My dislocation of the patella – physiotherpay and beyond
This is the third and final segment of my lateral dislocation of my right patella saga. The journey has taken us through the early stages, the middle stages, and now its ultimate conclusion: the physiotherapy.
The first week of physio was really tough. My quadriceps had completely disappeared. I had no muscle, it was weird to look at and depressing to see how quickly muscle can deteriorate (the doctor and physiotherapist both said that after 3 days of inactivity your muscles will start to deteriorate, your body determines that it isn’t essential so it breaks it down ). But my quad wasn’t the focus; it was my knee, and getting its full range of motion back. At the beginning of the week I could barely bend my knee at all, but after a grueling week of physio my range started improving. Aside from the exercises, I also had the electrodes hooked up to the knee; this would work the muscle around the knee. I also had an ultrasound type thing that was rubbed around the knee and surrounding area to break up the scar tissue that had formed on the tendons. What happened in my situation was that I had stretched my tendon to the point of just about breaking it apart, and because of that trauma there was a lot of micro fibrous tears throughout the tendon; and that is what the physiotherapist needed to repair as well.
This aspect of my recovery stayed consistent throughout. The other areas came once he felt my range of motion was good, as well as my balance and step.
From there I moved into doing the bicycle as well as the leg press, and the kick-back/kick-forward machine. The leg press wasn’t too bad, it was low weight with increasing repetitions (over time the weight was increased as well). Once again it is amazing how weak my leg had become because of this whole situation. However, my progress was good and I kept on trucking. The kick forwards were really really bad though, and painful too.
The bicycle, well, at the beginning it was DEADLY! At first I couldn’t do a complete rotation, it hurt way too much. Being the guy that I am though, I thought “let’s just give er a bit more shall we?” and by accident I made a full rotation; dear sweet-lord did I pay for it, it hurt something awful and the physiotherapist gave me some harsh words as well. It was a stupid move on my part and I never tried to be a rock-star in my recovery from that point forward. I did what I was told and went at my physiotherapists pace.
As I had mentioned in the previous post, after the first week I switched the crutches for a cane, which wasn’t too bad since he taught me how to use it properly (parallel with your bad leg as you walk and not out in front of it like a lot of people do), and after a week of the cane it was no aids whatsoever. It was a bit tricky at first but I eventually got the hang of it, although stairs were still quite hard and I had to concentrate and take it easy.
Another great recommendation by my physiotherapist was water therapy. All I needed was a swimming pool that had a shallow area that got progressively deeper. The reason for this was that in the beginning I was simply to just walk around in water that was up to my waist, what this allowed for was my body to get that sense of balance and the walking movement/motion yet still having the benefit of the water to help take the strain of weight and gravity off my leg. After doing this for a while I also added in periods of doing the bicycle motion under water as well. I really felt that this additional component of my physiotherapy really helped the progress of my recovery.
All in all everything was slow and took time but I kept progressing well. The only problem was that work was pushing to have me return to work, and before I knew it they asked my physiotherapist for his recommendation. Being the ethical gentleman that he is (which is important to me) he let them know that although I still required therapy I wasn’t in a position where I couldn’t travel to work and do my job. And that was the end of that. I was back to work and my life returned to its normal state and physiotherapy fell by the way side. It is completely my fault for letting that happen. I could have found some way to balance a strong continued recovery regimen but I didn’t. And I know that I am not 100% recovered because of it. My leg gained some muscle back but not close to what I had before. My knee still hurts from time to time depending on my level of activity, and the weather tends to affect it also, especially when it is a damp and rainy day. It makes crunchy noises too at times, which has me worried that scar tissue may have built back up. That being said, I need to fit my recovery back into my schedule or else things will never get better. I don’t want to be the person that says oh well, I guess that is the way things are and I am just going to have to live with it; I don’t want to live with this discomfort and pain, I don’t want to think that way, and I agree that right now this is the way things are but they don’t have to stay this way. I can do something to change it. And I will.
If anyone else has a knee injury recovery story I would love to hear it.
All the best,
Jonesy
Hi i was just reading your story, I fell at work on Oct 5 08 because some really clever person dripped bacon fat on the floor and didnt clear it up properly. i walked in slipped and my right leg went awkwardly over and i felt 3 cracks as i hit the floor it was like someone had turned a tap on in my knee and i new i had done something bad, my leg was locked! the ambulance crew arrived felt my knee and thought it was ligament damage as my knee cap was no where to be seen because it had swelled up so much so they put me on gas and air and got me to hospital where i had a rather painful xray which confirmed a dislocated pattela by this point i had gas and air and morphine. Then 2 doctors came in and one took my right leg and slid the patella back into place. excruciating pain!! but was less painful once it was back. I was put in plaster and sent home. i visited my fracture clinic 4 days later were an orthopedic doctor refered me to physio and took my plaster of. it was horible it was like my leg was dead. i could not even lift it slightly!!my knee felt like jelly? there was nothing there at all to support me. i had a 3 week wait before i started physio and since then it is getting better. although i am finding the physio incredibly painful. I feel a very strong nipping sensation under my knee cap when i bend it and the muscle at the left of my knee cap is tight and painful. Its true what they say… no pain no gain!! i am weight bearing with crutches now and just started climbing the stairs to sleep in my bed just 3 nights ago!!! it seems to be getting stronger every day, but i feel terrified like i have lost trust in my knee? Although my physio seems to think my cruciate ligaments are ok she said it will be a while before my knee settles down. so its not a knee recovery story as such but getting there!!!!
Wow, thank you so much for sharing your story Clare. I could definitely feel the pain that you were enduring. OUCH!! But it is really nice to hear that you are recovering so well, keep up with your physio and keep getting better. =)
I love how you said that you are terrified because you feel like you have lost trust in your knee. That is exactly how I felt in the early stages of my recovery as well (and at times when my knee gets sore again). Nicely put.
Thanks again, and keep me updated if you can.
cheers,
Jonesy
Hello!
Well I can completely identify with your story….I found it after much googling of the words’patella dislocation’!
I dislocated my patella on Oct 31st ’08, I had just arrived at a party, I was in the kitchen and someone had spilt beer on the floor, I took a step backwards and slipped. It wasn’t the most dramatic looking of falls, I landed on my bum with my legs in front of me, but then all of a sudden I felt like I was about to hurl and the pain was terrible! I was lifted upstairs (I was passing out at this stage) and laid on a bed; this is when I think the knee popped back into place. I didn’t see it as I was wearing dark stockings on my legs, which were then cut off and my friends and I had a look at it (my right one if you’re interested) and it was *huge*, like the size of 3 knees. An A&E visit followed, where I was given 2 paracetemol and told to return later that morning which I did, for an X-Ray. Everything looked normal on the Xray, it took a later MRI and Ultrasound to see that it had definately dislocated and chipped some cartilage along the way. I was given crutches during this time, and used them for 7 weeks. My quads were 100% shut down, I failed the straight leg raise test, and I was met by disbelief at the Ortho clinic in my hospital :”We usually don’t see someone whose muscles have deteriorated so rapidly” and I’m like thanks Doc. I’m 24, quite fit, I did a lot of long-distance cycling that year and it was frightening to see my once normal and quite strong muscles just vanish. I was pretty much despairing by the time Xmas came around, but I started to see a very good Physio, who happens to be right near my house. She recommended this thing called Kneehab, it’s an electro-impulse kit that is shaped like a bandage (see http://www.neurotech.co.uk/kneehab_home.php)
and after just 2 sessions of Kneehab suddenly I could move, just a tiny bit though- my leg! It honestly felt like a miracle…after 2 months of complete unresponsiveness, being stuck on the couch and in pain, finally I was getting somewhere. It’s been about 2 weeks since the quads have kicked in now, and they still appear totally wasted especially when I compare my good leg, it’s like the skin is just hanging off the bone. Pretty gross. BUT I am way more optimistic now that I am doing more intense physio and slowly seeing results…I have to do calf-stretching exercises, quad tightening and leg raises up to 200 times a day. Operation still not ruled out, my Ortho consultant is ‘treating the knee conservatively’. All the ligaments are ok thank god. It was amazing how one fall did so much damage, and how much this injury impacts on your daily life. I am still out of work and won’t return til the end of this month. I went for a longish walk today (about an hour) and it was a bit scary cause of the knee feeling unstable, it tends to buckle without warning once or twice a day. Running is completely out for a long time I think! One of the worst things by far is the weather affecting mobility…I live outside Dublin in Ireland and it’s super icy in winter and I slipped on black ice the other day and well to say my heart was in my mouth as I nearly fell would be an understatement.
How are you doing with recovery now? Hope you are well!
B.
Rebecca, Thank you so much for taking the time to share your experience. You had quite the ordeal, but it is great to hear that your recovery is coming along quite nicely. =) Keep doing your exercises and keep on with the walking, running will come along soon enough; all in moderation. I can proudly say that I was able to do 30 minutes on my eliptical machine last night. I was great! Zero pain and zero discomfort, even the day after my knee is feeling normal. Being the way that I am, I will have to remind myself to not get too excited, and start pushing myself too far. I will keep up with the pace that works for me right now, and bit by bit increase the time and resistance setting. Before I know I will be on the road to being fit again.
You are absolutely right Rebecca, it takes an injury such as what we have gone through to truly appreciate and respect our mobility.
I look forward to hearing more about your progress.
Take care,
Jonesy
I first dislocated my right patella on the night of my 18th in January 07. I turned in bed and twisted it the wrong way. Went to hospital, got it popped back in and was given a splint and crutches. 6 weeks later saw the specialist who diagnosed Ligamentous Laxity. I had very brief physio, too painful so I gave up. About 4 months later, it dislocated again, same drill with it all again. Didn’t do physio. It is a very recurrent problem for me now, it dislocated again 2 days ago, it’s the 5th time in just over 2 years. This time I didn’t bother with the splint, I find it can be too restricting, so I used a tube grip which I took off this morning. Basically my right knee is very damaged now, there is loose cartilage, overstretched ligaments and torn tendons. My advice to anyone who ever dislocates a knee: Do the physio! lol. Because I thought I didn’t need it, my knee is now in a condition where a lot of the damage is permanent and irriversible. I could have the op to tighten the ligaments, it may prevent future dislocation, but it comes with a great deal of pain, and I’ve had enough of that over the past 2 years lol
Leanne, thank you for sharing. Much like the others that have shared you have quite the predicament. You offer up some great advice and unfortunately my stubbornness keeps wining out and I have yet to go back to my physiotherapist for a “current state” analysis/diagnosis. The crunching in my knee when stand after bending down is crazy!
I really wish the best for you Leanne. I hope that everything works itself out and you no longer have to endure the amount of pain that you have been going through.
All the best,
Jonesy
Thank you for taking the time to post your story and all the great info.
I dislocated my patella while standing on a boat. The boat took off and I lost my balance. I heard a loud POP, felt a horrible pain about the same as childbirth, and fell to the ground. I thought I broke my knee when I saw the bulge on the outside of my leg (it was my knee cap). I had to sit on the bottom of the boat for about 45min. until we got to the dock where an ambulance took me on a 1/2 journey to the hospital. X-rayed, splinted and told to see a dr in a couple of days. I was told I tore a bunch of ‘stuff’ in my knee and to ice and rest.
I’m 3 weeks post dislocation and still very swollen but pain has gotten a bit more bearable. I see the dr in 2 weeks and hope to be fitted with a walking brace. I’m sick of sitting around on the couch trying to keep busy while the world is out enjoying summer.
I hope I can start physio in the next couple weeks. The best thing the physiotherapist gave me and I recommend it to everyone is a Cyro Cuff pack. It’s like a blood pressure cuff and is hooked up to a container of ice water which fills up the cuff and completely surround the knee with cold water. It’s heavenly and I use it several times a day and brings instant relief.
When I asked the doc when I’ll be walking around he told me several months. Can anyone tell me in reality how long it took until they were up and walking again after the injury?
Thanks!
Hi Jen,
Thanks for sharing. It is always interesting to hear the various ways people have dislocated their knees; I believe you are the first share a “at sea” story. =)
That Cyro Cuff gadget sounds pretty cool, wish I had it during my recovery. In regards to your question about whether your doctor is off the mark in the timeline for when you will be back on your feet….I would say it is fairly accurate based on your situation, which seems similar to mine and I was up and around and back to work in two months. I think I was able to “walk” after a month and a bit. That being said, there could be other things particular to your situation that may expedite or hinder your progress; it is very subjective.
All the best in your recovery and please keep us updated.
Cheers,
Jonesy
I came across this site after googling ‘patella dislocation’ to compare my story with others, but I seem to have had a lucky escape! I dislocated my right patella 2 weeks ago yesterday whilst dancing in a night club, it popped out to the side and went straight back in again, but then the pain was unbearable and an ambulance was called. I was given a full leg bandage and given a follow up appointment at the fracture clinic for the friday morning, 3 days after, where they have me a cricket splint and I was told to wear for 3 weeks and make a follow up appointment and physio. Unfortunately this happened at the end of my uni term so I had to make the appointment at my hospital at home, which I had today. It was only 2 weeks after instead of 3 but I couldn’t get another one. Today the doctor has told me to keep the splint on for 2 more weeks as ligaments have torn in order for my knee cap to have moved, however I have had no pain at all, even the day after the accident and have put full weight on my leg and only really used my crutches for long distances. I went to physio and she said I have ‘hypermobility’ where my joints are bendy and more prone to dislocation, so my injury isn’t that major. She doesn’t think I need the splint on for 2 weeks and has given me exercises to do at home and advised me to take the splint off for little periods whilst at home and try to walk on it ( I didn’t want to say that I have been doing this anyways without any pain)
My knee is a little stiff but I can straighten it nearly all the way and can bend it to a right angle and even more with no pain whatsoever. I have another physio appointment next week, but luckily my dislocation doesn’t seem to have caused me as much pain and discomfort as others!
Hi Shell,
Thank you for sharing your story and glad to hear you “had a lucky escape”. =) Those must have been some serious dance moves you were working to make your knee dislocate. Hehehe.
It seems like everything is going to work out for you, recovery wise, although I guess with the hypermobility you are going to have to tone things down a bit….at least on the dance floor. =)
All the best, and good luck with the physiotherapy. Keep us posted.
Jonesy
On June 20th, around 9pm, I was about to finish a two mile walk, when I decided to run my last 100 meters. This was not a good decision, because I have not ran that hard or fast in a long time. As I reached a high rate of speed, I heard a pop and my right knee gave out. My left knee hit the rubber track first, peeling off a few layers of skin. (Rubber track wipeouts at high rates of speed are not advisable.) There was pain and immediate swelling in my right knee. By morning, the swelling was pretty bad, not only around my knee, but my foot and ankle was huge! I went to the ER. They thought I tore the meniscus, so they put me in a knee immobilizer and gave me crutches and an ice pack. They didn’t explain how to get around on the crutches. Being a first timer, this was quite an experience. Especially travelling up and down stairs. Two weeks later, I had an MRI and finally seen an orthopedic surgeon. It was not a meniscus tear, but a dislocation of the patella. They didn’t think I needed surgery. They sent me to a physical therapist who gave me some exercises to do at home. It’s been a slow process, as it took me a week and a half to get off of the crutches. I can walk, but still can’t straighten my leg completely. There is swelling on both sides of my knee. Did everyone else have this? It’s been almost a month since the accident. I’ve been using ice, but not as often as I should. I have another appointment with the orthopedic surgeon in four days. I’m afraid if it doesn’t go down, he will want to stick a long needle in my knee and drain fluid. From what I’ve heard, this is not a pleasant experience. It’s been great reading all of these stories. It’s nice to know I’m not alone.
Hi Lori,
Thank you for sharing your story. Looks like you had the perfect set up for the dislocation (two mile walk followed by a crazy 100 meter dash); similar to my situation your muscle was too fatigued to try and keep the knee in place. Ouch! Same situation for me with the crutches as well. The hospital just gives em to you without any instructions. It wasn’t until a week later when I had my first Ortho visit that I was shown the proper way of going up and down a flight of stairs (fun stuff). My knee still maintained a fair bit of swelling, but I was combating that with lots of intermittent icing as well as taking ibuprofen. Hopefully you don’t have to go the draining route, that definitely doesn’t sound like fun, but I guess if it has to be done then it has to be done. Stay strong.
Looking forward to hearing your progress,
Jonesy
Thanks for your series of posts! I just came across this, like the others, after Googling “kneecap dislocation timeline,” and it is indeed good to hear other stories (though I’m not sure you bargained for becoming a group-therapy blog for patella sufferers!).
I dislocated my patella on July 4, about 15 minutes before we had family over to watch fireworks here in Ohio. Seemingly no reason for it — I was finishing work in a garden, stood up and took a step, and the knee just gave out. And like everyone else, it hurt to no end. Squad came, and the EMTs gave a bad joke about all the local hospitals being closed for the holiday, which really wasn’t too funny in my situation…
Thankfully, they sedated me in the ER before popping it back into place, then gave me crutches and a straight-leg brace and showed me how to basically hop on one foot. I, too, hated sitting around so much! But three days later, saw an orthopedic doc who did X-rays, ordered an MRI in two more days and showed how to walk with just one crutch, which was really a Godsend. He basically said my kneecaps are just more crooked than most, and so might come out. Well, that’s reassuring… Next week, saw him again, and he said the MRI showed no tears. Set up an appt. for rehab starting next week.
Right now, actually able to walk pretty well with the one crutch, and to get small distances with no crutches, if I just keep a stiff leg. But the brace is driving me absolutely crazy — never realized how many things require bending our leg. Swelling is well done, and the doc doesn’t think any draining is needed. Still, it hurts to no end to bend the knee much, though perhaps partly it;s just a fear of re-dislocating it. I’m mainly hoping that the rehab guy says I’ll be able to bend it enough to drive to grad school about 6 hours away by the end of August, since I’m rally not sure I can stand being driven around lying in the back of a car for that long. (Luckily, my left knee is the bad one, so I don’t really use it to drive — but it needs to be able to fit in the car…) How long did it take you to get back to being able to drive?
