Anyone with knee injury/sprain experience?

[suesam]

Ok. I am going to my Dr. on Monday but just want to ask if anyone has had any personal experience with a knee injury, probably MCL sprain, according to the Dr. At the Peak of Base 9 at Breckenridge, Co. What I am wondering is, it if is a sprain, how long does it typically take a sprain to heal? This happened last Sunday, perfect powder day, and it is still swollen and I can not bend it all of the way. I am wearing a brace which the ER doc gave me. So... a few weeks, a month? Six months, heaven forbid?
I am really, really hoping to be able to ski again, next year. I am 44 and am pretty active so this is really slowing me down. I usually exercise 5 times a week and am scared I am going to gain more weight! I already have 15-20 to lose! I do not need any more!

I know I need to see my Dr. I am just wondering about others experiences with this.
Thanks!
Sue

Sue

 

[JillC]

My husband hurt his knee back in August. Walked around a month or two and wasn't getting better. Went to dr. and said he could have an MRI if he wanted, but dr. said he had torn his meniscus (sp) . Had operation in late fall. After about a week he was walking with slight limp. Now it only bothers him once in a blue moon. Says best thing he did was get it fixed. He'll be XC skiing soon. Maybe he'll give it a try this weekend, lots of light powder.

 

[Mimi39]

A few years ago I fell going down the stairs and broke my left ankle and sprained or something my knee on the right. Had surgery on the ankle and didn't even know about the knee until the physical therapist tried to show me how to use crutches and found I couldn't put any weight on the knee. They just sent me home in a wheelchair, but at a follow up appointment with doctor he gave me a cortizone shot right into the knee joint and that took care of the problem within minutes.

 

[LUVourMarriotts]

If it really is just a sprain, the Dr will probably only recommend physical therapy. Typically, they will send you for 6-8 weeks and if you are not better (not necessarily 100%) by then, then you go back to the Dr for further action. At least this is my experience with knee (patelar tendon) and ankle sprains. The physical therapy did the trick. It took 10 weeks for the ankle (really bad sprain).

 

["Roger"]

It really depends upon the severity of the strain. I've twisted my knee and it was within 90% of normal within three or four days. I have also twisted it and it took a month or two to get back within 90 to 100% range.

None of this compares with a severe ankle sprain. When I twisted my ankle badly playing basketball, it took well over six months to get back within 90% of normal and well over a year to completely get back to where I could do everything again. While I could do anything I wanted, two years later I still could feel that I had injured it.

 

[ctreelmom]

Disclaimer: No experience with knee sprains. But I have two Irish dancing daughters and am intimately familiar with ankle injuries. My oldest has had multiple ankle sprains--if an important competition is coming up, her orthopedist will clear her to dance (with the ankle taped to within an inch of her life) after 1 week on crutches and then 2-3 weeks of rest and immobilization but his rule of thumb is 8 weeks for a sprain to fully heal.

Unfortunately, she just went through this scenario, and at her regional World Qualifying event (4.5 weeks post-injury), the ankle rolled when she landed a jump and she went down hard, re-injuring herself. She's now been out 5 weeks and the ortho wants her out at least 6 more (no major competitions on the horizon right now) with an aggressive P/T routine. Her sprain is healed, but the ligaments are not regaining proper elasticity and stability which is his concern. Interestingly,he HAS cleared her to snowboard (easy cruising only) and made the comment that skiing would be safer, but she doesn't know how. I know the knees take a lot of punishment when skiing--probably more akin to what the ankles go through for dance.

All this is to say don't rush it. She's 15 and is learning the hard way she has to give her body more time to heal. As we get older (with 4s in the 10s column as I like to say) it takes us even longer to heal and rehab. Good luck and rest!

 

[Chrisky]

Have had numerous problems with knees, the best advice I can give you is that if it is swollen you should be icing it 2 or 3 times a day and taking some anti-inflammatory maybe like Ibuprofen or advil. After icing you should also while sitting, lift up your leg, from the knee, a few times just to keep it mobile. You'll probably need some physiotherapy, unless something is really torn. Good luck. It could take 3 - 4 weeks to feel better.