In November of 2017, he underwent surgery performed by LSMC’s in-house orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Anish Potty. During this surgery, Dr. Potty reattached the ACL graft and performed a double-bundle graft to provide exceptional stability, which is especially important for someone as active as Carlos. In the same surgery, Dr. Potty repaired the torn meniscus as well. Carlos began physical therapy to start the recovery process. He has since been released from physical therapy, and has started running again – up to 6 miles only 7 months after surgery! There are still some sensitivity issues, but any instability he was feeling in his knee are long gone.
In March of this year, Agent Acevedo underwent surgery on his shoulder. Due to the complexity of the shoulder, the MRI only displayed an indication that there could be a tear. As a result, Carlos and his doctors made the decision to try steroid shots as an alternative to surgery, with the hope that the injections would help heal the shoulder. Unfortunately, the steroid shots did not improve the pain Carlos was suffering. Dr. Potty recommended that he perform a Biceps Tenodesis, to fix the possible damage. He planned to go in and repair the injuries he found while he inspected the shoulder. Dr. Potty found the tear in Carlos’ shoulder, as well as a bone spur. He repaired the damage and removed the bone spur. After surgery, Carlos returned to physical therapy, and as of today, is feeling great with 2 more weeks of treatment left and has regained 95% of his original range of motion.
It is safe to say Agent Acevedo has had his fair share of injuries on the job. He laughs about his many injuries now, but during those difficult months of surgery and rehabilitation, Carlos credits his doctors and physical therapists for helping him through it. Carlos states,
“What I like about LSMC is the therapists are great about challenging you in the right manner. When you are trying to gain strength, your body is tired by the end of the session. The therapists are always watching and asking about your pain levels and concerns. They are willing to modify the exercises and stretches to what your body can handle at that moment.”
So far, Carlos’ quality of life has improved tremendously. Carlos is a dedicated runner, and after getting injured and undergoing surgery, he had to stop running. He felt frustrated without his personal outlet but knew if he didn’t follow all the rules of recovery, he would not be able to run long distances in the future. Now, he feels like he’s returning to his active self and on par with his physical fitness.
Carlos’ advice for anyone feeling pain is
“Go see the docs! I’ve gone in there before when I’m not really sure I’m injured, just to get it checked out and make sure nothing is wrong.”
LSMC is proud to feature Agent Carlos Acevedo as our Patient Success Story for June 2018. We thank him for sharing his experience with us and are thrilled that he is feeling great and has regained his strength to continue running!
At Laredo Sports Medicine Clinic, our goal is to provide our patients the highest quality of care with passion and compassion. Laredo Sports Medicine Clinic is South Texas’ premier sports medicine and orthopedic care provider, located in Laredo, Texas.