Thanks again for your stories, and for all the others’ stories! As they’ve said, nice to know I’m not alone!
Hi Robbie,
Glad to hear that you find this series of posts helpful, and yes, you are not alone in your recovery. I think it is awesome that this series of posts has become so popular. I wrote it because when my dislocation happened to me I couldn’t find any real life/real people information on it. It was all medical journals and very convoluted info that really didn’t do much to ease my concerns and curiosities about what to expect during my recovery. I am so grateful that I have been able to provide a place for people to find some peace of mind and support; woohoo!
You should start to see some serious progress once you start your physiotherapy/rehabilitation. In regards to the driving timeline….hmmmmm, I wouldn’t be able to give you an accurate estimate because I dislocated my right knee, so driving wasn’t an option for a few months or so. Hopefully you are able to drive well before then.
Good luck and keep us posted.
Jonesy
I was playing beach volleyball two weeks ago when it happened. I jumped up to block the ball but it hit the net and I followed it down while my legs were still in a jumping position. As soon as I landed on my feet I fell right to the ground because I felt something unusual. I heard a cracking noise, just like if you were to crack all of your fingers at the same time. The noise vibrated through my body and it was shocking to see that my knee was out of place. I had absolutely no idea what was wrong with my leg. It was like one of those really disturbing skateboarding accident videos you see. I thought I had lost my leg for good. The strange thing was I wasn’t in that much pain after it happened. Not until 5 minutes later did the pain come, slowly but surely.
After about a 45 min wait the ambulance came and they strapped my legs together. They gave me “funny gas” which I was extremely thankful for because it completely numbed the pain.
After I got to the hospital it took about 2 hours for the doctor to relocate my knee. After another hour I had an x-ray. After another 2 hours the nurse merely came in with crutches and told me I could leave. I asked to speak with the doctor because he did not give me any information at all! I waited another 45 minutes for him to come in and the first thing I asked him was when would I be able to walk again? He told me “you will be walking within a week”! He told me I could take the brace off in 3-4 days.
Exactly one week later my brace was still on, knee still swollen, and there was no way I could even stand. However, it’s been two weeks and I made an appointment with my family doctor for next week. The first 3 days were very painful and didn’t involve me moving a lot. After I slowly started moving around the house with my crutches. After a week I took the brace off and my leg, surprisingly, shrank drastically. I can now walk with two crutches and somewhat use my damaged leg (right one) to support some weight. After the first day of actually trying it, my achilles tendon became extremely sore and my upper calve is even more so. I have started bending my knee little by little after I took the brace off just to stretch it and it seems to be moving farther everyday now. Before I read this website, the only thing that was keeping me from trying to slowly walk and stand with no support was my muscle atrophy. I can feel and see the lack of power from my leg muscles from not using them. I was going to continue with my little routine, however, I think I will go see a physiotherapist after reading some of the posts. I really don’t want to damage myself in the long run! I hope everyone gets better and thank you for sharing your supportive stories!
Hi Michael,
Thanks for taking the time to share your story and glad to hear that you were able to gain some insight from the other posts. Definitely wait to see the physiotherapist before doing any “experiments” with your leg. It’s kind of like those warnings before stunt shows “do not try this at home”. =)
Looking forward to hear your progress.
Jonesy
Hello again,
It’s now been nearly 9 weeks and I’m just wondering why the heck it’s taking so long? Does anyone know the average time frame to ‘get back to normal’? I can’t believe how much pain I still have, especially at night. I wake up with an electric storm in my knee.
I’ve got a walking brace now, which is good for small distances, and one crutch for longer walks. My knee still swells up huge by the end of the day and still can’t straighten completely or bend more than about 60 degrees.
Someone give me hope? This feels like it will last forever!!!! I’m envious of those of you who are up and walking without pain after a week or so.
Jonesy, how long has it been since you had your dislocation, and do you still get pain in your knee?
Hi Jen,
Sorry to hear that things are progressing as well as you would like them to. I know how frustrating that can be. Has your physiotherapist or Doctor told you anything? Much like anything related to the human body, I feel that this is a very subjective ordeal; each person heals and recovers differently than the other. Some fast, some slow, some with pain and some without.
I dislocated my knee back in the end of June of 2007, so that puts it at just over 2 years ago (wow, amazing how fast time goes by). Unfortunately Jen, I hate to be mr. buzzkill here, but my knee still hurts from time to time. I have been able to do an hour on the eliptical machine with no concerns, but running for long distances is definitely out of the question. The majority of the pain comes from bending too low and then getting back up, as well as sitting in one spot for prolonged periods of time. Sometimes the pain is fleeting, while others it can last for a while (at which point ibuprofen helps a lot). The crunchiness hasn’t gone away either. Anytime I bend my knee I can feel it. I don’t want to make you feel more depressed about your situation Jen, I am just letting you know how it is with me (currently). Does this mean that your future holds the same? I don’t know. My biggest advice would be don’t do what I did and stop going to the physiotherapist. As much as I say I am going to go I still haven’t made it enough of a priority. Things keep getting in the way. One day. =(
Hang in there Jen.
Jonesy
Well then Mr. Buzzkill thanks a lot for that wonderful news!
I think I might go absolutely crazy if my knee still hurts after 2 years. Do you wear a patella stabilizer at all? I got one two days ago and I find it actually helps. Something about pain is caused when the patella isn’t tracking right so the brace helps it to track in the right place. If the ligament is torn or stretched then the patella will want to drift. Have you ever considered surgery to tighten and stabilize everything? I read that more drs are considering this as a preventative measure to help avoid arthritis and further damage to cartilage.
I’ll find out on Thursday what the MRI means and what options I have. I can’t drive yet, and live way out in the boonies so physio hasn’t been a big part of my life yet except for someone who comes to my home every couple of weeks or so. I’m doing lots of leg lifts and trying to get more bend in my knee each day. It’s crazy how fast those muscles disappear.
My advice to you is to get back to physio! Thanks for the info, it does make me feel a bit more sane to know there is someone else out there that isn’t miraculously healed in 1 week.
Jen
Since the pain is intermittent and infrequent, I haven’t bothered to wear a brace. My knee never feels like it is going to pop back out or anything, the pain is more just an overall pain around the knee. Much like the crunchiness, it is just around the knee. As far as surgery…….no thanks. I am not a huge fan of being cut open, only because it doesn’t seem like a guarantee that it will do anything. Temporary solution that requires some serious invasive measures. =( It doesn’t mean that I would speak with my Orthopedic surgeon or Physiotherapist and see what their thoughts are on my current situation. But if I don’t have to have surgery I don’t really want it. (Big Chicken).
Glad I was able to restore some of your sanity. =)
Good luck on Thursday,
Jonesy
Hi Guys
Firstly, thanks for the posts – it’s reassuring to find people who are in the same boat. I dislocated my right patella when I was running up the stairs two weeks ago. Paramedics tried to pop it back in but couldn’t so the doctor had to do it. Had an appointment the day after (god bless the NHS) and i was told to rest it for two weeks and was given a knee immobiliser.
Got my next appt tomorrow where i’m hoping to get a knee brace so i can move around a little better.
Hope you are all doing well.
George
UK
Hi George,
Sorry to hear about your incident. Hope your doctor appointment went well and that you got your brace.
Cheers,
Jonesy
Hi, other sufferers!
I had problems with my knee for a year or so – started when I sat down awkwardly and my left knee gave a really loud crack. It was sore for a few days after, and then occasionally painful for the following year. I visited my doctor a total of 4 times and was told I had stretched my MCL, and that until it snapped (ouch) there was nothing they could do. Each time I was sent home with painkillers. Until the final time, I saw a different doc and she referred me to the hospital.
I was still waiting for the referral letter to come through, when 4 weeks ago I was walking through the kitchen at work and suddenly my knee felt as though it had popped out to the left, and then popped back in – it was excruciating
There was no way I could bear weight on it or even move it, the pain was so bad.
So they wheeled me out of work on an office chair, and I got a lift to the local A&E department. I was x-rayed but there was no bone damage. I waited and eventually saw a doctor, who put me in a splint and gave me crutches. I had to return the next day to see a knee specialist.
Next day came, I went to see the specialist, who told me my thigh bone wasn’t properly aligned with my knee cap, which in turn had weakened my ligament, allowing repeated dislocation of the patella. He signed me off work for 8 weeks, gave me a leg brace set to 20 degrees movement, and told me to return each week for physio, and to have my brace adjusted by another 20 degrees.
I now have 100 degree movement in my knee, and minimal pain – except when I do the physio exercises. I can weight bear fine and don’t really need the crutches unless I’m walking a long way.
No real clue when they’ll let me take off the brace, start driving my car again, and go back to work. It’s so frustrating
Nice to hear I’m not the only one though. Hope you are all well
Stacy,
Thank you for taking the time to share your story. Hopefully getting wheeled out of your office in an office chair wasn’t too embarrassing for you. If you can laugh at the whole situation that is probably the best approach. =)
Glad to hear you have 100 degree movement back in your knee, and I know for certain that in time the payment from the physio exercises will go away. My recovery period was about 8 weeks as well. Although it did take a couple of more weeks when I felt comfortable driving again. It was my right knee, moving between the gas and the break, and keeping it bent for long periods of time wasn’t too pleasant at first. =)
You are definitely not alone in your recovery Stacy.
cheers,
Jonesy
Hi Jonesy,
Looks like I don’t have anyhting new to add to my story of patella dislocation as what I have read so far is very familiar and I find myself nodding in agreement.
It is reassuring though to know that this happens to others an that i do not have a rare condition!!
I dislocated my right patella (lateral) in 1996 when I slipped while trying to get up from a slippery floor. I do not recollect doing any physiotherapy and never experienced any problem untill last 3 weeks ag when i dislocated my patella again (this time median) after almost 13 years!!
My leg was in plaster for a week and the in RJB for 2. I have to start physiothearpy next week and was doing my own research on the internet when i came across your blog.
Thank you for posting…it puts things in perspective and I guess that’s why I am writing as well.
(PDA – patella dislocation anonyamous)
Warm Regards
Khadija
Thank you for your comment Khadija. So sorry to hear about your recurring dislocation, that is crazy that it happened 13 years later, hopefully you are not superstitious. =) Glad to see that these posts were able to ease your concerns. Keep us updated!
Jonesy
Hi there,
Well I discloated my knee nearly 4mths ago, I had a full leg brace on for about 4wks then a leg brace which has now come off! I finally started physio, finding it very painful but in the four sessions I have had have gone from not being able to bend at alll to using the exercise bike! Still alot of pain and if I stand or walk for too long it’s very sore!!
Starting to try and drive again but my problem being it’s my left knee which is needed for the clutch!!!
I start my lower limbs class on Thursday to build musle bk up again and continue physio!
Oh and after 3mths they decide it’s time for an MRI as there is a chance of more damage than expected!!!!
I’m fed up!!!
Karen
northern Ireland
Hi Karen, thank you for sharing. Believe, I think we can all relate to your frustration. =] with time things will get better.
I would be interested to find out what they teach you in your limb class.
Hope your feeling better,
Jonesy
Hi again. It’s been almost 6 months since my dislocation. I still have trouble with stairs. It hurts going up and down them, but I can do it. I bought a mini stepper a couple of weeks back and I hope that it helps, but it’s too soon to tell. No attempts at running since the doctor strongly advised against that. I really appreciate that you mention how everyone heals differently. My co-workers were not sympathetic at all. They were telling me (when I was on the crutches) that I should have been off of them by now. I was only on them for a little over 3 weeks. You would think that people who teach physiology would be intelligent enough to know that every injury is different as well as the healing time. Anyway, I would like to encourage everyone to keep doing the exercises. It gets old, but it is still helping me after all of this time. I am slowly getting better every day, even if one leg is still about an inch smaller than the other. Best of luck to everyone!
Hi Lori, thanks for checking back in and keeping us updated. Glad to hear that things are getting better, slowly but surely. =) Pay no mind to the arm-chair quarter-backs, everyone is entitled to their opinion and it is our responsibility to “separate the wheat from the chaff”.
As far as your leg size goes, my bad leg is still smaller than my good one, but I have no one to blame but myself. I am sure I could get it back up to what it once was, if I worked at it. =)
Thanks again Lori,
Jonesy
Hi there
On the 18th august 2009 I was gettin ready to go to town and as I was in such a rush I hurried around on my laminate flooring, I slipped and I remember hearing a loud CRACK but no pain so I assumed it was my floorboards cracking.. Usually when I fall over I get up straight away, but this time I was unable to move.. I dragged myself across my floor and called my mum and dad for help, they phoned the ambulance and when the paramedics cut my pants to reveal my knee on the side of my leg they confirmed that I dislocated my patella in my left leg, they gave me gas and air and popped it back in, I didn’t necessarily feel pain but the thought of my knee out of place made me pass out as they put it back in.. When I woke they took me to hospital and I had an x ray, no bone was chipped.. Thank god.
Since then I have had a cricket splint and crutches but I am finally off them
my doctor has told me I will be requiring surgery as I am a competitive figure skater and I have caused
serious damage to my anterior cruchet ligament.
Like many of you I have lost trust in my knee, I’m scared of running and jumping as I fear I might have to go through the ordeal again.. I might keep you updated?
I really enjoyed Reading your accounts so I decided to tell you my experience
Amy, thank you for sharing. Hopefully your surgery goes well and you are able to get back into your figure skating. Hopefully you regain confidence in your knee as well. For me it some time because although I knew my knee had regained it’s movement and strength, I still couldn’t get my brain to send the movement messages that were required, my fear would cut those thought off. =)
Please keep us updated, it is always great to hear how people are doing.
Jonesy
Hi Amy just wanting to know how your knee is now and are you figure skating with no further injury …. my Daughter is a balleriana and has dislocated her right kneecap.
Hey, I dislocated my patella about a month ago by falling down the stairs and have had about a week of physio so far. My knee is still swollen but is bending a bit more, about a 95 degree angle. I was wondering how long it will approx. take to start fully bending? My physiotherapist was unsure exactly how long, so i thought I’d ask someone who has had experience with this injury. Any feedback is great.
Thanks,
Ammario
Hi Ammario,
Sorry to hear about your situation, and thanks for taking the time to share. As for how long it will take to get a full bend back into your knee, that all depends on you and the treatment you are receiving. My physiotherapist was very good, and I was able to see him every day. We would spend the first part of the therapy doing the bending stuff, little by little we would go further and further, but never to the point of bad pain. I would say in about a couple of weeks or so I was able to bend it pretty far. That was me though, as I have said before, everyone heals differently.
Good luck,
Jonesy
Hallo everyone, reading your stories has been so helpful. Well mine is a little different, my knee cap has dislocated twice while I’ve been fast asleep in bed! The first time I don’t think I really understood what had happened, after a few hours we called the out of hours doctor and an ambulance was on its way, but as I attempted to stand, it popped back in – pain beyond words. I was so relieved that it was over that stupidly I did nothing about it and carried on as usual.
About one month later, and just before Christmas, the same thing happened again, this time it would not go back in. Paramedics tried with gas and air, almost successful but not quite. Doctors at A&E tried with morphine, still not successful, had to be sedated and then they got it back in! Apparently there is a fracture too.
So have had a brace for the 2.5 weeks, but it’s hopeless, keeps slipping down! I’m pretty mobile though and not in any pain, but very nervous, especially about going to sleep! I have another hospital appointment this afternoon and really hope they’ll give me good news. One thing I have taken from all your comments is how important it’ll be to exercise and do physio, I will do anything they tell me to avoid being in this mess again!
Good luck everyone!
Hi
If you are reading this, then I guess you have had a knee dislocation, and my advice to everyone is dont despair !!
I fully dislocated my left knee playing badminton – of all sports.quick change in direction, and it popped out. I can honestly say i have never been through pain like it, and screamed the sports hall down – from memory, f*ck was my word of choice, repeated every 5 secs at full volume – bit embarrasing. had to be pinned down, and was swinging for anyone who came near me to try and touch it – if you are reading this and smiling, you know the score on this.
It popped back in after the longest 2 minutes of my life, by me straightening the knee. I got carted to hospital for xrays, and sent home
I am very active, and i was in a very dark place not being able to walk, and though all my sports days were over.
My advice is see a KNEE SPECIALIST. DOnt mess around.pay the money. get professional help. I really was in despair, and after great advice and physio, 12 months later im back 100% to where i was – maybe stronger.
dont give up ! you can fix this
neil
My daughter was practicing lay-ups for basketball on Wednesday, came down wrong, and was in pain. She said she heard a “popping” noise. School nurse iced her then aced it. Daughter had semester finals that day, so she was able to finish those. I took her to the ER after school and the said it was pattellar subluxation. What is the difference between dislocation and subluxation? She is in a brace and following R.I.C.E. She follows up with a doctor on Wednesday. She is bummed that she can’t play, won’t be able to play soccer this season, and may miss track season.
Sorry to hear about your daughter’s situation, may her recovery be fast and pain free. I found a few websites on the net that will hopefully shed some more light on the “dislocation vs. subluxation” question you had. Although the simplest difference is that a subluxation is a partial, or incomplete, dislocation.
Here are those websites:
Link 1
Link 2
I can not tell you how much of a relief it has been to hear other people talking from experience about this injury. I dislocated my right patella in the pub on new years eve (3 weeks ago) by turning quickly, my foot didnt move with my leg and it gave way and i fell to the floor, when i looked at my knee i honestly thought it was broken, ive never seen anything like it and could tell my friends were thinking the same thing but trying not to show it! the thing that surprises me is how people have been describing the pain when their kneecap was out but i dont know if it was shock or the couple of bottles of bud id drank but i didnt really feel any pain just discomfort, the paramedics arrived after about 20 mins and managed to pop it back in after giving me gas and air then i saw new year in in an ambulance on the way to a & e!
After an x ray that showed nothing loose behind my knee i was sent home after having to ASK for crutches, i dont know how they had expected me to move anywhere without them with my knee being very sore and the size of a grapefruit!
I am now in week 3 after injury and have just started to walk without crutches although my knee gives way every now and then so if im goin out i use one crutch still.
