Catherine Karas

I first came to Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) in early 2000. Soon after, I began running marathons. Through HSS, I came to better understand my running biomechanics. In particular, I discovered that my running pattern creates excessive instability upon foot strike. As a result, I have experienced a myriad of injuries, including stress fractures, bursitis, tendonitis, etc. A freak snowboarding accident on New Years Eve 2015 resulted in an ACL tear.

I was seen immediately by Dr. Beth Shubin Stein as referred to by my primary sports doctor, Dr. Lisa Callahan. Dr. Shubin Stein informed me that my ACL was "blown out" and I needed immediate reconstructive surgery if I wanted to run my next marathon anytime soon. I had Boston 2017 in mind so my goal was to get back to running as soon as possible. Surgery was performed on Jan 30, 2016 (I will never forget Dr. Shubin Stein signing my left knee then gently reassuring me it will be okay seconds before hitting twilight). I underwent 6 months of PT and in Sept 2016, I started running again, building my base in time to train for the Boston marathon.

16 weeks later, I successfully completed my 8th marathon on April 17, 2017, days before my 50th birthday. I have encountered many challenges in my lifetime and running helped tackle them gracefully. I was heartbroken thinking I could ever run again much less run another marathon. Thanks to the stellar staff at the Women's Sports Medicine Center at HSS, a major injury only became a minor setback in my running career.