After tearing his ACL almost two years ago, 17-year-old Nicholas Pohorilenko wasn’t sure he’d ever return to the field at full strength. The Council Rock South High School tight end was injured when another player's helmet crashed into his knee.
"Honestly, I thought my sports career was over because a lot of people don't come back from that," Pohorilenko shared with CBS News Philadelphia.
However, thanks to Sommer Hammoud, MD, of Rothman Orthopaedics—who performed an ACL reconstruction with the Arthrex InternalBrace™ Technique—Pohorilenko is now ready for his senior season.
"Our young athletes who, in general, have the highest rate of ACL injury also, unfortunately, come with the highest rates of re-rupture," said Dr. Hammoud.
That’s one reason, Dr. Hammoud said, she turned to the InternalBrace technique, which uses a high-strength suture tape to protect the ACL graft during recovery. Acting like a seat belt, the tape supports the ligament from stretching too far or retearing as the patient returns to activity.