Have had two physio appointments and have been trying to do the exercises as often as i can and have seen a definite improvement although my quads still arnt working properly so more exercising needed.
I got married in october 2009 and we have our honeymoon to sri lanka and the maldives next week, my husband and i are quite active people, especially when we are on holiday and i am absolutely gutted that this has happened right now, we tried to cancel hol but were unable to as i had had a drink when it happened (although was not drunk) physio has said i cant swim but can stand or float in the water and can do a little bit of walking around with a knee support on but i basically wont be doing much more than sunbathing which isnt a bad things i suppose, i can work on my exercises and have a chill out but it wasnt really what i had planned.
Although i have seen a big improvement from when it first happened i have lost all confidence in my ability to walk and my main worry is that this is gona be an ongoing weakness in my knee that im always gona be paranoid about but it has been nice to read everyone elses experiences and i hope you all get better soon!x
Michelle,
Thank you for taking the time to share your story. You are extremely lucky to have not had to feel the pain of the dislocation. As I have said before, I have felt nothing like that before or since. Excruciating! The shock, the adrenaline, and also the “Budweiser” more than likely saved you from that part of the experience. =)
Sorry to hear about you having to go away on your holidays under your present circumstances. It is good that you are seeing the positive side of things to it, nothing worse than focusing on the negative. Also, the water will be very good for your recovery. I agree with the fact that you shouldn’t be swimming, but part of my physio was going to the pool and just walking around in the shallow end. The point is it helps to get you back into walking properly and redeveloping the motion. All good.
Have a great time,
Jonesy
I first dislocated my knee playing basketball exactly a year ago today. I jumped and my knee gave way and landed awkwardly. First off I tried to get back up but I fell directly back down. The pain was excruciating and I let out a rather loud scream. The next bits are quite a blur, I think because I was so dazed from the pain. I think the first aiders carted me off the floor and iced it. After a while my mum took me to A&E where I was xrayed and was diagnosed with a dislocated patella. I was given a splint and was told to rest for 2 weeks. At my next appointment I had more scans and they found a shadow inside my knee. They were quite worried as to what it was so they sliced me open to find a tumour which had grown to help push my knee out of place. After more tests, poking and prodding results showed that tumour was cancerous. Turns out it was bone cancer, but they caught it early enough and I was going to be okay.
While this cancer stuff was going on I was going out of my mind with worry considering I was 13 and I couldn’t do anything other girls my age were doing. So after God knows how many hours of physio, chemotherapy and different therapies I have grown into being a sort of healthy young girl.
Everyday life is still very painful, sometimes I can’t even move my knee 10 degrees. Last week I re-dislocated and it took 3 hours, 4 different doctors and 4 different methods to get it back into place, but they did it.
Now I am 14 and I am getting stronger by the day and am back at school part time. I am still not clear from the bone cancer, but everything is looking good and doctors have high hopes for the future
Katie,
Thank you so much for posting your story. Your strength is unbelievable for someone your age. Keep that attitude up and you will definitely get through anything life puts in front of you. Seriously, to go what you are going through and to have such clarity, strength and endurance is anything short of inspirational. I will never complain about any discomfort I have in my knee from this point forward.
I wish you a speedy recovery and full clearance of your cancer. Keep your head up my dear, stay strong and stay focused on moving forward no matter what.
Also, it would be really great if you could keep us updated as well. Your strength is our strength, as we are all in this together.
Jonesy
Thank You
I am back at the Cancer clinic on Friday to see if there’s been any improvement/disimprovement – so here’s hoping!
Following my last dislocation my knee is getting on okay, managing to walk further and further each day!
I will keep you in my thoughts on Friday. Hopefully all is well.
Good to hear about the progress with your mobility. That’s how it works, baby steps. =]
thanks for the update.
Jonesy
Have you heard anything from Katie since she said the surgery did not do much? so sad to read about this young girl with bone cancer!
Amanda
I had the check up today and sadly the cancer is much more agressive than before. It has spread from my knee down my leg in my foot and up to my hip joint.
I am having a more indepth scan sometime next week – I’ll keep you infomed
Katie
Katie,
My thoughts and prayers go out to you. I realize it is easier said than done, but if you can, please do not let this ruin that wonderful attitude of yours. It is that attitude that will help you get through anything that may come your way.
Stay strong my friend, and think healthy thoughts. =)
Jonesy
Thanks Jonsey, means a lot.
I had the scan and it is quite far along in my hip, too far along for chemotherapy. I am having an operation next week to see if they can do anything with it, here’s hoping they can!
Katie.
Katie,
Here’s hoping indeed. I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers throughout the week. Stay strong.
Jonesy
Hi Jonesy
I’ve just read your 3 entries with great interest but wincing all the way through.
I managed to dislocate my patella trying to execute a side kick in tae kwondo back in October 2007. I work as a Radiographer in a hospital in London and knew as soon as I had done it what kind of injury it was. I totally know how you meant with the clunk that you hear as your knee cap disappears to the side of your leg. It travels right through you and you hear and feel it in your head even.
After lengthy physio and some setbacks (not only did I dislocate my patella but I also had a partial tear of the Medial Collateral Ligament) it took me 10 months before I was back at work full time. Luckily I avoided surgery and as I was an outpatient at the hospital I work at, they have kept my appointment open in case I ever need to go back.
I think your wee blogs are important for anyone that has been or is going through the same thing – it does get better but it’s only now (after nearly 30 months) that the persistant clicking and crunching has finally stopped, though I do find that sometimes my knee “clunks” if I turn a particular way with the leg off the ground – the only thing I can compare it to is when you crack your knuckles/joints.
Anyway, thanks again for such a good insight, though for me it was like being there all over again lol
Kind regards
Bex
Thanks for sharing Bex,
At least your dislocation was doing something cool like a sidekick, telling people I dislocated mine playing dodge-ball tends to bring a certain level of lameness with it. =)
Jonesy
Hey, well this isn’t really a recovery story, but I just dislocated my left patella 4 days ago, and it is already feeling better, all I did was popped it back in, got a knee brace and a pair of crutches, do you think I will heel soon, or at least be able to fully bear my weight?
Hi Rob,
Hopefully you have seen, or will be seeing a physiotherapist. They are the professionals that will be in the best position to assess your situation and help you reach your end goal. As I have mentioned previously, I am a huge believer in the fact that everyone heals differently. The nature behind your dislocation may be a contributing factor to a speedy recovery, or it may not, it is all up in the air. Sorry to be a fence sitter here Rob, but the last thing I want to do is say “dude, you are totally going to be at full weight bearing status in a week!” and then a week goes by and you are no further along. =) Do the physiotherapy, do the stretches, and keep your mental energies focused on getting better. With that combo you should be on the road to a speedy recovery.
Stay strong,
Jonesy
Thanks!
Yeah, I just started doing that thing where you walk around in the pool, and am on an exercise bike, but here’s the weird story of how it happened!
I was riding my bike, and for some reason I decided to get off of it, suddenly, my knee just stiffened and I fell over, I looked down and my knee cap was on the side of my knee, but still aiming the right way. I hope I will heel up good. (BTW I’m only 15.)
15, wow. I definitely think the resilience of youth will be helpful to you in this situation. And good for you for doing the recovery exercises, our bodies don’t magically heal themselves; there is some work required on our end as well. =]
Keep it up.
Jonesy
Hi Jonsey,
Just to let you know I had the operation and not much happened with it. Basically riddled with cancer of all kinds down the whole left side of my body.
I have good days and bad days. On bad days I can’t move at all and find it very hard to breathe. But on good days, like today I can sit up and the pain isn’t as bad as usual. Though these good days are getting further apart and less frequent.
Sounds bad on my part for loosing faith in myself, but I can’t help it. Doctors aren’t showing much hope at all.
I’d just like to thank you for your inspiring words over the past few weeks, they meant a lot.
Katie
Katie,
What can I say. I can’t even begin to imagine how you must be feeling, the pain you are enduring, and the emotional roller coaster you are riding. As always, your openness and honesty is amazing, and I thank you for that.
Don’t feel bad about the thoughts you are having or the feelings you are feeling. Own them, explore them, and use them as strengths instead of road blocks. Don’t let the doctor’s dictate your level of hope. They aren’t you, they aren’t your spirit, don’t give them that power over you. They can give you the logical facts behind the situation, but that is as far as it goes.
Your Hope is yours Katie, to do with it what you will. And one thing that has helped me in troubling times is to keep my day at a 24 hour focus. To dwell on the long term is futile, since i have no way of knowing what or how it will be. Today though, these 24 hours that I am existing in, are within my span of control. And what can I control, not other people, not current situations or events, but my actions and my thoughts. These I can control, these are mine to do with what I can for the day at hand. Tomorrow is tomorrow, and I will do it all again when that day comes. But what will I do with today?
Katie, I always fear that with my advice comes the looming reality that I am not in your shoes, and as such all that I say pales in comparison to what you are going through. My intention though, is to hopefully distract any negative thoughts you may be having, even if just for a brief instance, so that they don’t hold dominion over you.
Stay strong Katie.
Jonesy
so I was scanning the internet for ways to strengthen the muscles in my leg after being in a straight leg brace for the past month and a half and I found this website.
Here’s my story:
I’m a 22 year old female who is usually fairly active at the gym and on February 3rd, 2010 I was in a body Combat class at the local gym and everything was going great, I’d done this class and these exact moves over and over again without any issues and absolutely loved it. But that night, something went terribly wrong.
I was just coming out of a jump-kick and when I landed my leg must have twisted or something because all I remember is hearing a loud crack and the next thing I knew I was flat on the floor, having hit a weight stand on the way down with my shoulder. When I looked down I saw that my right kneecap was on the outside of my leg…not where it’s supposed to be haha.
I think I shouted when I first went down, but I can’t be entirely sure because like I said it’s all a blur. I just remember being on the floor, shaking uncontrollably and crying. The instant I saw that my kneecap had dislocated I shoved it back in place all by myself…that wasn’t so fun and even made things spin for a few minutes.
I was on the verge of passing out because the pain was so extreme and one of the combat instructors told the other to come back and take a look at my injury. She knelt in front of me and was saying something and I was answering her questions without really even knowing what I was saying. It was pretty intense. All the while the class was continuing around me. Someone ran out of the room and came back with a personal trainer and one of the gym leaders to make them aware of the situation and to see if there was anything that could be done. The trainer said I was going into shock and then the combat instructor took off to call an ambulance despite my best efforts at protesting.
Meanwhile the trainer and another class member pulled me gently up and literally carried me out of the studio away from prying eyes which I was thankful for. I didn’t want the entire combat class to see me in a sobbing heap on the floor.
What happened after that happened so fast I can’t even recall all the details one minute I was being sat on a window ledge and the next the personal trainer was yelling at me to get my attention and then the paramedics came and ushered me off to the hospital where I was given amazing painkillers and put through a whole slew of painful x-rays.
My patella had dislocated, I also had a partially torn ligament on the inside of my leg and my ACL was damaged. My knee had swollen up to three times its size, maybe more and it was horribly painful.
I was slapped into a full leg immobilizer and sent home with a prescription for Tylenol 3 with codeine and the order to check back in with my family doctor a few days later. I did check in with my family doctor and he told me I had to stay in the brace for the rest of the month then come back to see him.
Well, I went back to see him the first week of this month and he said that the specialist had taken a good look at my x-rays and he had some bad news. I had chipped my patella and there was also a crack in the kneecap. They wanted to take more x-rays, but the knee was still too swollen to look at it properly and this was a month later!
Anyway, he told me that I need to stay in the immobilizer for the rest of this month AT LEAST, maybe more, it all depends on how it heals….
and this is where I’m at now, it’s a month and a half since the accident, I have ligament damage and a chipped and cracked patella. It’s amazing how a split second and wrong landing can completely ruin things so badly.
I have to stay in the brace for the rest of this month and then go back to my doctor to see what he says. Hopefully I’ll be able to slowly start getting back into the gym again because I’m having major withdrawal from the gym haha.
My leg outside of the brace is really weak and I still can’t fully straighten or bend my knee without pain.
Wow, this was longer winded than I had planned, but this entire ordeal is just frustrating and I’m NOT enjoying it.
hi my name is cameron harvey i am 13 years old . i dislocated my knee whilst doing parkour / free running t it happened when i was training trying to do a back flip as i landed my knee cap dislocated i fell to the floor and shouted oh my god then said call an ambulance i laid there until the ambulance came and i was taken to A&E the doctor popped it back in and my dad was with me at this time . i am currently recovering with a soft cast on my leg and in 4 weeks will be doing physio therapy
i dislocated my patella too a month ago, and man i agree that the pain i felt was unbearable i started shouting until the ambulance came. the ambulance came after 20 minutes i felt like i was dying, my knee got numb because of the time waiting for the ambulance to get me to the hospital. im in recovery now i just finished my therapy but i;m still limping a little. and i don’t know if i’ll be waliking normally again.
hi
i was looking up physio for a dislocated knee cap because i was wanting to know what was coming in the future. i dislocated my right patella 3 times the first one i smacked it off the floor and it dislocated and i put it back in (i cheerlead) second time i planted and turned and it dislocated i put it back in, and the third time i landed my back handspring and moved to my next spot and it dislocated and i feel to the floor i was unable to push it back in. the ambulance was called i was taken to the emergency where it was still clearly dislocated (nasty) i screamed so much the securtiy guards came to see if i was mentally ill hahaha! no i was in so much pain. i was sedated and they poped it back into place. i dislocated my right patella once i did the splits and it poped out and i put it back in. its in my family history of dislocations lol. my mom dislocated her knees as a young girl like me. i was in a full leg splint for 10 days then i was using a knee brace which i still use and i dislocated it on the 12 of april. i had an appt with the orthopedict surgent and he said he dident want to do sugery because im still young (15) and very hyper mobile and hyper extend my legs when walking. i have “sloppy” knee caps on both knees and fixing it so my patella won’t dislocate to the out side of the knee will not fix the problem it will only make it dislocate to the inside of my knee. so i’ve started physio 3 days ago and i have most of my motion back. like you i have difficultly sleeping because i like curl up, and when i go up and down the stairs i feel a shaprp pain in my patella. i really like physio and im excited to get back to my normal self. i have had laser sugery and in a week or so i start active thearpy. because i am a gymnast and a cheerleader i am very high risk for another dislocation. thank you for sharing your story it has helped to let me know what i can expect in the weeks to come, when i was reading your articles i agreed so much on everything you said.
thanks so much
sam
Hi guys,
I dislocated my kneecap while playing basketball 3 weeks ago. I am able to walk with a knee brace but there is still constant swelling at the knee… Does anyone have any tips to reduce these swelling?
Anyway after reading all of your stories i feel more hopeful on my condition and hope that i do not require any surgery..
Hi Ryan,
Thanks for commenting. For me, the key to reducing the swelling was to not be on it too much, especially during the earlier stages of recovery. Also, keeping it elevated, using cold packs, and taking advil (ibuprofen), worked as well.
Glad you were able to find some hope; trust me, it does get better. =)
Mark
hi i dislocated my knee about 2 months ago now i was put in a cast for 11 days and was referred to physio.its been a month and abit and although physio has helped alot (walked in there with crutches came out without them) i still walk with a bend in my knee and cant do anything has restricted my alot i have totally lost my confidence!! am so angry and my confidence has dropped to an altime low i feel like ill never get better and need reassoring that i will.if there is anyone that i can have a 1-1 chat with that this has happend to and now is recoverd from it id be really grateful my email address it blazinbabe1993@msn.com thankyou x
Hi Kerry,
Thank you for taking the time to share your story. I can fully relate to how you are feeling, as I am sure most of the people that have posted on this topic can; you are not alone in your recovery.
The physical recovery is often quicker than the emotional recovery. Having confidence in your own body takes awhile, you just have to be a bit more patient with yourself. When you put it into context with what happen it makes sense that your body will require some time to get back up to speed. As I have mentioned here before, it took almost a year for me to really start having confidence in the way my knee moves and what activities I can and can’t do with it, but I am firm believer that each of us recovers/heals differently. For you, it may not take as long, but trust me when I say that getting mad at yourself won’t help the situation. =)
The best advice that I can give you is this:
- think positively, see yourself getting better, see yourself taking confident steps, hold your head up high and know that with each day you are getting better and stronger
- continue your physio, any exercise machines should be low impact on your legs (bicycle machine or elliptical, not treadmill). If you do use the treadmill do it for walking only, not running.
- incorporate water therapy, go to the pool and walk around in water that is over your hips (this will help reduce gravity but still provide some resistance to your forward movement)
- don’t sit for prolonged periods of time
- remember to rest your leg, especially if you start noticing swelling develop
- stay positive and stay focused on your goals
- don’t get angry! =)
Hope that helps Kerry.
And please keep us posted with your progress.
Cheers,
Jonesy
Hi, I was out walking my dog 6 weeks ago and tripped over a branch in a meadow. As I fell my left leg snapped forward and I dislocated my knee, fractured my tibial plateau. tore acl,pcl,mcl,lcl ligaments. Didn’t feel pain as I fell. My sister screamed behind me arrgghhh your leg. I looked round and my leg had snapped the wrong way. I didn’t know if I was going to pass out or be sick. I turned over and my leg just flopped onto the ground and the pain hit me.
Waited for what seemed like forever for the ambulance but it was only a few minutes. They gave me morphine then went to A&E had painful x-rays and told me how serious this injury was but I was lucky not to lose my leg as 40% of people with this injury do!!!!! just for tripping over a branch!!
Was in hospital for 2 weeks, has knee reduced and in plaster from toes to thigh, had MRI and CT scans then had an operation to pin my knee and repair my meniscus ligament and had an external fixator in for 4 weeks. This was taken out last Friday and I now have a leg brace on and am waiting for physio.
I have been told that I will not walk unaided for over 12 months and that I will probably have a permanent limp and will need a knee replcement by the time im 50!! Im 36 now.
I have been doing leg raises and calf stretches at home while waiting for physio but can not move my knee much as it feels so tight. If I can not get much more movement in my knee may need an operation and down the line may need my cruciate ligaments reconstructed.
