BEAR® Implant
Procedure

Orthopedic Associates is committed to providing the latest and most advanced treatments available. Board-certified family nurse practitioner Katie E. House, F.N.P.-C., and board-certified, fellowship-trained orthopedic sports medicine expert Ryan T. Pitts, M.D., work together to care for injured athletes of all ages. They are pleased to provide the BEAR procedure, or Bridge Enhanced ACL Restoration, as a treatment option for patients suffering an ACL injury.

The BEAR procedure is a new, evidence-based, minimally invasive surgical option that allows your ACL to heal itself. This cutting-edge technique works with your own body to heal the torn ends of your ACL back together. Before the BEAR Implant, traditional ACL reconstruction involved replacing your ACL with another tendon from your own body or a cadaver donor. While very successful, these techniques have some drawbacks.

HOW DOES IT WORK?

A thick liquid called synovial fluid is responsible for reducing friction between the bones in your knee. As important as this fluid is, it has previously prevented ACL repair from being an option, as the fluid blocked the body's healing response. The BEAR Implant acts as a bridge to the torn ends of your ACL and holds them in place, protected from the fluid, allowing the ACL to heal.

As opposed to traditional ACL reconstruction, the BEAR procedure preserves your other knee, as there is no need for a graft. The preservation of your own ACL tissue is another benefit, and both these factors may allow a more normal-feeling knee after return to sport.