Revolutionary ACL treatment puts athlete back on track

Antonio Parker was emotionally crushed when he injured his knee. The now 18-year-old was a high jumper and sprinter for Apopka High School and thought his athletic career was over.

“I've been running track since I was like 6. So, it's always been a part of my life,” Parker said. “When I got injured, I was just lost. I didn't know what to do.”

The fix would come through a revolutionary procedure, called a BEAR®️ Implant, which AdventHealth for Children's pediatric orthopedics program leads the nation in performing.

“When I first heard I had to get surgery, I was thinking of, like: ‘How am I gonna get back to track? Would I still jump the same? Would I still run the same?’” Parker said.

Dr. Sean Keyes, a pediatric orthopedic surgeon at AdventHealth for Children, completed the outpatient surgery in about an hour. Once implanted, the BEAR®️ device, which uses a sponge-like purified collagen from cows, turns into a blood clot, allowing the ACL to essentially heal itself. Keyes says the implant also helps stave off arthritis, which surgically repaired ACLs have a 78% chance of developing within 14 years.

“By restoring and repairing the ACL, the knee moves and functions more normally, preserves the nerve fibers and hopefully that prevents arthritis,” Keyes said.

AdventHealth for Children was the first in Central Florida to perform a pediatric BEAR®️ Implant and completes more than 60 of the procedures every year, making the hospital a national leader in the procedure. The implants often return young athletes, like Antonio Parker, back to their sports better than ever.

“When I asked him to jump as part of my sports testing, he about hit his head on the ceiling. So, I knew he was doing really well,” Keyes said.

Parker was back on the track just five months after surgery, leading a lot of his friends to question Antonio about how it was possible. His elated answer was simple. “I said, ‘I got a BEAR®️ Implant!’”