Hi, Back in November after having stood around for a long time & feeling stiff, then squatting down to loosen up my thighs (ie not even training!) I felt a tight burning pain over my right knee cap. I could stand straight up but for a month after that I felt pain going up and down stairs/standing up/sitting down etc yet could walk or even lightly jump without discomfort. I went to the docs gave roughly the same description of symptoms and was advised that I've damaged the surrounding muscle and it will heal in time. Fair enough. Now over two months on it has got better, but is still weak/verging on painfull at times and I have returned to training but wear a support bandage over it. My question to both any medical types out there or those who have experienced their share of dodgy knees is..what kind of test would you expect a doctor to have done? My doc never even looked at my knee or felt the knee cap move as I bent my leg etc. With hindsight I would have thought I should have got a more thorough examination. As its still not 100% I'm concerned there's long term damage & when I go back to see him I'd like to have an idea of checks to expect from the doc. Thanks for any advice..
Was there any swelling? Was there any limitation of movement? It is always hard to get an idea for what something is from a description over the internet but it sounds like you had/have patellar tendonitis. I have had the same in the past. It's also hard to know what a doctor may have advised. I suspect they would suggest rest and/or anti-inflammatory meds. If it was more acute icing, compressing and raising the leg may have been suggested. If you are unsure and it happens again I would pop along to your GP to have a quick look. It's good to know what the situation is before treating anything. For example, use of a support may actually weaken certain muscles that you actually want to strengthen.
go to a good physio, doctors just don't know anything when it comes to injurys etc. He didn't even look at it for Christ sake. I did my left knee in 9 weeks ago, saw a good physio told me what I had done which was then confirmed by a MRI scan. (very impressed) Let us know how you get on P.s do the exercise he gives and listen to him when he says rest etc
First of all, if you described your symptoms to your doctor the way it is and he is aware of your activity level, he may not really need to look at it. Pain in the knee cap, as somebody else mentioned, can be tendinitis which usually results from resistive quad sets, squats, lunges, and kicking in the air, without proper warm-up or pushing your leg to the extreme. As to special tests, your description of burning pain is a soft tissue pain, therefore, he really doesn't need to manipulate your knee cap. Although there are other tests for different types of knee injuries, i don't need describe them to you since no longer apply at this time. As to wearing the brace, you have to consider it as both a physical and psychological support. The brace will remind you not to push your leg to the limit in training (usually soft tissue injuries heal in 6 to 8 weeks depending on degree of injury and age). The other thing is that it should be accompanied by light strengthening exercises and isometrics so as not to lose your existing strength while using it. As to wearing schedule, you can gradually wean yourself from the brace by using it only in the afternoons. In the morning, your muscles are relaxed, fresh, but will decrease in endurance as the day goes on, gravity, and sustained contraction in keeping you upright. See a good physiotherapist to explain this better or ask your doctor to refer you to one.
Thanks Guys, I only wear the support whilst training but will see how I now get on without it. I know of a good sports physio (as recommended by a mate who went to see her for his back) so probably give it a little longer and go visit if its still not 100% .
when my knees went dodgy my doc did some tests on my knees, like watching them bend, feeling the cap and moving it, lightly pushing it from side to side nd stuff. Mine was wearing at the back of the caps nd I just needed to do some basic exersices to them to make them stronger, which I now get from training anyway! But I still can't lower all my weight onto one knee very well, I can feel it strain under the pressure :S
