Back in the game

Just like many other teens in the Columbus area, Bella Larsen competes in multiple activities inside and outside school. Larsen, now 16 and entering her junior year at Columbus High School, participates in softball, track and field, and is a member of the CHS Diamond Dance team. She is also a competitive dancer at iDance Project.

Last October, however, Larsen’s plans were turned upside down when she stepped up to bat during the opening game of the district tournament.

The batter’s box was wet and muddy after rainfall. Larsen stepped up to the plate, swung hard and rotated her body, but her foot did not rotate with her. Hours later, she learned she tore her patellar tendon and dislocated her knee.

She visited a health care provider near the tournament location for a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) test. Two weeks later, she learned she had torn the tendon and needed to undergo surgery with Dr. Kaare Kolstad, an orthopedic surgeon, at Columbus Community Hospital.

Before her knee surgery, Larsen’s experience of medical procedures was limited to dental work. “I knew I had to be put under, and the thought of that was very nerve-wracking for me —  especially because I had never had to do it before,” she said. “The CCH staff helped me feel less nervous prior to the surgery by thoroughly explaining what they were going to do and how they were going to do it.”

As a competitive athlete, Larsen wanted to get back in the game as soon as possible, but first, she needed to fully recover.

“My recovery was a lot longer than I anticipated,” she said. “I started physical therapy as soon as possible, and it was a very slow process. I wanted to get going right away, and it took a lot to slow myself down and relearn all the baby steps.”

Larsen had to learn how to perform even the smallest of movements, such as flexing her quadricep muscle, because she had lost muscle mass in her leg. She remained in physical therapy for five months before she was cleared in March 2023 just in time for track season.

“I really wanted to run again,” she said, “but I had a big metal block. It was hard to accept that I was not going to be better, or even as good as I was last season. I did not get to run in the first few meets for track last year, but I was able to compete in some meets toward the end.”

Larsen’s competitive attitude and positive spirit helped to get her back to competition as soon as she did.

“Like most highly competitive athletes, Bella struggled with the thought of sitting out,” said Brooke Hughes, the Columbus Community Hospital athletic trainer at Larsen’s school. “She was motivated by her strong desire for competition to push her back and keep her working. It was this attitude that allowed her to show up every day and work hard.”

Lasen also participated in some recovery and endurance training at the Columbus Sports Performance Center, which she accredits to getting her back to competition level.

Because she underwent her surgery close to home, Larsen could see the same doctors and work with athletic trainers and physical therapists she already knew. Though her road to recovery was longer than she anticipated, she is confident she will soon be back to where she once was as an athlete, and she accredits that to the people around her.

“While I was going to physical therapy, there were kids my age who had just undergone knee surgeries, too,” she said. “They really helped motivate me to work hard and continue to grow. I would not be where I am today on my journey to full recovery without the Columbus Orthopedic & Sports Medicine Clinic staff, physical therapists and athletic trainers, and my friends and family. I could not be more grateful or feel more blessed to be a part of this incredible community.”

For more information about Columbus Orthopedic & Sports Medicine Clinc, visit columbusorthopedics.com or call 402-603-6840.