Suggest Treatment For Pain And Swelling In The Knee After Injury

Posted on Wed, 23 May 2018

Question: I was at gymnastics last night and I landed weird after a tumbling pass..I heard/felt a pop in my knee but didn’t think anything of it at the time because it didn’t really hurt, it did swell quite a lot though, it’s the afternoon after and I can’t even start to bend my knee w/o excruciating pain please help me out

Answered by Dr. Mahaveer Patil (1 hour later)

Brief Answer:
possible ligament injury

Detailed Answer:
Hi,

Thank you for posting the question.
I have gone through your medical history in detail.

From the symptoms,it seems that you may have injured a ligament inside your knee.A bony fracture seems less likely though.

Usually,after such kind of trauma,the anterior cruciate ligament inside the knee is the most common to get injured.The injury may be partial or a complete tear.

I would suggest you to apply ice packs and a knee splint / compression bandage around the knee.

Analgesic anti inflammatory tablets like tramadol,paracetamol or ibuprofen can help relieve the pain temporarily.

The first thing you should do is consult a nearby doctor,preferably an orthopaedic surgeon.Get an Xray/MRI of the knee joint done to rule out ligament injury.

Do let me know the report,once you get the MRI done.

I hope the answer was useful.

Feel free to ask me any follow up queries that you may have.

Thank you.
Kind regards.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Nagamani Ng

Follow up: Dr. Mahaveer Patil (6 hours later)

So I got an x Ray last night and they told
Me I did indeed complete tea my acl..they didn’t tell me how long my recovery would be though can you help me out, they also told me I have a slight fracture in my tibia again..I have no idea how that would’ve happened

Answered by Dr. Mahaveer Patil (10 minutes later)

Brief Answer:
need an MRI

Detailed Answer:
Hello again.

Xray shows only bones.Ligaments and other soft tissues are not seen on Xray.
Only and only an MRI can diagnose a torn ACL.
If its completely torn,it can be cured only by surgery.
If its a partial tear,a plaster cast would be needed.

The recovery period usually lasts from 1 - 3 months depending upon the extent of tear.

Thanks

Note: For further queries, consult a joint and bone specialist, an Orthopaedic surgeon. Book a Call now.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Vaishalee Punj