Don’t put too much stock into the surgeon didn’t care due to insurance. They’re going to get paid, and most have no idea what your insurance is; their office people handle that stuff. I’d chalk it up to the guy just being a douche bag. There’s certainly no shortage of them around. I’ve got quite a few stories of their ways, including a guy I told my father NOT to see, but he did anyway.
There’s no way anyone would miss a complete ACL rupture on an MRI. When it completely tears, it doesn’t get cut in half and flop around, so to speak; it explodes. When it ruptures, there’s nothing left but a small stump, kind of like the stump left on a clam shell after you’ve pulled the clam out. On an MRI, you’d see no trace of an ACL, hence making missing it impossible.
I’ve never heard of an “ACL edema.” That’s a new one to me. If you had/have ACL damage, you either partially tore it, or what is quite rare in my experience (not sure how truly rare it actually is) is you may have an avulsion if the ACL, which is basically the ACL pulling itself partially off the bone, either taking a layer of bone with it or not. I’ve only seen one of those.
As far as I know, the ACL doesn’t repair itself very well, if at all. Hence why I said everyone I saw with a partial tear would’ve been better off with a full rupture. I’ve rehabbed them, and quite honestly it was a waste of everyone’s time. It’s ok for an office type person who plays bar league softball a few Sundays a year, but that’s about it IMO.
There’s really no way for me to tell what’s going on in your knee without putting my hands on it and watching you walk around. What you described as far as how it happened could lead to anything - ACL, MCL, LCL, meniscus, articular cartilage, etc. The MCL and LCL repair themselves, the ACL, PCL, meniscus and articular cartilage typically don’t.
“Locking” of your knee puts up a meniscus red flag, as does instability somewhat. The instability, especially when pivoting/turning red flags ACL damage and subsequent muscle atrophy. But that’s all just spitballing to be honest.
See an orthopedist. Ask him questions. Don’t let him yeah yeah yeah you. They typically think you know what they mean or that you won’t underst if they get technical. Tell them what you do for a living (teach MA?) and it’s hindering you. Tell him it feels like it’s getting to the point where you can’t work anymore. Ask for a referral to a physical therapist. If he says you don’t need one, ask why.
It’s hard describing how these guys’ brains work. I’ve been around a lot of them, so it’s easier for me to weed through and see the nonsense. It’s also easier for me to communicate with them than most people off the street.
Edit: Last thought - primary care doctors suck at this stuff, no matter how well intentioned they are. If you need a referral from your primary doc, don’t take no for an answer. You’ve been dealing with it for long enough.