Have been off work for 6 weeks and will probably be off another 3 months if not more.
I am trying to be positive and work hard to get the knee bending but like others my trust has gone in my knee and worry that this will happen again.
I have been frustrated a lot and couldn’t stop crying but the past week I have turned a corner and just need to try and take it a day at a time and keep up with my excercises until the really hard work of physio starts.
This site has inspired me and hopefully the future will bring more positive thoughts and I can stay focused on my recovery.
Cheers,
Sarah xx
Hi Sarah,
Thank you so much for taking the time to share your story; and what a story it is! Wow, that is a lot of ‘cl’ tearing. =]. You definitely sound like you have your hands full with your recovery, but that seems to be expected with the amount of damage you have sustained. That being said, your mental state is in the right place. Compartmentalizing your recovery into 24hour chunks will definitely keep the stress down. Focus on what you can do for your recovery today. What progress can you make that will keep you moving forward. If all we do is sit and complain about our current situation then we will never move forward; we are ensuring that we will keep staying where we are and thus allow us to feel justified in continuimg our complaining. A vicious self propelled circle that leads to nowhere. Definitely not the place we want to be when we are trying to get better.
All the best with your recovery Sarah, I am glad mine and the other people’s similar experiences have been able to provide you with some hope about your current situation. Stay strong and stay focused.
Cheers,
Jonesy
hi,
ive dislocated my patella… had to have surgery and everything. got my cast of 2day. my leg feels so light. i cnt move it that much…very frustrating. my pysiotherapy is next week. in the mean time i dont know what do to. my leg feels like its gna fall of. i dont know how long its going to take. =(
It’s good to have a site like this where you can share your own experiences. I have had three patella dislocations already and I’m considering surgery but I am a bit scared after having read all the complications that can come out from it. I am quite confused now about it. What would you suggest? I am already in my 5th week now and I am quite frustrated that I still can’t bend my knee the way I want it to be. It’s reassuring to see though that other people have been through this and I’m glad to know that I’m not alone with it. Sometimes, I just want to give up but I know that I shouldn’t let this eat me alive. Thanks for the comments here by these people as well. It did make me feel better.
Hi Jem,
Thank you for sharing your story, and I am glad that this series of posts and the kind people that have also shared their stories, has provided you with some comfort. I wouldn’t get too discouraged Jem, it may take sometime for you to regain the flexibility and mobility in your knee. What we want for our body, and what our body is giving us doesn’t always work to our liking. =) We just have to be patient and help our body do what it can to expedite things; both physically and mentally. =) I would definitely speak with more than one orthopedic surgeon to find out what the consensus is regarding your knee.
keep us updated if you can.
Cheers,
Jonesy
thanx for the posts …………after reading all dis post i feel im very luckly …………………………last year September my knee dislocated ….
when im getting down from bed my knee dislocated by luck my mom near by me so i held my mom for help…….but pain is horrible…even if i imagine dat pain my eyes get wet……my parents toke me to hospital…..doctor put it back and orthopedic cast….i take full complete bed rest for 4 weeks i given full rest to my knee….after 4 weeks i started walking with someones help…….it continue till another 4 weeks ….after dat i walk without any help……..now i can walk even per one hour continuously ……..i can stand 2 hours….but some times suddenly my knee get suddenly imbalanced ….in past it happen frequently….bu now it happen 4 days ones…..and now my problem is i getting knee pain for my other leg…….y it happening ????????? what precautions shall i take and what type of physio shall i take ?????????please give some video links ……….
Hi Anusha,
Thank you for sharing your story. It seems like you are progressing quite well, every little bit counts eh? =) In regards to the imbalance in your knee, that comes from muscle control. The physiotherapy that you should be doing will be all about helping your leg and the muscles around your knee strong again. Our knee is stabalized by a bunch of muscles surrounding it. The key areas that need to be brought back up to strength are your quadriceps as well as your glutes (your bum muscles). Your physiotherapist will be able to provide you with the proper exercises you will need to do.
Regarding the pain in your other knee, that could just be fatigue from having to carry the brunt of the walking load while your other leg is in its weakened state. Make sure to have the physiotherapist look at that knee as well.
Stay strong Anusha,
Jonesy
Just like many before me I came across this site while googling knee dislocation. 3 wks ago I was playing baseball (windmill) and was swinging a bat. I hit the ball and when I turned to run I remember looking at my right knee because something wasn’t right and saw my kneecap sitting on the side of my leg. Of course I dropped to the ground instantly. Luckily 1 of my teammates is a volunteer firefighter and her colleague happen to be watching the game while in uniform with his EMS gear. I doubt I was on the ground 10 sec before the 2 were on me helping me support my leg. The ambulance was called and it was an excrucitating 25 mins or so before the ambulance arrived. During that time my kneecap slid back into place on it’s on. The X-ray’s came back o.k and I was sent home with crutches and a knee stabilizer(full leg brace).
The 1st few days were absolutely awful. It was more of the inability to do anything than the pain. I”m a very active person playing for 5 ball teams during the summer and of course bought myself a motorcycle in Mar. All of my wonderful holiday plans down the drain. After day 3 I made it a point to get up and out for a walk with the crutches everyday.
I was sent to the specialist 1 wk after the incident and was given the clear to start walking on the leg without crutches. The stabilizer was to stay on for another 2 wks, but I was able to manouver around just using a cane. I figured out how to drive my van the day I was given the go ahead to put pressure on my foot.(I’m a single parent and still fairly new to the city with only my mother living here)I did ALOT of walking that week…mostly because I was just happy to be mobile. I also manage to hop a ride on a motorcycle full leg brace and all.lol The pain wasn’t bad at all, except for days when I did alot of walking, I’d almost have to get the crutches out as my injury right leg was fatigued and my strong left left was really fatigued from the extra work. My philosophy was I needed to keep moving to keep the muscle awake in my leg to help with a speedy recovery. I have 5 ball teams hoping for my return…2 specifically as we attend the provincials in Niagara in Sept.
Week 2 I was able to get into the physiotherapist. I was to ice the leg and force it to bend every 2 hrs. Of course that’s just about impossible, but I did my best to do the stretches at least 3-4 times a day. I started with 20degree ability and was able to achieve 60 degrees. However it was VERY frustrating as after doing my exercises the full brace would go back on and my leg would stiffen back to 20degrees or less and I would have to start all over. I wasn’t getting anywhere!
Today was the start of week 3. The knee stabilizer came off and the expecation was to walk without any other support. I was really uncomfortable with that idea so had my family doctor prescribe a knee brace with patella support and hinges. Besides baseball I’m an avid volleyball player in the winter so I knew I was going to need support for my leg after this injury. The PT was happy I had this with me, however she was NOT happy with the fact I could still barely bend my knee. At this point her opinion was I should have almost full range motion. This makes me very nervous as I am in ALOT of pain trying to force my knee to bend and apparently I shouldn’t be in this much pain. I did not have a MRI done…just the specialist taking a look at the X-rays and prescribing physio. My goal for this week is to have a 100 degree bend (I’m manage 80 degrees after 20 mins of using a strap to pull my leg into a bend during PT). That’s what the PT thinks I need to have to be able to ride on the back of my bike. However even though i’m not in the straight leg stabilizer without continuous bend it stiffens right back to straight with little bend. I had a nap after physio and was back at square 1, very frustrating.
I’ve read some of the other stories and am surprised at how long some were off their leg. I’ve noticed a huge decrease in my muscle only after 2 wks. I couldn’t imagine being laid up for a month or more.
Just wondering if others had this much pain and stiffness while trying to get the bend back. Apparently if it’s just the patella dislocation the bend should be no problem. However i’m in more pain trying to bend my knee than I was when I 1st dislocated it. I’m trying very hard to stay positive, but finding out i’m not making the progress I should was really disappointing. I was told I may have had some pulling or tearing of ligaments and my ACL. My biggest worry is if I did more damage than just the dislocation such as tearing of ligaments, will this expecation of forcing my knee to bend cause more damage than good. I’m trying to be patient and not to rush getting “back on my feet” too soon, but my summer and all my holidays are going to waste of me limited on what i can do and now being in more pain then when I started. I’m early 30′s and am not letting this injury scare me off the ball field, the v-ball court or off my motorcycle. Just hoping that the pain i’m feeling is not something more and I don’t have prolonged healing because I’m causing more damage while doing my PT exercises.
Thanks for sharing your story and allowing others to share theirs. It did give me some comfort knowing that I’m back on my feet quicker than others…that gives me hope…but also a little fear that the pain is telling me something is not right.
Cheers,
Kristina
It’s nearly 5 months since I dislocated my knee playing football. I was charging at the ball and hit the ball hard just as somebody trapped the ball. I kept going, my leg didnt !!
I’d never felt so much pain. I’ve hurt my knee a couple of times playing football but it always fully recovered after 6-8 weeks. Not this time.
2 weeks: I went to the docs who diagnosed a sprain. Common thing and I don’t blame him ! I told him I saw my knee pop out but im not sure he believed me.
4 weeks: knee was very sore still. Popping, clicking and very swollen. I got some private Physio who gave me some exercises as he said my patella was lose and not tracking correctly. I went back to the doctor and he told me to rest it.
8 weeks: The exercises were making my knee worse. I demanded an MRI scan (free on the NHS, thank god).
12 weeks: Scan done and results came back that all my ligaments and cartilages are “normal” but the rear of my knee cap is “angry”. Swelling, fractures etc !! The exercises I was doing was making it worse. I was orderd to re-rest it.
Its now 5 months since my accident and my knee still isnt right. It clicks, pops and when I do bending exercises i can hear cruching and grinding.. I can walk ok for about 15-20 mins then it becomes painful. I can fully extend and bend but not without worrying noises.
People… Tell me ! What is this cruching and grinding ?? Is it scar tissue ? Is it my patella grinding again my leg bones ??
Ted
Surely the MRI would of picked up lose bone or cartilage floating about !! ??
Hi Ed,
Thanks for sharing your story. That is quite the ordeal in trying to get people to figure out what exactly is wrong with your knee. =) All I can say about the crunching is that even for me, after two years, the crunching is still there. I recently went to my physiotherapist for a check up and she mentioned that the crunchy is on account of the “arthritis” that has developed because of my accident. My knee isn’t tracking properly because the muscles involved in keeping your knee in place are still quite week. I have to keep going to see her so that I can start to build the strength back up, but there is nothing that can be done about the crunching. I find this a bit disconcerting and am probably going to seek some further advice on this issue. It’s not that I want surgery or anything like that, but all the crunching that my knee is making can’t be something that will stay with me for the rest of my life. Or will it? If anyone reading this has any further info please share and let us know. So you and I are in similar boats Ed, in relation to the crunching/grinding. If you find out anything further let us know as well.
Cheers,
Jonesy
This site is great. Exactly what I have been needing to come across. I dislocated my patella about a month ago. I was in a class at the Ymca doing lunges with weights and went down low and lost balance and resulting in twisting my leg. IT WAS HORRIBLE PAIN. They started a morphine drip right there on the floor before I could even be moved into the ambulance. They sedated me at the hospital to put knee cap back in place. Went home in an immobilizer and seen ortho 3 days later. He took an xray that required i bent my knee OUCH. He sent me home with pain meds and instructions to keep leg straight in immobilizer and on 3rd week start leg raises. I have 3 boys and have always been pretty active so it was a shock to have to stay down. I could not do leg raises at all by 3rd week. Went to Dr and he did repeat xray showed patella back in right place with no fractures. He was concerned i could notlift leg and very painful when he tried to bend Sent me home and said push yourself to do raises and start trying to bend and he ordered a mri. I did my leg raises the next day The way I did them was I went to do a ab crunch with hands behind my head and my foot automatically lifted. Once I got the feeling of how to lift I started doing them. My knee started feeling stronger. I use a walker to get around My biggest concern is the inability to bend and the pain is still there along with some swelling. Mri results this week hopefully if it is good i start physical therapy. It will be 6 wks after injury starting therapy. I hope that isn’t too long for not bending of knee. I am terrified of doing this again. No trust right now of knee. I feel like someone with post traumatic disorder really. I read about how surgery is good and not good. I just want to do what ever will keep this from happening again. And how does physical therapy know how hard to push you without re-injuring your knee again. I did this doing lunges and I seel unges as part of the therapy uggg anyway this site has really helped me alot
Hi Chondra,
Thanks for sharing your story. As far as how does the physical therapist know about how hard to push you, my one, during my recovery phase, always told me to let them know how much pain was involved in each action that we took (each exercise/bend/movement). We would always start minimal and slowly worked our way up, but never going higher than a 7 or 8 on the pain threshold. No point doing something that hurts like a MF. =) They saw it is counter productive. Hopefully your physiotherapist feels the same.
keep us posted if you can,
Jonesy
I am so glad I came across your site. I just dislocated my kneecap, this past Sunday, Aug. 8th. I had a BBQ here at my home with a couple of friends, we were all having a great time! My husband decides he wants to dance salsa with me, (he was feeling nice cause he never wants to dance salsa)so to please him, I gave in…. He was being a clown, spinning me around, twisting me, let’s just say he was enjoying the crowd’s response. Next thing you know, he spins me around really fast and then he tries to dip me over, and at that point I didn’t bring my feet around quick enough, I ended up putting all my weight (170lbs.
) on my left leg, and next thing you know I felt the most excruciating pain in my life (worse then child birth, and I have three kids, all natural). Then I fall to the ground, looking at my knee, discovering that I had something sticking out, not totally conscious on what it was, and then it hit me that it was my bone. That’s when I couldn’t breath. Everybody is laughing, thinking I was fooling around because my back was towards them so they couldn’t see the expression on my face. My husband was laughing with them, until I got his attention by screaming in the only breath I had “MY KNEE”… Then he got the picture! When he saw the bone protruding, he reacted quickly, ok, well not that quick, he paused for a couple of seconds saying “OH SH*&” which didn’t make me feel any better, then he pushed the bone back in place. I was in soooo much pain…Well you know. After about an hour passed the pain started to go away with the help of two Advils, so I thought I could go through the night, and go to the hospital the next day; well, as I got up to use the bathroom, I then noticed that my knee swelled up like a balloon. Ended up in the hospital for 10 hrs. they took x-rays, said that everything was in place, slapped the leg brace on me and told me to see a OP, oh yea and gave me some pain killers and also told me that I would need to get an MRI done. Bad part about all of this, is that my family and I were planning to drive to Florida next week, I live in NY. We cannot afford to fly so we decided to drive… I guess that is not happening now, another bad thing is I lost my job in FEb. and I am still pending for Medicaid benefits, in another words I have no insurance… so I have to wait till Monday to see an OP at a clinic. I feel sooo bad that we cant go to FL. my kids are bummed as well as I am.
One thing that is really bothering me is that my knees are double jointed (they bend back like chicken legs,lol) so I am wondering if I should opt for surgery? I have been reading on how when this occurs for the first time, kneecap dislocations, and once it happens it keeps happening… And because my knees are double jointed I wonder if I am much more likely to dislocate my knees easier now? I have not been using the crutches much but I keep the brace on most of the time, is that bad? Yes, I have been walking on my bad foot, it doesnt hurt at the moment, but I just cant get used to those crutches. I cant stand to be in bed or on the sofa all day!!! Thank God my kids are grown (ages 13,12,10) but to be honest it’s not that good lol! Nobody is gonna clean and do the things like Mom does… And my hubby works all day and now has to do all the running around with the kids, I have 2 boys that just started football… I have my mother in law here (ugh) but that is a whole other story, its like if she isnt… She doesn’t even ask me if I would like some water!
To be honest I really was looking for information on how much time I would need to recover from this, and was hoping that I would recover fast (like in 5 days) to be able to go to FL. and from searching all over google for that information, your site was the best to answer my question!!! Thank you and if you have more information that you think I can use, I would love to hear it!!
Thank you and glad to hear you are recovering well!!
Josie
Hi Josie,
Thank you so much for sharing your story. Now, I would understand if you were doing Lambada and you dislocated your knee (divine payment for doing the forbidden dance), but Salsa, who knew that Salsa could be so dangerous. =) Sorry, just hoping to bring some levity to your situation. =)
Your pain tolerance must be extremely high, to think about just chilling for the night and then go to the hospital, wow! For me, as soon as I landed on the gym floor I was swearing like a sailor and cursing the pain that I was going threw. Yup, big ol wimp I am. =)
Definitely don’t see any fast recovery in your future Josie. Stuff like this one doesn’t just up fix itself over night. You’ve put alot of trauma to your ligaments, tendons, joints, etc. They need time to heal. The drive to FLorida might not be a good thing either. This type of injury requires the majority of the early stages of recovery to be rest. I know it is hard to just lie there with your leg up, but if you don’t properly recover you could create more harm than good, which then leads to more recovery time. Definitely see that OP at the clinic, and sorry to hear about having no insurance at the moment. I live in Canada, so I can’t even begin to imagine what it would be like without health insurance.
As for your double jointed question, it may be an issue, and not sure if surgery would help or not. You are right in that the majority of info regarding knee dislocations does point to the fact that it has a higher potential to happen again. This equating mainly to the fact that we have now weakened all the good things that help to support our knee. However, alot of that same medical information does point to it being more of an issue for younger people, such as teenagers. For us adults, I think as long as we work hard at building our leg muscles back up, we can then help reduce the likelihood of it happening again. With your double joints you have to be “doubly” careful. =) Sorry, couldn’t resist that one. hehe
Keep us posted Josie,
Cheers,
Jonesy
Chondra Trimnal, don’t worry too much just yet ! You are still in the very early stages. Pain and swelling is very normal. I wasn’t able to bend without a lot of pain after a month. It’s due to all the swelling. Make sure you rest and build up movement SLOWLY.
Jonesy… ARTHRITUS ! Now you have put the fear into me ! I’m only 30 !
I’ve heard possitive things that the crunching and grinding has dissapeared with people after 12 – 24 months. My doc stresses so much about building up the muscles in my knee. I have to get my patella tracking properly. Its the quads that do this and they need to be built up. It’s not easy working on knee when you can hear grinding. I’ve actually started playing music when I do my exercises so I cant hear it.
