Anterior and Posterior Cruciate Ligament Injury

Cruciate Ligament Injuries
The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and the posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) work together to provide stability in the knee. They cross each other and form an 'X.'
Injuries to the cruciate ligaments of the knee are typically sprains. The anterior cruciate ligament is most often stretched, or torn by a sudden twisting motion while the feet remain planted. The posterior cruciate ligament is most often injured by a direct impact, such as in soccer or football.
ACL partial or complete tears can occur when an athlete changes direction rapidly, twists without moving the feet, slows`down abruptly, or misses a landing from a jump

See ACL - degree of injury slide
PCL injuries (image) are likely with impacts to the front of the knee, or from hyperextending the knee.

Cruciate ligament injuries don't always cause pain, but typically cause a loud "pop."
Treatment
Incomplete tears are treated conservatively to allow the body to hear on its own. Rest, ice, compression and elevation are the immediate treatment. Nsaids can help reduce pain. Physical therapy will be used to build muslce strength over time. For a complete tear of the ACL Arthroscopic surgery is usually performed.

ANTIOXIDANT

Submitted by Dr. Tamer Fouad, M.D

In the aerobic environment, the most dangerous product are the species of reactive oxygen. The role of antioxidants is to detoxify reactive oxygen intermediates (ROI) in the body. Over the past several years, nutritional antioxidants have attracted considerable interest in the popular press as potential treatment for a wide variety of disease states, including cancer and other causes e.g. atherosclerosis, chronic inflammatory diseases and aging (Delany L. 1993).

Definition

An antioxidant is a substance that when present in low concentrations relative to the oxidizable substrate significantly delays or reduces oxidation of the substrate (Halliwell, 1995).
Antioxidants get their name because they combat oxidation. They are substances that protect other chemicals of the body from damaging oxidation reactions by reacting with free radicals and other reactive oxygen species within the body, hence hindering the process of oxidation. During this reaction the antioxidant sacrifices itself by becoming oxidized. However, antioxidant supply is not unlimited as one antioxidant molecule can only react with a single free radical. Therefore, there is a constant need to replenish antioxidant resources, whether endogenously or through supplementation

Antioxidant System

The body has developed several endogenous antioxidant systems to deal with the production of ROI. These systems can be divided into enzymatic and nonenzymatic groups. Figure 4 summarizes the sites of action of the various antioxidants.