In June of 2011, I Fell Forward and Hyperextended/twisted My Knee. Immediately Following the Fall…?
Question by LNC: In June of 2011, I fell forward and hyperextended/twisted my knee. Immediately following the fall…?
there was a lot of swelling and severe pain. I couldn’t really walk. The severe pain and swelling lasted about 5 days, but for at least 3 months following there was still severe pain whenever I straightened my leg too quickly or too far; the same with bending it. Eventually the severe pain went away, but whenever I worked out or did something too fast or too much, I would get a sharp pain. About 8 months after the fall, I went to my doctor. He performed some tests and could feel that something was up, so I got an x-ray and an MRI, but nothing showed up on the those, so I let it go. I am a collegiate level athlete and my knee still bothers me. I didn’t go to the hospital in the first place because I am an athlete who couldn’t afford an injury, but now it’s still bothering me. What should I do?
Best answer:
Answer by 62,040,610 Idiots
“I didn’t go to the hospital in the first place because I am an athlete who couldn’t afford an injury . . . ”
That is exactly wrong: an athlete cannot afford to leave an injury untreated.
And so you should go to doctors now to get this clarified. Especially since your doctor already told you that there was something wrong.
My guess is that you had a partial tear of the PCL. This is consistent with what you describe. A complete rupture would be painful immediately, but then the pain usually subsides and people show up at the clinic because the joint is swollen and ‘feels funny’, ‘loose’, or ‘weird.’ You had pain that lasted a while, and the nature of the fall coupled with the swelling would indicate a possible PCL problem.
You don’t describe pain on either side of the knee, so I assume you refer to pain inside the joint. This makes injury to the MCL or LCL less likely.
Since you aren’t complaining of buckling, locking, or clicking, I think the meniscus cartilages could be OK. A PCL injury on its own is rare though, so I wouldn’t rule out cartilage damage entirely.
But, you know, I am some random person on Y!A, so you can only really get a diagnosis by seeing an orthopedist. They will probably want to see your previous MRI, or will give you a new one. If your earlier doctor was an orthopedist, then I would question their competence, and look for another one – unless, of course, you were the one who skipped out on recommended further appointments and tests.
HTH.
PS – I am going to guess that you are an athlete on a club team, because if you were on one of the scholarship squads the team physicians would have had you in the clinics continuously until the problem was solved.
PPS – An injury to the PCL – or any other injury – would not necessarily lead to surgery. It is possible, especially since you have been coping, that physical therapy to strengthen and stretching would be enough to protect your joint from further trouble. But understanding what is wrong is the first step. (DeJuan Blair, for example, of the San Antonio Spurs plays NBA basketball without either ACL – google it.)
Answer by Michelle
Hello, I’m sorry about your knee. Knee injuries can be serious and there’s a lot in the knee that can be hurt and cause pain. What other symptoms do you have if any? The the symptoms of a torn ligament which are a popping noise/feeling when the injury first occurs, pain, swelling that usually occurs within hours of the injury, buckling or giving way sensations in the knee, and excessive motion in the knee. The symptoms of a torn meniscus are pain located on the outer or inner side of the knee, swelling that occurs 2-3 days after the injury but not always, the inability to fully bend or straighten the knee/leg, a buckling or giving out sensation, clicking or popping in the knee, and knee locking. The tear can cause popping or clicking because the torn part can get caught in the joint space. Those are just two common types of knee injuries.
I highly recommend you see an orthopedist (aka an orthopedic surgeon) (bone and joint doctor). They specialize in this specific area and will provide the most/best help. Skip the family doc or hospital if you can; they won’t do much except maybe xray your knee and then send you home when the xray comes back fine. You could have soft tissue damage. Or if they think your knee needs further evaluation, they’ll refer you to an orthopedist anyway. So, skip that step if you can, and go to an orthopedist.
Your orthopedist will ask what happened and what symptoms you’re experiecing. He then will examine your knee by palpating (feeling) and maybe doing some “hands-on” tests. These tests just involve bending your knee and moving your leg around in certain ways to check for possible injuries. An example of one of these tests is the Lachman test used to evaluate for ACL tears or the McMurray’s Test used to evaluate for meniscus tears. You can google or YouTube it if you’re interested. You may be sent for another MRI. An MRI will show any damage done to the soft tissues, cartilage, ligaments, and tendons. The orthopedist will have a good idea of what’s causing this and then will send you for the MRI if he thinks it’s necessary. You’ll then meet back with your orthopedist to go over your results and discuss the best treatment for what’s wrong.
I agree with the other answer- you should see an orthopedist. They’ll get you answers and help.
You can also look at this website:
http://orthopedics.about.com/od/kneesymptoms/p/Knee-Pain-Symptoms.htm
It describes knee pain and symptoms and the injuries associated with them. Maybe it’ll give you an idea of what’s wrong with your knee.
Good luck!
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