I’ve read many places that “if it doesn’t hurt, dont worry”.. Pain is the best teacher.
I NEVER take pain killers unless I have to, especially before any kind of exercise. If you can’t feel the pain, you can’t judge your “limit”.
P.S. I am riding my Motorcycle over Africa like this. I leave in 2 weeks and will be travelling the length of Africa. I’m rather worried but im too far commited to pull out.. yeah im nuts !!
Regards, Ed (U.K)
Hi Ed,
Well, not to be a “debbie downer” but it has been two years since my dislocation and the crunching is still going strong. I do agree with you though that there isn’t any pain associated with the crunching, it is more just the disturbing sounds and unsettling feelings that the crunching brings with it. I have tried explaining it to people and the best way that I can is that it sounds and feels like you are moving a bag of gravel around in your hands.
Kudos to you on your “Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance” like journey. =) I wish you all the best my friend, but I would advise you to take it easy and watch out for that knee. You may need to take more frequent stops so that you can walk around and stretch your knee. I know for me, in the beginning, if I sat for too long my knee really started to hurt and act up. Bring lots of Advil with you. =)
cheers,
Jonesy
Hey Jonesy..
Are you able to run/jog/cycle etc ??? Just wondering what your level of activity is 2 years on.
Mines still painful after 20 leg extensions.
Hi Ed,
I can run, though I find that that can put a fair bit of strain on the knee. So I prefer to use my elliptical trainer. The motion on that machine is much easier on the knee.
Lunges are pretty sad at the moment. I can’t use much weight and my form is messy but I am progressing. I can do square as well, and the weight for this isn’t too bad. So things are looking promising. The sad part is I should have been doing this a lot sooner; not waiting two years to get my butt in gear. I don’t have a leg extension machine at home but those exercises were excruciating for me to do during my physiotherapy sessions back at the beginning. I doubt much has changed since then. However, the lunges and square I am doing will hopefully help things along.
Cheers,
Jonesy
Its good that you can run again !! It gives me hope that I will be able to sometime in the future. Running was my passion, I used to run 3 times a week but all I’m doing now is growing a spare tyre around my waist and trying to fight off comfort eating ! lol.
It’s very hard fighting past the sound in my knee. It sounds likes a bag of gravel which really puts me off exercising it !
If anyone else reads this, i’d also be really grateful too hear peoples recovery stories after a knee dislocation !
Regards, Ted (U.K.)
Thanks so much for your story. So far, this is the best site I have found! I am 34 years old and just dislocated my knee for the first time 4 days ago.
I was turning off the water in my back yard when I turned to stand up and next thing I know my knee popped out to the side quite visibly and audibly. I panicked and thought “oh fu#$”. Then I turned to head to the house to yell for my husband when my knee popped back in to place. I opened my door, screamed at my 13 yr old son to get my husband, and then collapsed on the floor in agony. I screamed and cried for 20 minutes. I did NOT want anyone touching me or helping me up. I finally let my husband help me up and to the bathroom cause I felt like I was going to puke. But I did not. Then I went to lay down in bed. After an hour of crying hysterically, I finally decided I was calm enough to go to urgent care.
Once there I was doing better. Very little pain. But I could not stand or put pressure on my leg. So I was hopping around. They took an xray and said my knee looked pretty good. However, when the doc went to touch my knee I got all dizzy again and nauseous. Not from pain, but from pure and utter fear he would accidentally dislocate it again! He did not.
He put me in an immobilizing brace and said to wear it for a week and come back if I had further issues.
I made an appt. with my primary doctor on Friday. Right now I think i’m still in shock. lol I am TERRIFIED of taking off this immobilizer. My knee is still pretty swollen. Though not painful, thank god. However, when I take the brace off for icing and such and attempt to bend it then it feels like it would hurt. But mostly it feels so super weak and just not right.
I have had 3 kids and I would hands down go through labor, with no meds, than experience this pain again. I do think I’m extremely lucky in the fact that while I have been wearing the immobilizer I have not had any pain. I’m curious what will happen when I take it off! I am guessing my doc will refer me to physical therapy. I guess I will find out more soon.
Until then, I am so scared of the future. Not sure I can ever walk again without fear! I’m mostly scared of this happening again. It was soooooo horrible. But either way, I will survive. We will see what the future brings. Thanks again for your story and for those that have shared theirs. It has helped me immensely!
Hi, I dislocated my knee on the 29th of July 2010 and im still in the leg splint now, i had an MRI scan on wednesday and im due to see the doctor next friday to see whats going on, i really am quite nervous, i don’t want an operation as i plan to go back to college, i dislocated it simply by playing football, i went to kick the ball and my left knee just gave way, as i fell i straightened my leg popping the knee back in place, the pain was some what immense i was taken in an ambulance on a strecher and given gas and air.
It’s still quite swollen today but iv’e been walking on it without the crutches and just the splint on, reading all this seems to have given me abit of hope, just hoping that the fluid goes before i go back to see the doctor :/
Hi. I have been reading everyones comments and I’m really glad I’ve found a site where people are in the same sort of situation as me.
I dislocated my patella about 5 weeks ago and currently going to physio every week. Things have been going well and I am starting to get my leg bending again. However, last night I was just stretching my leg and felt sudden pain in the same leg. I think my patella might have came out again slightly but went back in. Does anyone know whether this is a normal thing or not? I am due for physio tomorrow so I will tell them there.
Hi hayley,
Thanks for sharing. How did it go with physio the other day? In my earlier stages of recovery I would have moments where it would feel like my knee was about to dislocate again, but would pass fairly quickly. I just had to aware of my movements , activities, fatigue in the muscles/joints, etc, and just be careful. =]
Cheers,
Jonesy
Hi Jonesy and all,
I am so pleased I found this thread! Right, here goes with my lengthy story. We live in Staffs UK. I have a 12 year old son. He disclocated his right kneecap at the end of July at a Freestyle dance competition. He landed a jump badly and dislocated his knee on the dance floor. amazingly he pushed it back in and carried on! After a comp the following week, he was in alot of pain ans his knee visibly popped as he walked, accompanied by loud cracks, graunching,and swelling.
I took him to the dr’s who said she didnt think he had done much to it! and to come back if etc…
The following week he could barely walk, and his knee kept ‘sublaxating’(using this after finding it on net)
The dr was going to refer him to orthopedics but he was in so much pain she told us to take him to A & E.
He was put in a straight leg splint with crutches for a week, which he had to sleep in and given appointment for ortho the next week (August)The ortho doc said he has mobile joints, discovered after bending his thumb back to his wrist!
The splint was removed the following week and he was given a knee brace for 3 weeks. During those 3 weeks his knee seemed to get worse, more subluxations, pain, swelling etc..
At the next ortho appointed he was put in a full leg plaster cast for 4 weeks.
That was two weeks ago. In the last two weeks he has had 4 different casts, due to his thigh muscle wasting and the cast becoming too big for his leg. On Friday Sept 17th we took him back to fracture clinic again to have the cast seen to. Instead of giving him a new cast they cut a 1″ groove down the side and then rebound the cast. What a disaster. At school on Monday his leg started shaking, his foot twitching and was in terrible pain. The school rang us to take him home. We took him to the fracture clinic and when they removed the cast they found that the procedure they had done on Friday had pinched a nerve on the outside of his knee. He had 2 red and angry lines down his leg with swollen skin between it, where the cast had been tightened too much!
He has another 2 weeks in a cast then physio starts. He feels isolated at school as most of his lessons have to be done in a mobile away from the main building. I am dreading whats going to happen next.
His dance partners are eager to have him back on the floor! He copes really well but the novelty of a cool pair of crutches and telling all his friends has worn off.
Thanks for reading up till now, just wanted to put my story down and have a good whine! Any help or info would be appreciated!!
Jonesy I think youre great. You are a good psychotherapist and genuine person.
Dawn
Hi,
Just noticed the site after googling. Some peace of mind seeing that I am not alone in the pain or recovery process. Frustrated, dislocated my patella 6 weeks ago and am still getting excrutiating pain and shifting. Even though we all do what are physio doctors say, with maybe a little doubt, it seems a long slow road to full recovery. 3-5 months and it didn’t seem that hard to actually injur it, did it? Good luck to everyone and lots of hopes for full recovery without surgery! Take care
Hi Jonesy,
It has been nearly 1 1/2 years since my knee injury and I have only just now discovered the one thing that actually helps….YOGA. I’ve started going to yoga only a couple of weeks ago and all those weak muscle groups that have refused to grow back are waking up. I still have a lot of crunching, popping, swelling and pain, but I can tell muscles have become stronger and my knee joint has increased flexibility. Yay for Yoga.
(and it’s cheaper than physiotherapy)
Thanks again for your awesome website.
Hi Jen,
Thanks for the YOGA tip. I should definitely give it a try. As you said, give all those stubborn muscles a good wake up call. =]
Glad to hear you are feeling better.
Cheers,
Jonesy
Hi Jonesy and everyone else,
Its has been good to hear other peoples experiences, as a lot of people appreciate it is painful at the time but do not understand how long the recovery takes after.
I had taken up indoor climbing 6 months before going once a week with my partner. I was working away and decided to go ‘bouldering’ (climbing with no ropes) on my own. I was climbing as normal and my right knee just dislocated to the right. Needless to say I let go of the wall and just fell to the floor. I didn’t hit it or do anything unusual for the kneecap to come out. It was so painful and I was unable to move from how I landed. Although the climbing centre were quick at phoning for an ambulance I still had to wait 2 HOURS for it to arrive. My other half was at the hospital (1hr 45min drive away) before I had any medical help. When they arrived I finally had gas and air and sent to emergency department. The doc was in a rush due to other emergencies so quicky injected morphine intravenously then put my knee back in by tricking me that I was moving seat instead! He did it while I was in a sitting position which is meant to be more painful??! My other half heard my scream through the double door (i am a wimp). The doc said it was a pretty impressive dislocation. After x-rays and a full leg brace I was sent back home.
For the first 2 1/2 weeks I couldn’t do much. Luckily I had no pain so didn’t take any of my painkillers, although the following day I was very sick from the morphine. I was mostly resting and applying ice packs at this time. I learnt to lift my braced leg and did this to stop my hip getting sore, and moved about on crutches. I occasionally tried to bend the knee as I knew I had a bended knee x-ray to do at 2 1/2 week appt. At this appointment the x-rays were clear, but the doctor said my knee is now in the wrong place but they can’t do anything about it until I dislocate it again! Not what I wanted to hear! He told me now to start trying to walk and even try some squats. It was to be a further 2 weeks before I could get in with a physiotherapist to I continued with attemping to walk (albeit with a limp), lift leg straight and flex toes back.
At 4 1/2 weeks post dislocation I started physio, which has been brilliant. I finally felt that I was progressing. I started with leg bending exercises which I did 10-20 repeats of each exercise 4 times daily (sometimes 3 times). The following week (5 1/2 weeks post dislocation) I had progressed well and moved onto leg stregthening exercises and 5 mins on the bike. This was hard at first but I found once I got going the knee was fine, just I was out of breath! I carried on doing 4 times daily exercises and 5 mins bike a day.
I’m now at the 6 1/2 week mark. I’m continuing to strengthen and exercise. I can now sit with my leg bent for a few hours fine and I now walk without any limp. I still have trouble sleeping as wake up to turn over several times a night. I should be returning to work in 10 days time. I have a very physical job as a veterinary nurse, with lots of kneeling and lifting heavy patients, so I’m working hard to get back fit. I will wear a knee support for work and my physio has told me that I will need to continue my exercises from now on or the muscles/ligaments will weaken and it will happen again.
If anyone knows of any exercise classes that are good for keeping the knee good I’d apprecate the advice. I’ve been told my climbing days are over.
I wish everyone all the best
Samantha (West Midlands, UK)
Thank you for sharing Samantha. WOw, a two hour wait for an ambulance!! Yikes!
Glad to hear you are progressing well. As for the exercise classes, I don’t know of any off hand, but I do know that as far as what exercises you should be doing, the key is working all the muscles that surround your knee, both back and front. So make sure you do squats, lunges, leg raises, etc. A lot of people will tend to work the quads but forget about the hammies. =)
Keep us updated,
Jonesy
Here’s my story : I was biking one saturday with a bunch of my friends when we had the idea to make a jump. So we took some scrap wood and nails and put them together, voil?á a jump. So we all go off it and then we decide to raise it so we do and I choose to go off first with my BMX so I hit it, land , and wipeout slaming my knee into the ground, dislocating it, then sliding and it popping back in. It was the most painful thing on earth and all my friends heard the noise, it sounded like a gunshot. So we go to the hospital. Yup dislocated knee but the doctor tells me I don’t need physio so ok. So go home a week and a half later walking down the stairs pop it goes again. So we go back to the hospital, another 4 hour wait and I need a splint. We go home. I popped it out the first time sept.10 the second time on sept.28 and I popped it out yet again on november 12. Yup doctor says until it fully heals and more over it’ll continue to pop anytime I twist it the wrong way or put too much pressure on it put hey until it gets better life keeps going on. What can you do?
Hi Julyan, thanks for sharing. If you don’t mind me asking, are you a teenager? The reason I am asking is because these kinds of injuries do happen quite often in physically active teenagers, with the downside of a higher rate of recurrence for the dislocation as well, because the muscles don’t tend to be as strong and developed. I would definitely suggest using a brace if you can, something to keep the knee stablized while you are mobile. Also, I would strongly recommend seeing a physiotherapist. See what they can do for you to help you strengthen up that leg.
Stay strong my friend,
Jonesy
Dear everyone,
On Friday early morning I fell at a bar (only slightly boozing) and dislocated my patella. I was horrifingly embarrassed and screamed in intense pain. It was friend bday and was upset that I temporarily ruined it. Anywoo, on the lovely ambulance ride it hit a pothole (I live in chicago) and popped pack into place. I screamed bloody murder and verged on the cusp of passing out when the pain had ceased. At hospital they did xrays gave me a vicoden and precsript and pushed me out the door.
I don’t have insurance and am so scared. Also, I have dropped my classes from the local community college, and have had dream interviews I had to dismiss. No one seems to understand, and recently I have been having foot spasms and its always cold which leaves me to believe nerve damage. I can walk without crutches for short distances, and can bend and straighten my knee. But I’m anxious for my appt Monday. Has anyone experienced the foot spasms? And I can’t stand to wear the immobilizer when I’m laying down so I hope I didn’t make it worse.
Dazed and Confused.
Kara
Hi there,
This site is so great! Finally I have found somewhere to read and compare my story to others who have had the same misfortune. I’m 28 years old and my injury was 1 month ago today.
Basically I had a really simple fall running from one room to another at home and twisted and slipped over. I was horrified to find myself lying on the floor with my right kneecap clearly dislocated and sticking out of the outside of my leg! I was in so much pain, I begged my husband to relocate the leg – neither of us had any idea how but somehow I stayed conscious and he managed it! As with everyone else’s stories, the swelling was huge and started instantly.
I took a trip to the A&E and after xrays and cat scan was diagnosed with a dislocated patellar, fractured kneecap and torn ligament. I spent a couple days in hospital on morphine which certainloy helped and then was fitted into a splint which I then wore non-stop for 3 weeks. The splint is off now and I am 4 days into physio which I am finding really painful. It is definitely helping me increase my range of movement though, albeit slowly.
Like others, I also have massive muscle wastage in my right quad, and still have swelling in the knee. I can’t straighten my leg and am walking on crutches or “walking” (more like hobbling) on a bent leg.
I’m getting significant pain from the physio but have started on a pilates style leg press and gentle revolutions on the bike.
To those of you who are in the early days of your injury I feel for you – I never want to experience this again! But 3 weeks ago I never thought I would be able to do the little things I can, like sleep on my side or walk around the house without crutches… so perservere – things will get better! I’m hoping to give the physiotherapy everything I’ve got so I can avoid surgey if possible.
One interesting thing I’ve noticed that makes my story unique is I have now broken out in shingles down my right arm – apparently a result of the trauma of the injury. Freaky huh! Thanks again everyone for sharing your stories… I have had a terrible 4 weeks of being stuck on the couch in pain and miserable. Makes me feel a lot better knowing I’m not alone. Get better fast all!
Hi Sarah,
Thank you so much for sharing your story, and thanks for the positive comments as well. =) That is definitely a weird one about the shingles. Did they explain that science behind why you had that kind of a reaction? Just curious.
Cheers,
Jonesy
hi this site is really good…
i dislocated my patella nearly 5 weeks ago, i sliped going down a muddy bank and felt the bones in my leg move outwards not realising what i had done and in agony i pushed my knee straight and heard a load crack… thought i’d broke my leg.
anyway went to hospital had x-ray and told i’d dislocated it but it was back in position which i must of done, so i was quiet relieved i hadnt broke anything. so i was given crutches and was bandaged up and told to go fracture clinic 4 days later… there the consultant looked at me said here a sick note come back in 4 weeks, no bandage nothing so i thought i must be ok. my knee still swollen and although i can walk on it (feels un-stable tho) i can’t bend it without feeling like my bones will pop out again, anyway went back to consultant yesterday and was told i need keyhole surgery mmm i was abit shocked as thought why? as shudnt i have had physio or some aids to help it first? i am totally confused to why i been left for 5 weeks and then they say i need surgey… i have booked an appointment with my own g.p to see if i can get some answers… anybody else had surgery? i have had no knee problems via to this dislocation and am fit and healthy… any help or advice wud be appreciated… thanks and i wish u all well!
Hi Amanda,
Thanks for sharing your story. I myself never had to have surgery, but it wasn’t out of the realm of things to come in the beginning. At my second visit the knee surgeon decided it wasn’t necessary based on my progress. I am wondering if “key hole surgery” is another way of saying that they want to send a scope into your knee to get a better assessment on the damage? As for the physio, that won’t happen until you get a referral from a doctor. For me the physio didn’t happen until about three to four weeks after my accident. Definitely do a follow up, and pursue a different consultant if you feel this one is not up to snuff.
