Patient Resources

Pre-Operative Bathing Instructions

Infection Prevention

Thank you for choosing Vail Health/Surgery Center for your care.  We are committed to your wellbeing.

There is a small risk of infection with any surgery.  Vail Health have a very low surgical site infection rate.  We work hard to prevent infections and want you to get involved and play a role in your health.

Because […]

Pre-Operative Bathing Instructions

Post-Operative Instructions & Guidelines

Do I need to quit smoking prior to surgery?

We encourage all tobacco users to quit 6 weeks prior to surgery. Tobacco use not only increases your risk for infection, but also delays bone growth and soft tissue healing.  It is also highly important to remain tobacco-free for a minimum of 6 months after surgery to […]

Post-Operative Instructions & Guidelines

Surgery Information

Dr. LaPrade is proud to be among the best medical professionals in the industry.  Our hospital and surgery center offer the most advanced and state-of-the-art computer systems, medical equipment and surgical instruments in the orthopaedic (orthopedic) industry today.

We offer our patients a comfortable, relaxed and organized setting so that your orthopaedic (orthopedic) knee procedure can […]

Surgery Information

Pre-Operative Instructions

Preoperative Planning

  • Preoperative clearance from your primary care provider is required for all surgical patients. Medical Clearance and documentation must be obtained within 30 days of your surgery. Please see below under “Preoperative Clearance by Primary Care Provider” for more detail.
  • Generally, Dr. LaPrade recommends staying in the Twin Cities for 5 to 10 days […]
Pre-Operative Instructions

Sports Test

The Sports Test that we require for athletes at the Steadman Clinic is comprised of four separate exercises with a 20 point scoring system.  The Sports Test is meant to test the athlete’s ability to demonstrate excellent muscle endurance strength in the lower extremity; the ability to effectively push off as well as have a […]

Sports Test

Functional Sports Testing

Functional sports testing may also be indicated in some patients who have had a previous surgery and otherwise seem to have normal knee stability and other problems. In this circumstance, it is important to determine whether the patient needs more directed physical therapy by working on their balance, improving their flexibility, increasing their overall strength, […]

Functional Sports Testing

Objective Use of Stress Radiographs

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Stress x-rays are an essential component of the workup for a patient […]

Objective Use of Stress Radiographs

GAIT Analysis

As mentioned previously, patients with posterolateral instability may have difficulty with normal gait. In these instances the patients normally have a varus thrust gait. In this circumstance, at foot strike the lateral aspect of the knee will gap open and the patient needs to shift their weight in order to reduce the knee back into […]

GAIT Analysis

Figure-4 Test

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The figure-4 test is performed in patients who may have tears of their popliteomeniscal fascicles to the lateral meniscus. These patients commonly present with vague lateral knee pain and often do not have any findings on the MRI scans […]

Figure-4 Test

Reverse Pivot Shift

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The reverse pivot shift test is a dynamic test, similar to the posterolateral drawer test, to assess for posterolateral rotation of the knee. A positive reverse pivot shift test is found in 35% of normal knees, so it is very […]

Reverse Pivot Shift
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