The caudal cruciate ligament does the opposite of what the cranial cruciate ligament does. The caudal cruciate ligament attaches from the back of the tibia to the front of the femur, preventing excessive backward translation of the tibia. Isolated tears of the caudal cruciate ligament are usually caused by a blow to the front of the tibia and forcing it backwards on your dog’s leg. Since it takes a good amount of force to tear the caudal cruciate ligament, other ligamentous structures can be damaged as well. This is not a common injury, but one we see a few times a year.
Signs and symptoms of a caudal cruciate ligament tear include acute lameness of the affected limb, difficulty bending the stifle (knee) when sitting or lying down, and difficulty with other functional tasks. Dogs with a caudal cruciate ligament tear may sit with their affected leg rotated inward and sometimes away from the body.
In chronic tears, there is small damage that occurs without sufficient healing leading to more damage. This is referred to as achillodynia. Achillodynia can eventually lead to a complete rupture. In acute injuries we see a disruption of the tendon that ranges from mild to a complete rupture. A history of trauma may be present such as a jumping down, lunging, or a laceration.
Our doctors are commonly the ones to catch a caudal cruciate tear during our initial exam. Given that our team is well skilled in working with our hands, we are pretty good at catching those uncommon injuries. It is not a common ligament to test for in general practice, but is a part of our exam flow at Walking Paws Rehab. We may perform stressed radiographs too to confirm our exam findings of a caudal cruciate tear.
We currently don’t have a surgical procedure to fix a caudal cruciate tear in veterinary medicine. Physical therapy is the route to go. To date all our patients with caudal cruciate tears have healed successfully with our treatment. Custom orthotics may also be used to help provide external stabilization at the stifle, but is not common or backed by extensive research.
Our initial goals of rehabilitation for a caudal cruciate tear are to decrease pain, decrease swelling, relax muscles, and improve weight bearing through the use of our modalities, massage, and passive stretches. We then aim to rebuild the stabilizers of the stifle. Caudal cruciate tears build up a medial buttress to stabilize the knee just like it would with a cranial cruciate tear. The medial buttress prevents the shift motion from happening in the knee. We also rely very heavily on muscles to stabilize the knee. Physical therapy may consist of exercises focused on the quadriceps. Walking in the underwater treadmill may also be a part of your pet’s rehab plan.
If your pet has a caudal cruciate tear, you have come to the right place to get them walking comfortably again.