Hope you feel better soon,
Jonesy
Hi There,
Yup according to my doctors when your body has a trauma or shock it is quite common to get shingles.
Shingles is a reactivation of the chicken pox virus, which remains dormant in your body after you’ve had it. Stress and trauma or injury can reactivate the virus, therefore you get shingles. Interesting huh!
The funniest thing is that the doctors told me I need to get alot of rest – ironic given that all I’ve been doing for the past 5 weeks is “resting” because I can’t walk anywhere or do anything! haha.
Very interesting indeed. Thanks for the follow up.
Jonesy
I have found this site so helpful, as I’ve been feeling so lost and alone all through this. My injury happened at home 6 days ago while I was pulling up my undies (yes, embarrasing), I twisted into an awkward position and then bam felt the worst pain of my life and fell to the ground in screams. My husband rushed over and accidentally knocked my leg in his rush and I almost killed him. I was screaming out for him to call the ambulance, which he did. We ended up waiting about 30 minutes for them to arrive, and it was the longest 30 minutes of my life with my leg bent up in an uncomfortable position but where it hurt less…I ended up asking my husband to hold it in that spot. The ambulance arrived and gave me a Penthrox Whistle (otherwise known as the Green Whistle) to kill my pain as moved my knee back into place by straightening my leg. The whistle worked wonders as I felt nothing. We then talked through our options. She thought it would be best to go to the local GP’s office and not a hosptial emergency ward as the wait would too long. Also as my husband and I both don’t drive and are new to this city and have no idea where the hospital is, and the local doctor is litterally down stairs it did seem to be the logical place to go. Also the ambulance wasn’t a “full ambulance” it was a small car with just the one paramedic (common in Australia to deal with less traumatic cases) and my husband wouldn’t have been able to come with me to the hospital. Anyway I kinda regret not going to the hosptial now as I feel my local doctor doesn’t have enough experience with this type of injury. Once we had the referal to the xray office the paramedic dropped me off there and was on her way, but she did say I could keep the leg brace she had put on me. I had some very painful xrays and then returned to the GP who looked at the xrays and said there seemed to be no fractures. The language she was using didn’t put me at ease at all “seemed” is not good enough, I want full answers. Anyway I was told to rest for 2 days with the leg brace on, not advised to get crutches, which I decided to ask my husband to get anyway (and for some reason the chemist only gave him one), and given a referral to see a physio after 5 days. So my first physio appointment was last night, and I spoke to him about my fears, the greatest being it happening again. I’m 26 and all my life my knees have bent backwards about once a month, in what I’ve now been told is a partial dislocation. One time it caused me to fall and break my ankles. Anyway I know I have hyper flexible ligaments in my knee, so I’m terrified of what this means for my recovery and mainly for it happening again. He told me it is about building up the strength in my knee, as I have read here and we did some slight exercises as currently my leg won’t straighten and is permanatly in a semi bent position. I have been told I need to be out of the brace by the end of next week, so 2 weeks after the injury, but I think that is a little too soon. He also wants me off crutches by then too. After reading everyone here who had 1 month of rest and recovery I’m worried we are attempting physio too soon. I’m due to have 4 meetings with the physio every week for the next 2-3 weeks, which as I’m now not working I can’t afford (In Australia most stuff is covered by the government so I’m actually really confused as to why I have to pay for this and am looking into other options, but I did really like the physio I saw…I think if we went to the hospital it would have all been free…another reason to regret not going) Anyway I am really feeling low, as I can’t see this getting better anytime soon, and I have to say no to all the work coming through (I work freelance in fashion styling) so have no money, and because we moved to a new city, no savings, no family to help here…I have a planned trip back home for fashion week next month, so my goal is to still be able to attend all the shows and see my friends and family, but right now I just don’t see it happening with my knee the way it is.
Ok wow what a vent. Also my husband keeps telling me to just walk, just get over it, just “man up”. He thinks there is no pain, just fear. Yep he is “so supportive” (mind you he has been amazing in terms of physical support with lifting, cooking, cleaning etc)….How did other peoples partners take it?
Firstly I also think its been so great to read every ones stories, its nice to feel that you are not alone! lol. I dislocated my left knee cap back in april 2009. I was at work and the floor was wet with no wet floor sign, I didn’t notice and slipped, dislocating my knee cap. An ambulance was called but after about 30 minutes waiting for it i couldnt take the pain any more so decided to try and get it back myself. With the assitant manager holding my dislocated knee cap I ended up trying to straighten my knee and pretty much knocking it back which i managed to do. I DO NOT recommend doing this lol. As well as it being extremly painful, it can also cause so much more damage ( so i was told from the paramedics ). The ambulance came and after checking me out they wanted to take me to hospital, but me being me and not wanting a fuss i decided against it and said i would just take the afternoon off and rest up and be back the next day. Well as soon as i got home i couldn’t walk on my leg and my knee had doubled its size. My granddad ( bless him ) wouldnt rest until i went to the hospital which i reluctantly did. As soon as i got there i was xrayed and put into a full leg cast, when i say full it was from ankle to thigh, and i was told i would be in this for at least 6 weeks. To say i was mortified was an understatment. I work as a barmaid/waitress so I couldnt afford to be unable to walk. I was actually only in the cast for 3 weeks and then put into a cricket splint for another 2 weeks. By the time i started physio my muscles on my left leg had just gone. It was so severe that i was unable to straighten my leg for about 5/6 months and this was with intensive physio. Because of this my right leg over compensated so much it completely threw me out of joint and I have an infringed nerve which causes sciatica pain.I gradually got my strength back and after having nearly 10 months off work i returned on reduced hours. Because of this sciatica pain i have had to have Epidural cortisone injections into my spine to try and relieve the pain.
This dislocation happened nearly 2 years ago and during that time my left knee cap has dislocated again ( i fell down a ramp lol ) but i fell onto my leg so was able to put it back pretty much straight away. I know I shouldn’t have but i refused to go to the hospital because emotionally i could not have gone through what i did with the 1st dislocation, I mean i was only 21 at the time and it pretty much took over a year of my life away. The weather is a killer, as well as now being absolutly petrified of slippery surfaces, when it is damp or cold or rainy and im sitting down my knee aches so bad it can bring me to tears, yet as soon as i stand up the pain pretty much vanishes. I can also feel my knee kinda crack when it is straightend but my doctor told me not to worry about this as long as it doesn’t hurt.
For everyone who is just going through this I really do feel for you. I do hope you all make a quick and full recovery. And I know it can be so frustrating at times and so disheartening but it will get easier. If i could recommend anything it would be to stick with your physio routine, even when you are discharged. I should listen to my own advice and maybe my kneecap wouldn’t have dislocated a second time lol.
My thoughts and best wishes are with you all =)
Jonesy,
I recently dislocated my patella and your blogs has been so useful. Were you able to lift your dislocated leg below the femur when you were hurt? I can’t lift my leg below the femur when either laying or seated.
Tim
Hi Tim,
For the first three weeks or so my leg was in a brace so I really couldn’t move it, even with it off I couldn’t really move it anyway, the brace just help to keep it in place. The worst times were during the night when I was sleeping. For some reason I would want to extend my leg or move it, only to bring on some seriously excruciating pain. Not fun!
Don’t expect too much movement for the first little while Tim, that will all come in time, especially once you get the go ahead for physio.
Stay strong my friend.
Jonesy
Hi,
I dislocated my patella 4 weeks ago, I only had the cast taken off a couple of days ago. I can’t really put weight on it and I am supposed to start physio next week!?
Just slightly worried about the physio when I can’t even put weight on it, any advice would be much appreciated?
Cheers,
Dan
Hi Dan,
Sorry to hear about your leg. Going into physio after the first month isn’t out of the norm. Physio is going to drastically improve your recovery Dan, I know right now there is still all that pain and discomfort, and it seems weird that you would be going to physio with all that going on, but trust me, it is for the best.
At this point in one’s recovery it is best to try and develop some faith in those around them to help them get better. If we listen to our inner dialogue we will convince ourselves that the pain is too much, that nothing is going to get us better except staying off the leg and lying down all the time. That isn’t going to work. What is key is to create an environment that is going to promote recovery, both mentally and physically. Physiotherapy is going to skyrocket your physical recovery, which in turn will promote your mental recovery. By seeing it work, by seeing the improvements, you will know you are doing the right then, you will develop the faith necessary to keep going, keep working hard, and keep getting better.
Stay strong Dan, and keep us posted.
Jonesy
Hello,
I started reading these stories looking for an answer to my questions and quickly realized how nice it is to feel “not alone” in this situation. It was great to read about some other peoples experiences in a similar situation.
Just over 3 weeks ago I dislocated my left patella while also breaking my left ankle. I was dancing on the dancefloor and the next thing I know I was on the ground. I went in an ambulance to the hospital, I got Xrays of my knee and ankle but no MRI on my knee. I was put in a full leg cast from my toes to my upper thigh. I just got the cast off on Monday which was my 3 week mark. My situation is alittle different because I STILL have the ankle cast on and have to be on crutches for another 3 weeks for it to heal and have a walking boot.
But as for my knee, I really need some advice.. I started physio Monday (the day i got the cast off) I go back on Friday so I assume they are having me come twice a week now.. I have exercises to do but their killing me, I cant bend my knee (although I am trying) and I am in quite abit of pain sitting in a chair and trying to do my exercises, im waking up through the night i cant get comfortable it hurts all the time and is still swollen. On top of this, I am a active outdoors person. I usually run 5-7k 3 times a weekk.. i was running 6k the week before the incident. Someone please give me alittle positive feedback that I will be able to run again sometime? I planned to run in a race at the end of June, I guess that wont be happening? Is it normal my knee is paining through the day and night without doing exercises? Please help !
Hi Kaela,
Thanks for sharing your story, and yes you are definitely not alone. As for your concerns, three weeks in and still having pain and swelling without doing the exercises wouldn’t be out of the ordinary. You clearly did some extensive damage to your knee so one can’t expect to be wolverine and heal super fast. =]
As for the running part, that is a very subjective response. Each of our situations, although similar in most respects, all contain individual differences that will affect our overall progress. For me, it wasn’t until the two year point where I was able to run. And in fact, it isn’t until know where I am actually able to run on the treadmill at a pretty fast pace without it hurting like a bastard. However, and this I where I feel the differences in our recoveries start out, I really let my physic therapy slip after I went back to work, two months after. I shied away from any kind of leg exercises and really didn’t do much to promote my recovery. At the two year point I started to get tired of being in pain most of the time and finally started to take my recovery more seriously. I started incorporating leg exercises and really using the elliptical machine to get things moving forward. Things got better of course. And now, I am working out using a lot of plyometrics and other exercises that incorpate a lot more leg routines. I am also incorporating strength training in my leg workouts as well (deadlifts, squats, lunges, etc.) and of course progress has been great. The key to all of this has been listening to my body and accepting the mantra of slow and steady. At times I just want to go hard core and really push it, but in the end I just hurt myself and am out o commission for a day or two; obviously not where I want to be. =]
Things will get better, stay strong and stay focused.
Jonesy
Hey,
Thanks for sharing your experience with me, I’m not going to lie hearing that 2 year line almost made me sick! haha. I have definitely kept everyones advice of taking physio seriously and have been doing a great job of keeping up with my exercises. What I didnt mention as well is I horseback ride competitively usually riding atleast 2 horses 5 days a week so getting my knee and ankle back into shape is very important to me, its not something I can easily forget about or let go I dont think.
Next Monday it has been 6 weeks since the injuries. I am in a plaster cast which is pretty heavy on my knee at the moment but im still attending physio their just keeping it light. As of now, my knee only bends at 62percent. For 6 weeks later, although it was laid up for 3 weeks i think its healing slowly, i get sharp pains in it all the time (and i havent even started walking yet) lol.
Im planning to go back to the gym as soon as I get walking comfortable in my walking boot that I get on Monday. I know I need to be careful but any tips you have to building muscle or get in shape without actually running would be very helpful. I also have a pool so im hoping this summer that will help strengthen my muscles i heard its really good for coming back from an injury.
Thanks again
Kaela
Hi Kaela,
Didnt mean to scare you with my two year recovery, just remember that the length was on account of my laziness. =]
Definitely get into a pool, in the other posts associated with my recovery story I do discuss my pool routine and how much it became an essential part of speeding up my recovery.
As for what exercises to do, my first advice would be to consult your physiotherapist as they are the ones with the best understanding of your particular situation. Just to be on the safe side.
Please keep us posted.
Cheers,
Jonesy
Hi there Jonesy!
So, obviously i am not the only person who has dislocated their knee cap. About a week ago i dislocated my knee cap, and it was excrutiatingly painful. I have been having knee problems for several months now – maybe 7? I am 14 by the way. My knee cap would move slightly and pop out a little, but it always would return to its normal state. As this re-occurred, it became less painful but it would also move more each time. This was the first time it would not go back as it usually does. Everyone around me was shocked, but luckily my dad was there. It took around 40 minutes to get me to the hospital safely – that includes the initial shock, the preperation to get me off the floor, the travel time, everything. As soon as we got to the emergency room, they fixed it and all, but they said if it hadnt have been out of place so long, it wouldnt have been as severe. But sadly, it was out for a while.
So now i am recovering. I wasnt told to completely imobilize it, but i was given an imobilizing brace to wear for the time being. I made an appointment at the orthopedic for 2 1/2 weeks after the injury. The first few days werent painful, just difficult since my leg was stuck completely straight. I didnt get the crutches til the second day, and still didnt really use them. So i have been working my leg too hard, causing the severe pain i am suffering now.
I am a dancer, so this is my worst nightmare. I will be out for a while, especially for physical therapy to regain my strength. I was supposed to be placed in pointe shoes in june, and i was supposed to audition for my local performing arts magnet program last tuesday. I dont know what i am going to do from here. I have been getting really scared and upset, since dancing is my life. My mom looked up ‘how long should it take a dislocated knee to heal’ on google, and your blog popped up. And im glad it did. It is a personal and truthful documentation of the whole experience. It makes me nervous, when you said your muscle was all gone.. Quads are important to a ballerina. Luckily it wasnt my main leg that got injured. But i am anxious for the recovery process. I need to be dancing again as soon as possible, but i am having such a hard time staying off my feet. I even peed myself earlier trying to make it to the bathroom with my crutches. I hadnt been using them unless i left the house, until i read this and i thought ‘hmmm…maybe i should use those more.’
thank you so much for posting this, it gives me a fresh wake up call on my situation at hand. I know ill recover, but this is helping me see the steps. Also, it was funny too. So thanks.
Madison,
Thank you so much for your honesty and sharing your story. I am always blown away when a person of your age bravely faces what is happening to them. Just from your story I know you are going to persevere and move forward, just please please please take it easy. crutches are your friend. =] I know this can be hard, especially the waiting and all the uncertainty that comes with recovery, but the last thing you want to do is make things worse. I realize that the injury came at the worst time possible, but it is what it is, and other opportunities will present themselves in some way shape or form, and you will be in better shape for it.
At 14 I am sure you would rather have me tell you “suck it up, take the pain, get back on that stage and try not to pee yourself!” =] but I can’t, well..I can tell you to try not to pee yourself (stage or no stage) but I won’t tell you to avoid proper recovery. Talk to your doctors, get to physio, and move forward at the proper pace to promote recovery. You are going to have lots of emotions coming at you, accept them, work through them, use them to keep you going and to keep you getting better.
Hope that helps, I always worry when I respond to a young person that I am coming across as a lame adult know-it-all; “lame”, that’s a word you kids use nowadays isn’t it. =]
Please keep us posted on your progress.
Cheers,
Jonesy
Hi Maddison … I would like to know if you have gone back to dancing and if there have been any problems and see how you have recovered. My Daughter is a ballerina and has dislocated her Knee as well. She is 15 and wants to dance professionally. I hope her dream is not dashed now.
Hello again,
Madison my personal advice to you is the same as everyone gave me, be patient. As much as it sucks theres nothing that will help you more than time and you will know yourself when your ready believe me if your knee isnt you will feel it. Im going on 7 weeks and its still swollen, sore (sometimes) and im going to physio twice a week with ultrasounds twice a week as well. I ride horses and run and theres nothing more I want to do right now!
It has been 2 weeks since my last post. I am now in a walking boot for my ankle (thank god) and slowing distributing enough weight on it to soon get rid of my crutches completely. I have been going to physio for my knee for just over 4 weeks now..I am bending at 71 degrees which the doctor says i should be at 90 by now but the cast from my ankle held me back in recovering as quickly with my exercises. I discussed running with him and he says my ankle wont be ready until a minimum of 16 weeks post injury which is a good 4 months leading me into the middle of July..BOO! I am not a happy girl over that.. lol but what can you do at this point. My crutches slipped on water on the floor and I fell the other night I think I sprained my wrist so Im having an awful time getting around with the crutches now, talk about good luck! My knee is still pretty sore if I sleep on my side and gets stiff easily. The doctor says I am allowed to go to the gym and use the bike starting next week if I am comfortable to strengthen my knee and ankle muscles even though I am suppose to walk in this boot for another 4 weeks.
I do have a few questions about my ankle though if anyone on here as broken their ankle please let me know!
Kaela
Hello!
I’m sorry I only read your story today (about 3 years after you’ve published it) but the topic is very actual to me I’m afraid…
I dislocated my left patella two weeks ago playing volleyball. I tried to catch a ball and ended up lying on the floor with my left knee twisted 90 degrees to the right and my patella – well – ‘somewhere’. The moment it happened, I was too shocked to feel any pain, but as soon as I realised that my knee was looking ‘strange’, I started screaming and crying (I think, because my eyes were wet later xD)
My sports teacher (luckily this s*** happend during a sports lesson at school) put ice on my knee and called the ambulance. But because my school is only about 500 meters away from the nearest hospital, they said I should try and WALK there. Hmm… So my sports teacher put a bandage round my knee (PAIN!) and gave me crutches and we tried to walk to the emergency room. I don’t know how I managed to walk there (my foot always touched my right leg when walking, remember: my knee was twisted 90 degrees…) but I finally got there (only took me about 30 minutes -.-) thanks to the help of my sports teacher who carried me the last about 100 meters to the door (guess I passed out, but can’t remember ^^)
At hospital, they made several X-rays and an emergency MRI scan. Diagnose: most ligaments ruptured, but luckily no bone damage. The doctores decided to try and fix my knee without surgery, which was extremely painful (worst pain ever!!!), because they twisted my leg back without anesthesia (I still don’t know why, but well…) and put the patella back in place. Then I got a knee brace which doesn’t allow me to move my knee in any direction and ice and (luckily) pain medication.
