By Kathleen Berger, Executive Producer for Science and Technology

At age 15, Alex Silies became the first surgery patient to hold two milestone patient titles. He’s the very first surgery patient at The Mercy Center for Performance Medicine & Specialty Care. And he became the first Mercy patient in the St. Louis region to receive a new type of ACL implant to speed recovery.

Silies was playing soccer for his club team in April when an injury sidelined him. After a trip to urgent care, he followed up with an orthopedic doctor and learned he would need surgery.

Mercy Clinic Orthopedic Surgeon Dr. David Irvine, chief of the division of orthopedic surgery at Mercy Hospital St. Louis, was Silies’ surgeon. Dr. Irvine is the first surgeon in the area to use the BEAR^® Implant, a new type of ACL repair. Dr. Irvine and the Silies family agreed the BEAR implant was best for Alex and the surgery was performed.

The BEAR, which stands for Bridge Enhanced ACL Restoration, procedure uses a sponge-like material containing the patient’s own blood to fill the gap in the torn ACL. Held in place with stitching, the BEAR starts the healing process and creates a bridge for the ligament to regenerate native cells. Within eight weeks, the body absorbs the implant and replaces it with new, natural tissue that gets stronger over time, versus previous implants that are permanent.

Dr. Irvine explained that ACL tears are in the knee joint where synovial fluid, the joint lubricant, can prevent clotting and keep the ligament from healing. Other techniques, such as ACL reconstruction, involve harvesting ligaments from other parts of the body which can increase pain and can result in a longer recovery.

“The new implant will protect the area during healing so we can repair the tears more anatomically,” Dr. Irvine said. “Early studies are promising, showing faster recovery of muscle strength and higher patient satisfaction regarding return-to-sports readiness.”

For patients to be considered candidates for the new technique, surgery needs to occur within 50 days of the injury, and enough ACL tissue must remain to adhere to the new implant.

Alex’s recovery proved shorter than other ACL repairs, involving regular physical therapy sessions at the Mercy Center for Performance Medicine.

For more about Alex’s injury, recovery and return to soccer, watch the HEC Media video story!