Mission Statement

The common injury of an ACL tear
is one that affects countless athletes
in almost every sport. Unfortunately while common, this injury can ruin an athletes career. Recovering fully from an ACL tear could take 8 months to a year to recover, meaning an athlete could be "benched" or "red-shirted" for this time. And while a year may not seem like much time, to an athlete, especially one injured and watching from the sidelines, one year is an eternity.

This groups mission is to design and manufacture a prototype for a new ACL brace that would help prevent athletes from tearing their ACL in sports. A brace they could wear that would be equally supportive and mobile, and comfortable enough for athletes to be willing to wear this brace for all athletic activities          


http://www.braceshop.com/ProductCart/pc/catalog/images_donjoy/dynamicbrace.jpg
How the ACL tear happens:
The anterior cruciate ligament, or the ACL is one of the four major knee ligaments. This ligament connects the tibia and femur, and prevents the tibia, or the shin bone from sliding forward and rotating the femur, or thigh bone.  It is a very crucial ligament for the stability of the knee joint. A sudden change in direction is the most common cause of a torn ACL. Immediately after the ACL is torn, the knee will swell, and the athlete will feel a sharp pain in their knee. Most likely when the injury occurs, the athlete will hear a sudden "pop" as the ACL tears.

http://www.creativerehab.net/images/ACL%20Anatomy.jpg