My sports teacher had called my parents but they were working and could not go home earlier, so I had to pass the day at my sports teacher’s house because I did not want to stay anywhere alone! I spent the rest of the day in my sports teacher’s bed ‘sleeping’ (or: having terrible dreams of damaged knees). My teacher’s wife was very friendly, she put ice on my knee while I slept and brought me cold water to drink etc. My sports teacher (who wasn’t able to return to school because he was too shocked) sat next to me all the time which really helped me a lot!
When my parents arrived at my sports teacher’s house, he helped me crutching to our car, helped me in and still didn’t leave me alone one second. I don’t know how to thank him for what he did for me (which isn’t a natural cause of action!) but he really really helped me a lot!
I didn’t have to go to school for the next week, but had several doctor’s appointments. They punctured my knee five times to get blood out of it and gave me something to made my blood thinner (I had to inject that myself twice a day in my belly!) And after one week I got another knee brace (so called ‘GenuTrain’ by Bauerfeind). This brace is really good! It holds my patella and knee in position, doesn’t allow my to twist my knee, but to bend it about 80 degrees. AND I hade to start walking without crutches!! First, I couldn’t do that, a) because it hurt too much and b) because I was too afraid to do it and c) because there were absolutely NO muscles left in my leg…
10 days after the accident I had my first physio therapist’s appointment. My physio therapist examined my knee and checked if I could already bend it or stretch it – it couldn’t. Then I had to walk without my knee brace which didn’t work either. He showed me how to increase the ability of moving my knee (I have to do some exercises at home).
Yesterday, I had my second appointment, where I had to bend my knee again – and it worked (well, about 2 degrees of flexion, but I’m very happy!!) So I got new exercises to do to try and straighten my quadriceps without moving my knee (I have to tense the muscle and hold it for 30 seconds)
So I hope it will get better and better! I still do have a lot of pain when I move my leg, but it already got a little better. Also, I can walk without crutches (but still with my knee brace) quite well again. I also went to school last week (still with crutches, not only because it’s safer but also because it looks better xD). While my parents are working, I still spend my days at my sports teacher’s house (I didn’t want that, but he did and my parents were really happy with this idea because they don’t really trust my friends. But I have do admit his wife is one of the best chefs ever met xD mmmh!! xD) I have 3 physio appointments every week now (for the next 3 months) and I’m not allowed to do any kind of sports for the next year (one year!! Oh dear, I still can’t believe that! ONE WHOLE YEAR!! That’s terrible!). I have to wear my GenuTrain-knee brace all day (except when I’m having a shower xD) and at night, I still have to put on the one I had before (which doesn’t allow me to move my knee at all)…
My friends and my family really help me a lot! Thanks to you! And especially to my sports teacher!
———————————————–
My name’s Matthias, I’m 16 years old and I’m from Zurich (Switzerland). So sorry for any mistakes, my English isn’t the best! But as you can see: patella dislocations unite the world ^^
Best wishes, I’m looking forward to hearing/reading from you soon!
Matthias
Matthias,
Thank you for sharing your story. And no need to apologize for your english, you did great.
What a story! Once again I am blown-away by the strength and courage shown by you young people. Here I was as an adult cursing the Gods for my pain and here you are WALKING to the hospital!!!! Crazy stuff. =]
It sounds like you have a great recovery plan set up, and make sure you thank your Sports teacher and his wife everyday, you are very lucky to have such wonderful and generous people helping you out with your recovery.
Stick with your plan, do your exercise, and keep that wonderful attitude you have, you will do just fine Matthias.
Keep us posted with updates on how you are doing.
Cheers,
Jonesy
Hello Jonesy!
Two weeks ago, my physio therapist wanted me to start walking without my knee brace. I tried, but unfortunately my patella dislocated again, even though I was very very careful and tried not to move my knee too much. The pain was as bad as before (or even worse) and the whole thing with MRI and X-rays etc. started again. The doctors told me that my knee is so damaged (complete ligament rupture of about all ligaments in my knee, bone damage too, muscle injured) that I have to undergo surgery as soon as possible… So I got operated on my knee on April 27th, only two hours after the accident.
My knee felt extremely bad after the surgery, but now it’s quite ok again. I’m still at hospital (I have to stay there for another 3 weeks) because I can’t move at all (I broke my hand when I fell during the physiotherapy, so I can’t walk with crutches -.-) and I’m not allowed to put any weight on my knee for 5 weeks after the surgery…
The doctors say that after about six months, I can start walking without crutches again, that it’ll take me more than a year to “learn” walking, running, jumping again, that I’ll never be able to play football (and other sports) without very high risc of re-dislocation again and that I’m very lucky the second dislocation happened at hospital, because some blood vessels in my knee got injured and I would have lost too much blood otherwise…
So a very short summary of what has happened to me: S*** !!!!
Matthias,
Wow, I am so sorry to hear about your knee…again!!! When you do something you really go all out. =) Man o man, hopefully the hospital staff are nice, seeing as you are there for three more weeks.
You definitely have a long road of recovery ahead of you, but as I said before, keep that positive attitude of yours strong, and you will do just fine.
Sending some positive energy your way.
Cheers,
Jonesy
Back again – Im finally out of the walking boot from my ankle and its healing great! As for the knee.. thats another story.
Since you have heard so many stories I wanted to ask your opinion on something. Its now been 10 weeks since I dislocated my left patella, 7 weeks since it came out of a cast and I started physio.
I am only getting about 85 degrees bending right now, the specialist said it should be better, he ordered an MRI to take place next week. He says he may have to go in with a scope and “clip” some of the cartlidge and/or he might just have to manipulate the tendons for my knee to bend completely so basically force it to bend (while puttign me to sleep) have u ever heard of either of these? and also, do you have any idea what the recovery from either of those situations is like? im not looking forward to possibley having to recover the way i have now and the last thing i want is knee surgery at such a young age
any information you might have would be great
thanks again,
kaela
Hi Kaela,
I have heard of those procedures, and in my own situation there was the possibility of the scope one happening, but my recovery went in the direction where that wasn’t necessary. I know a few people that have had the scope or other forms of knee surgery and their recovery time was about 3-6 months, depending on the severity of the surgery, as well as the person themselves. Everybody is unique, and so is their recovery. Mental attitude, physical fitness, age, etc., all these things factor into ones recovery time. So do not feel discouraged if you aren’t progressing like other people you know of or have heard about. Just keep focusing on staying strong, healthy, and positive. And I know that that is easier said than done, but trust me it makes a difference.
Did your physiotherapist give you any exercises to do while you are at home? If so, have you been doing them? That makes a difference as well.
Get the MRI done and see what the physiotherapist says after that.
Stay strong and keep the updates coming. =)
Jonesy
Hi. It was so good to hear other stories that I’ve decided to post mine too.
I dislocated my patella playing netball tearing the medial ligaments. I was taken to A&E where they returned my kneecap to it’s proper place. Quick to do, but took forever for a doctor to come and see me, which could be a reason why my ligaments tore. That and the way I was transported, but thats another story.
Kneecap returned – I was put in a removable brace and sent home with crutches and pain killers, but little info.
I saw the Dr at the fracture clinic the next day – again no info and told me I would be fine in about a week, but booked me in for Physio.
After 2 weeks of hearing nothing – I went to my own Physio.
Now 3 months on and I am back exercising. I have exercised from day one even when I was in the splint. Mostly lifting my leg up and down when in the splint and also whilst lying on my side with the good leg bent over the bad leg – lifting the bad leg upwards to strengthen as many muscles as possible.
Alot of rest when I could, but unfortunately being a mom life had to carry on regardless. Also I could remove the splint to have a bath and when the muscles were relaxed I tried to bend my leg a little, but only a very little at a time.
I do push myself, but listen to my body too. I’m not fit yet and it is frustrating. My knee still hurts sometimes, but it is getting better – so there is hope. I tend to wear a patella knee guard while exercising and tube bandage at other times if I feel the need – just to help the knee.
Hope this helps as I was extremely frustrated at not been given any information except by the Physio. I wish I had found this site earlier as other people’s experiences are really helpful.
Hi Janine,
Thank you for sharing your story, as well as the kind words about the site. Sorry to hear you had such a hectic time at the start there, it is definitely frustrating when the people you would expect to have the knowledge to help you, don’t. They just do there thing and leave the rest up to you. Nice.
Kudos to you as well for doing the exercises right from the get go. I was a big wimp and attempted them, but waited until my physio visits to get most of the work done. I am sure by keeping them up you will expedite your recovery, just keep listening to your body so that you don’t end up hurting yourself and making things worse.
Thanks again,
Jonesy
Hello, i was just reading your story about knee dislocation
i have done this 3 times now, once to my left leg and twice to my right, i am currently recovering from my third dislocation on my right leg. I have had an MRI scan and currently doing physio. I have been told my bones in my knee arent curved enough for my knee cap to fit in properly. I have been told about an operation i could have but it sounds horrid and as i last dislocated my knee 6 years before this time i dont see the point of it yet.
I wanted to know how long was it until you could drive again? Its just really annoying not being able to go out to drive places and having to ask others to take my places.
Hi Amelia,
Thanks for sharing your story. Three times dislocating your right leg, and four dislocations total! YIKES! =)
As for the driving, if memory serves me correctly, in my particular situation I think I was driving by about the end of the first month or so. It wasn’t easy though, especially in the beginning when my leg couldn’t bend a whole heckuvalot. But with time it got easier.
Hope things get easier for you and that this is the last time those knees of yours decide to dislocate themselves. =)
Cheers,
Jonesy
Hi there, im 12 and i have dislocated my knee cap 2 times-one on each knee! Well, the first time my friend and i was at this place with a bouncy house obsticle course type thing. we were racing and i ran too jump over a bar. I landed on the ground, my knee hit the ground first. i heard 2 pops and i idmeaitly fainted! i woke up at the hospital right as they were popping my knee back into place. i screamed bloody murder as they straightened and pushed it into place. i was on a cast for 2 months and had to under go surgery for a fracture too that they found while doing x rays.
Te second time i was in my gym doing double front handsprings and i landed awkwardly on the second one and heard a pop! i fainted again on this one too, but this time i woke up at 5 AM. i was only on a cast for 3 days, and didnt have surgery.
Hi Jennifer,
Thanks for taking the time to share your experience. I am pretty sure I have said this before, but I am amazed at how many young kids are dislocating their knees at least once, if not more than that. I think your youth has definitely contributed to your speedy recovery, just be careful since the more dislocations the more you will be prone to them reoccurring on account of your muscles and tendons being weaker. If you are up for it I would say consult a physiotherapist and see what they say about giving you some direction on how to keeps those areas strong.
How long was it between the dislocations?
Thanks again Jennifer.
Stay strong,
Jonesy
Hi Everyone,
I am a 26 female living in England. I have dislocated my left patella around 10 times. I was given surgery at the age of 13, which was unsuccessful. I currently work as a Special Needs Teacher, which requires lots of lifting, bending and kneeling. I most recently dislocated my knee while discending from a mountain climb. I am currently attending physio (1 session every 2 weeks) and have been instructed to complete 2 hours 15 mins of physio per day. My knee is very weak and my confidence is low. I am due to return to school on the 3rd Sept. I am extremely anxious and cannot seem to stop crying. The pain of dislocating is horrendous. While recovery form my first operation, I became very down, as I was in continuous pain. I did recover, but it is a lengthy process, one which I am scared of repeating. Thank you everyone for your comments, it makes me feel I am not alone.
Hello
I am 24 and Dislocated my Patella 2 times. My first Accident was when I was in High school about 17 yrs. old, outside waiting for the bus. A friend of mine and I were messing around being kids, and i moved my leg wrong and popped me knee cap right out of place. A sudden sweat came over my body and I felt sick to my stomach, My leg was locked in place and as soon as I saw what had happened I didnt plan on moving my leg at all. I had to get lifted onto the gurney and that was very painful, then they took me to the hospital and got put to sleep so they could put my kneecap back into place…. My leg was so swollen and hurt awful. I was in a brace for about 2 months and still had to go to school with it… worst 2 months of my life. I didnt see a specialist, because I wasnt referred to one, so I basically walked it off. My 2nd accident happened about 7 years after the first, And it was 5 months ago today…. I am still recovering from it and cant bend my leg fully. it gets to a certain point then i have to stop bending it, my knee feels like it gets so tight, or like im about to rip something… Anyway, it happened when I slipped in some water on our bare floor, and my knee slammed right into it, and popped out…..I never thought of the day, that it would happen to me again, but it did…. and it was terrifying and very painful….. I was crying until the ambulance got there to my house, and i was thinking in my head the whole time about how im going to have to relive my biggest fear. Getting put onto the gurney off of the floor was soo painful, and then the hospital ride was bumpy and very uncomfortable. When i got to the hospital, this time a different one, The examined my knee and said I have to put it in now, I was shocked and said ” Your not going to put me under for this?”
Like i had been the first time. He said no…. put his hand over my knee cap, the nurse held my chest down along with my arms, and he counted 1-2-3 and he pushed my knee back into place….. I have never felt that kind of pain in my life, I thought dislocating it was bad, putting it back in is worse….. And I had a child, didnt even amount to the pain i felt. Then after he suprised me, they finally gave me pain medication and slid a brace around my leg, Gave me a pair of crutches and sent me home the same night. My job laid me off because I had no insurance, and i wasnt full time. 250.00 to put upfront for a doctors note saying i could go back to work within 6 days was out of the question because the ER doctor clearly said I was to be off my leg for a few weeks. Once again, I had no money to see a specialist for therapy, i took myself off the crutches within 2 weeks and started walking because I have a 2 yr old that needed to be taken care of. Does anyone know how I can get help with surgery If i need it without insurance? Im walking fine now, my knee grinds sometimes, and I still cant bend it fully, and I am scared and strees everyday, fearing it will happen again. If anyone knows about any information, please let me know. Thank you
HEYY..my first dislocation occured just few days back and i am on medication and rest..but i am very sad after knowing that it can occur again and again.. please can u tell me some precautions so that it cannot reccur again.. i am just 19..and i just cannot afford it.. :/
Hi Kiara,
Thank you for taking the time to read my posts and share your story. While a dislocation definitely sucks, it isn’t the end of the world. The recurrence of a dislocation can be minimized by taking a few precautions. My personal advice would be:
1) Keep up with your physiotherpay
2) keep your leg strength up with Lunges, squats, etc. With the muscles around your knees staying strong you drastically decrease your chance for another dislocation. That being said make sure your physiotherapist gives you the go ahead to start doing those types of exercises.
3) Keep a positive attitude.
4) Use the eliptical machine instead of a treadmill. I find I can get a really good cardio workout and not have my knees feel like a thousand knives are digging into them.
That is all I can think of for now Kiara. Hope it helps.
Cheers,
Jonesy
Hey, came across this site and feel reassured but petrified at the same time now! I dislocated my knee 8 days ago slipping in the kitchen and have never been in so much pain!!! I went to hospital, had it popped back in, had an X-ray which didn’t show anything of concern. I’m in a cricket split and on crutches. I can fully straighten my leg and can bend it, but only to a certain point when it just feels tight. It doesn’t hurt to put pressure on my leg, it just feels weak. I can now lift my leg up and down with not much pain but trust me I couldn’t to start with. I have an appointment at the fracture clinic on Monday when hopefully I will have some good news!! Im still having to go to work which is making things difficult, but I have an office job so can put my leg up under my desk which isn’t to bad. I’m so scared I’m going to find out i have done serious damage and will need an operation. How long was it before you could drive?
Paula
Hi Paula,
THanks for taking the time to visit and share your story.
Please see my previous response to Trish. She too was concerned about how long it would be before she would be able to drive.
Keep us posted if you can.
Cheers,
Jonesy
Thanks Jonesey. I’m sure everyone will agree that recovery just feels like it takes forever and you just feel like you’ll never get back to normal. It’s hard to believe how an injury that it so easy to do can put you back so long. Makes you appreciate your legs and how people must feel who are worse than you.
Well I went to the fracture clinic and the surgeon took away my splint and told me I need to start walking and putting weight on it. The idea of that makes me nervous! Got to go for and MRI scan in 6 weeks.
Paula
Hi Paula,
Thanks for the updates! Glad to hear you have moved on to the “no splint” phase of your recovery. =) Have they given you a cane or crutches? I provide some tips on how to use the crutches/cane in this series of post (my apologies that I can’t think of which specific post it is at the moment).
Lack of Confidence in your own body is definitely the biggest hurdle to overcome, and it will plague you throughout your recovery if you give it that much power over you. I felt he exact same way, but as my physio progressed I started to think more and more about how I am getting better and more in control of my movements, and less and less about how weak and tired with no confidence or trust in my own body to keep me upright. As I had mentioned to you earlier, a positive attitude is so important.
Stay strong and stay focused Paula.
As always, keep us posted.
Cheers,
Jonesy
Hi Paula,
It definitely did feel like it took forever for me as well. And I couldn’t agree with you more, I most certainly developed a deeper sense of empathy for those less fortunate in their mobility than I was. It took my injury to let me see just how much I took my mobility for granted. Seriously. In the first few week of my return to work I thought I was going to lose it! I take the public transit and I was blown away at just how rude and inconsiderate people can be towards those less mobile than them. There I was hobbling away with my cane trying to take it as easy as I can, but also trying not to get thrown down and crushed to death by the fast moving swarms of subway-lemmings. =) That being said, my faith in humanity was restored by those kind souls who offered me their seat when they saw me with my cane. Once my physiotherapist said to stop using the cane seats were offered to me no more. =( (single tear) =)
Cheers,
Jonesy
Well it’s been 5 weeks now post dislocation. I was driving just after 3 weeks. I am walking more comfortably, albeit with a slight limp. I’m walking up and down stairs but there is clicking, but I think it’s my ankle lol. I’ve just got myself back in the gym and can do my lower body with no problem or pain I.e the bike etc. I think I’m making ok progress, still a long way to go though to get stronger and rid of this limp. Still don’t feel I could do sports though.
How do you think it sounds?
Thank you so much for advice. I will try to have positive attitude and definitely will keep up the physiotherapy and exercises with a hope that it will never occur again.
Hello,
I have just found your blog having searched the internet, most unsuccessfully, to find out more about knee dislocation.
I am from the Uk and I have been very interested to see how this condition is dealt with elsewhere. Here’s my story:
I gave birth to my second child on 28th September and on the 2nd October I was cleaning bottles in the kitchen and slipped on some water. I fell and landed, very heavily, on my right knee. I was in the house on my own as my husband was out walking with the new baby and my daughter was at nursery (which I’m glad of as I couldn’t bear for her to hear the screams-Like I say, I gave birth a few days before but the pain of a dislocation is something else!)
My husband came in and found me around 10 minutes later and called an ambulance. I was taken to the local hospital where they gave me morphine before they popped it back into place. Not knowing anything about knne dislocation, I thought I would simply get up and walk out of the hospital. Little did I know there would be months of recovery to follow. I was given an open ‘cricket bat’ splint and told to rest up and bear no weight at all and to come back to the fracture clinic a couple of weeks later. I did this and much to my disappointment, the doctor told me I was to immobolise fully and the best way to do this was to put on a full plaster case, pretty much all the way from thigh to ankle. I was heartbroken as I had two small children to take care of and my husband was starting a new job. I was in the cast for a couple of weeks before going back to see the consultant. Initially, I was told that keyhole surgey would be very likely as some of the bone had chipped away but was told on my retuen that I wouldn’t need it afterall. Instead, the plasercast was removed and I was given a follow up appointment with the physiotherapist. I have been seeing a physio and osteopath once a week since and I also have hydrotherapy once a week. My knee is still stiff and I can’t bend it fully (105 degrees). I am continuing with the various therapies and am really hoping for a full recovery.
I haven’t had time to read through the extensive list of replies to this post and hope to do so tomorrow. In the meantime, does anyone have any tips for a speedier recovery? I am desperate to get back to full health and I am putting off driving until I have full range in my knee but did anyone get back to friving at the point or sooner?
I wish you ll a speedy recovery!
tx
Thanks for taking the time to visit and share your story Trish, and congrats on the newborn!!
I can’t remember exactly how long it took me before I could drive, but if I had to hazard a guess I would say at least a month; and that was with daily physio treatment. Since you need to have a pretty good range of motion to be able to bend your leg to get in the car, this was why it took so long. The last thing you want to do is rush it and try bending your leg to get in the car only to experience excruciating pain! This is what I had done two weeks after my dislocation and it took that stupid act to knock some sense into me and take it easy.
Stay strong and stay focused my friend, these things take time.
Keep us posted if you can.
Cheers,
Jonesy
I actually have a question for Trish, however not sure if she will even see this, but will go for it anyways just in case she does!
Our situations are very similar, knee injury with little kids at home. I’m now almost 7 weeks post injury and am still having a hard time caring for the kids on my own. The biggest issue is not being able to carry them anywhere. I have a 2 story house and all the bedrooms are upstairs. I can’t carry my baby up the stairs yet. Luckily my 4 year old can get up and down on his own for a while now and my 19 month old does okay as well. How long did it take for you to recover enough to the point where you could carry your kids again? Any tips that maybe you did to help with carrying the kids? I’m thinking if I put the baby in a carrier, that I’ll be able to get up and down the stairs with him. I may have them work with me on that in therapy (using my carrier and some sort of weighted object) to get used to it there versus trying with a real baby at home!
Recovery is making great strides for me now so I’m hoping it’s not much longer until I feel comfortable doing all the childcare again on my own (husband works long hours so I’m home alone with the kids in the evenings). Just one week in PT and my range of motion went from 95 degrees to 115 degrees. I’m now walking most of the day without any crutches. I also did carry the baby tonight for a distance of 5 feet from his playmat to the chair. So I am making some progress, just not fast enough!
Thanks for any tips you may have with any of this, if you do see this and are able to respond!
Kristin
Hi kristin,
Wow, someone in exactly my position! I sympathise with you massively. I was absolutely heartbroken when I slipped and dislocated my knee. Five months down the line and I am mobile again and taking care of the kids but I am still walking with a limp and taking stairs one at a time.
As far as the children are concerned, I got back to carrying the baby around about 9 weeks after the accident. It’s so tough not being able to care for them as you would like isn’t it? I felt for a long time that my experience with my newborn was somehow ruined by not being able to go out for walks etc but I think in the long run it did him good! He is happy to sit for periods of time and isn’t fussy about being carried all the time.
I’m still not able to do everything I would like with the kids. I can’t run, kneel down to play on the floor, visit soft play areas but at least I am hobbling around enough to do the bulk of it (including laundry and cooking!). I am not satisfied with the care I’ve received on the nhs here (are you in U.S?) so I am paying privately to see a consultant next week. I had an MRI last week which showed there is still a 5mm gap between my ligament and kneecap do it hasn’t reattached 5 months on!
It really won’t be before you’re back up and about doing all the everyday stuff and I’m sure if you’re receiving the right care you will be back to normal in no time. ( What has your care been like? are you still in plaster?) What’s most important that you don’t put too much stress on your knee. You only get two of them after all!
Please message back, it’s good to hear I’m not alone!
Take care.
I’m so glad you saw my email! Yes, I’m in the States. It sounds like we do things a little different here. I was in a soft immobilzer for 5 weeks, I could take it off when I showered, but had to leave it on all day with the use of crutches. I’m now in a brace that has support around my kneecap and started physical therapy 2 times a week. The brace I keep on for most of the day and take it off at night
I had a MRI done around 2 weeks post injury. It only showed a lot of fluid behind the kneecap, no damage to any ligaments so I guess I should consider myself lucky in regards to that!
The one thing I have not really like with my care is the lack of information regarding recovery time. My therapists have only told me that everyone is different, which I get. But going into this injury, I was thinking I’d be back up and running within 4 weeks. Now it is 8 weeks later and while I’m doing better, still have a ways to go with returning back to normal activity.
Yes, my baby is certainly enjoying being held often! That is the one good thing that has come from this, I have been able to sit back and enjoy the newborn period more with him than my older two. It is difficult to not be able to carry him up and down the steps yet. I’m hoping that day comes soon.
I’ve started to do more around the house, using my crutches less and less to get around. My biggest issues now are not being able to fully care for the kids and my quad muscle has shut down, which I guess is very common in knee injuries. Physical therapy has me working on that and I’m hoping once that comes back, I can start to strengthen my knee and the care of the kids will come shortly after that.
Thanks again for messaging back! It certainly helps to know that none of us are really alone in this, even though at times it is difficult to see that. It’s been a long, frustrating process but my mindet is now “one day at a time”. Hoping the consultant you see next week gives you good news in regards to fixing your ligament!
Kristin
Hi again Kristin,
Yes, it does seem slightly different. You sound like you’re making good progress so stay positive. It is amazing how quickly the muscles waste. Keep up the physio and you should be up and running in no time. It’s good news that you don’t have ligament damage.
I have my ‘second opinion’ consultation this Saturday so I am hoping for some answers!
My email address is patdurks@hotmail.com. Feel free to contact me anytime.
Take care
x
Here’s my story… I had four dislocation on my right knee since I was 11years until I had a surgery for recurrent kneecap dislocations when I was 19… The surgery was successful, 6 years and the right knee is still strong… I’m 24 now last month my left kneecap popped out the pain was like I cannot put in words… It was popped back by my uncle same as others the left knee was three times as big in size… I went to a doctor as he prescribed me some pain killers and some physio exercises and pushed me out… It’s been 6 and 1/2 weeks now the pain is still there while walking I just cannot move around without the support to the knee but there’s no pain while I’m in resting position… My question is should I go for a surgery on the left knee too ??… As it happened first time on left would surgery help me ?….
Hi Emad,
Thanks for taking the time to share your story. I definitely can’t say whether you should have surgery or not since I am not a doctor, medical practitioner, physiotherapist, etc. =) That being said, what I can recommend is that you go back to see your physiotherapist. It sounds like you could benefit from some more phsyiotherapy. As much as I questioned my physiotherapists decision to get me off of crutches, cane, etc., I learned quite quickly the method behind his madness. When you have that support mechanism you start to rely on it and deny your body the opportunity to start working on its own to get you better. At least that is how it was for me. See what your physiotherapist says.
As for surgery, I am not a huge fan of being cut open if I don’t have to be. =)
Just thinking out loud here…would it be fair to say that since your dislocation and surgery on your right knee you have predominantly put more focus on your left leg for your mobility, etc.? I am just wondering if the left decided to finally give out because it has been carrying the brunt of the load for 6 years. Simply strengthening that leg and focusing on balancing your mobility might be sufficient.
Keep us posted if you can.
Cheers,
Jonesy
I am so glad I came across this site. I fell on an icy sidewalk on my way into an interview for a job on 2/1/13.
I have subluxed my right patella in the past and just some soreness to it. When I fell, I landed on my butt with my knee off to my side and bent at an angle. I panicked and straightened out my leg which is when the kneecap went back into place. I went about my way, went to the interview and then went shopping.
I got home and by 6pm was driving myself into the Emergency Room with pain and swelling. They told me I broke something, gave me an immobilizer and crutches. I followed up with Ortho 3 days later. They originally thought I had a partial tear in my MCL. The break was a tiny chip off of what they think was my tibia. The bone chip was so small they could not even tell where it cam from. Told me to keep my leg immobilized and keep using the crutches. 2 weeks after the fall, they finally got me in for an MRI after I told them I couldn’t lift my leg. The MRI showed that nhing was torn, not even the MCL as they originally thought. The only concern my doctor had was the amount of fluid around the knee yet and that I had an abnormal ACL, but the abnormal ACL shouldn’t cause any issues and it could have been abnormal for a long time. I grew up on a lake so water skied every day. I’m thinking my ACL is abnormal because of that.
Anyways, 4 1/2 weeks after my fall they finally referred me to physical therapy. I had my first session last week and I could bend my knee to a 95 degree angle at that visit. My VMO muscle in my thigh had shut down so I have to do straight leg lifts and some other exercises to jump start that muscle again. It is such an odd feeling doing that straight leg lift, it feels like I have a 20 pound weight on that leg while lifting versus what it feels like lifing my good leg.
I have been walking short distances around the house without my crutches. I now have a neoprene J brace for my knee that holds the knee cap in place. I do have some swelling left on my knee. I hobble around slowly when I don’t use the crutches. Recovery has been a lot longer than I anticipated, especially since nothing was torn, only the fluid on the knee.
It gets very frustrating, I have 3 kids under the age of 4. I am limited with what I can do with them, can’t carry my newborn or my 18 month old around. I am completely dependent on someone helping me. I am hoping that recovery moves much faster now that I am in physical therapy. I am trying to remain positive that my leg will get back to normal, but right now it sure feels like I’ll be in pain, unable to walk and using crutches for the rest of my life! I know that is not the case, I will get back to normal, just hard to see that light at the end of the tunnel so to speak.
That said, It is amazing how much I have improved in the past 3 weeks. I went from not being able to bear any weight on that knee as it would buckle to being able to walk short distances on it. That was all without physical therapy. It can only improve from here with the help of my therapist! I told her she has 2 weeks to get me back to walking normally again as that is when my Husband goes back to work after being on leave to help me out at home with the 3 little kids.
Hi Kristin,
Thanks for taking the time to share your story. I can’t believe you still went to your interview and did some shopping after! Classic. =)
Your positive attitude and focus on getting better and getting back to normal are definitely huge assets that will certainly help you reach your goal.
As always, keep us posted if you can.
Cheers,
Jonesy
Johnesy
Came across your story thought i’d share mine, week and half ago playing football i hurt my knee felt very painfull when i fell but felt even worse next morning i just rested the knee till next week, and just yesterday i went to see a physio the problem i have now is i can’t fully bend my leg…i can prob bend about 80% but not fully so his referred me to physio hopefully i can build the flexibility back…don’t want the surgery option at all..
About 4 weeks ago, I was at a dance fesitval in Virgina for school ,(I live in Florida) It was the last dance class I was taking, and there was about 20 minuets left to the class. I had a partner because we were practicing shifting body weight and improv, I suddenly put my right leg in the air, and had all the weight on my left leg. My partner pushed me one way, and my knee went the other. I heard an awful pop and I felt 2 pops. The pop was so loud that my instructor across the room with blarring music and 150 kids in the class heard it. I was rushed to the hospital with my teacher and got X-Rays. Nothing was broken but they thought it was a meniscus tear. After going to an orthopedist when I arrived home in Florida and getting MRI’s and CT Scans, they said that I had dislocated my patella and tore my MCL and ACL. I had major swelling and bone bruising. They said that it automatically went back into place (Which I am very glad of). Im still recovering and I start therapy tomorrow. I have a very constraining brace and was on crutches for 2 weeks. I waddle around like a penguin. As of right now I dont need surgery ( But they want to come back and look at my meniscus in the future ). Thank you for sharing your story. It makes me feel less gimpy!
Hi Cathryn,
Thanks for sharing your story. As I had mentioned in my own story, I wasn’t aware of the sound my knee had made as I was solely focused on the insane pain and the rapid fire succession of f-bombs I was dropping. =) The others in the gym though couldn’t determine which was louder, the pop or the f-bombs. =)
From one gimp to another, have a great day and keep us posted if you can.
Cheers,
Jonesy
I’m only 16 and have dislocated my knee about 6 times now First when I was 14 for going back to sport too quick and being lazy to do the physio or just not doing enough physio which I regret and I kept Disclocating my knee again and Again until I Realised I need to do these exercises , I’m now actually scared to run my knee is upredictable lol its slightly moved out of place whilst sitting on the bus but bus was moving at same time so was a bit of a struggle even moved slightly out of place when struggling to put my shoe on and these happened recent …until you strengthen it you always going to have problems I now have to do physio continuosly its not A thing where I can go .. “Oh my knee’s stronger which means no more physio”..NO Don’t think like that you need to keep on doing it to keep it strong ..and I’m just saying this due to my experience with my knee’s I’m only starting physio now and I’m turning 17 in 2 days remember I first Dislocated it when I was 14 so don’t delay yourself do the physio ! (Y)
I could have been Back to basketball by now 
Good Morning Marsha,
Thank you for taking the time to share your story. I am sure I have said this before but I am always blown away at home many young people are affected by this type of dislocation. Mind = blown! Seriously, I can’t imagine what it must be like at that age to have to worry about this type of thing when there are a whole wack of other things you should be focusing your attention on.
Your advice is bang on though Marsha. Physio, physio, physio. Our knees don’t just magically heal themselves since it isn’t really just our knees that are the issue here. There are other things that work in conjunction with our knees (e.g. muscles, ligaments, tendons, joints, etc.) that need just as much strengthening/healing/etc.
Keep us posted if you can.
Cheers,
Jonesy
Hi, I just wanted to give an update as to where I am post knee dislocation. I posted my story a while back, but did dislocate on Feb 1st 2013. I started physio mid-March. I saw another Ortho surgeon for a second opinion. Very short visit with him, but he made mention that I had a possible grade 1 or 2 tear of the ACL, but that full recovery is expected.
Anyways, I’m about 15 visits in with my physio and have seen much improvement. My VMO was lazy to begin, wasn’t firing. She did some stim to that muscle and within a week it started to fire. That quad isn’t as strong as my other quad, it’s getting there though and I expect that it will still take time to get there and may never fully be as strong as my good leg but I’m sure going to try and get it there!
I’m still using the J brace when I go outside with the kids or out in public. I don’t wear it around the house.
Walking long distances is not really there yet. I can’t go out for a long walk with the kids as I need many breaks, but again, something that will come back hopefully this summer as my leg gets stronger.
I still have a little pain in the knee when going up the stairs, but has greatly improved. I’m guessing maybe still from bone bruising (which I heard from my therapist can take up to 6 months for bone bruising and the subsequent pain to go away) and possibly from the ACL micro tears.
I was having a lot of “slippage” in the kneecap with certain activities in physio. I could feel it subluxing so she had me stop those activities. It seems to have been better lately but something she wants me to mention to my Ortho when I go back this month. Hoping to get that knee strong enough to avoid having pins placed to keep that from happening.
I am back on my elliptical 3-4 times a week. The other days I do my stationary bike. Daily I do band work and SLR’s with weights to help with the strengthening.
I still cannot run after my kids, I’m only able to walk yet which is a little frustrating. I was hoping that would come back a little quicker. But like I said, I can’t really walk long distances yet so need to get there first before I really can get to the running part. I don’t plan on doing any marathons, just want to be able to sprint after them when needed!! It was funny, the other day my 4 year old tipped his bike and got his shoe cause in between the wheel and the frame. He told me to hurry (as he was a ways ahead of me on our street) to help him. I kind of laughed as “hurrying” is not quite possible yet!!
I’m almost to the point of being discharged from physio. I’m only going once a week and taking it week by week. I did reach a small milestone this past week when I was able to get down on the floor and back up with ease. It has been something that was important for me to do with the little kids and something I have not tried yet. I was amazed that my knee didn’t dislocate doing it! I was more afraid of that happening as I knew strength wise I could do it, just wasn’t sure if my knee would behave
Anyways, I wanted to share as I like to hear about progress from others as well. It makes those dark days of “will I ever get better?” a little more tolerable when you do hear that “yes, you will get better” and see that others have reached that point to where their knee was prior to an injury. I’m not quite there yet, there are still things I need to work on, but I have confidence that at some point my knee will be back to normal!!