Disocated my patella- anyone recover some a similar injury?

tquig
tquig Posts: 176 Member
in Motivation and Support
I dislocated my patella while working out and tore my medial patello-femoral ligament from my kneecap. Anyone familiar with this type of injury? I am currently doing PT three times a week to regain strength and stability. I go back to the Dr in two weeks to discuss surgery or non-surgical options. I can find tons of info on this injury but it seems pretty split on which path to take. Even the physical therapists I have been working with seem split on whether or not I should get it re-attached. I exercise frequently and would hate to reduce my physical activity level, but if I could keep it up without surgery, that would be the preferred option. Anyone have any personal experience or medical insight? BTW- activity generally consists on P90x/P90x2/Insanity/Crossfit/running and I am 44. Thanks!

oops- hate it when I mispell something in the topic! grrr. should be from, not some! :smile:

Replies

  • tquig
    tquig Posts: 176 Member
    no one? guess I am the only one... :(
  • PhearlessPhreaks
    PhearlessPhreaks Posts: 890 Member
    I have no patella in my right leg. I was in a bad motorcycle accident 10 years ago, and my kneecap was left on the side of the road. The doctors wanted to put a cadaver kneecap in, but we elected not to go that route. I had a lot of other injuries as well (broken femur, baseline skull fracture, in need of a skin graft on the knee area, etc…) so my recovery time was very different, but the outcome? I can do nearly everything I was able to do before the accident, except run, and I have to wonder if I might be able to jog once I'm down to a healthy weight. I ski (both alpine and nordic) I bike, I swim, I hike, I do yoga (some poses I do have to modify) I work out…

    The body is an amazing machine and will compensate for it's deficiencies; PT will help immensely, as well as strengthen the muscles around the knee, helping to stabilize it.

    All the best to you- if you have questions, feel free to ask!
  • sam308lbs
    sam308lbs Posts: 1,936 Member
    i had dislocated my patella too about 7 years ago.It was due to an ACL tear i suppose.It took about 2-3 months to heal and another 3-4 months before i could walk without a limp.Even today my left knee hurts while during squats and long runs.Choose wisely
  • amm8589
    amm8589 Posts: 55 Member
    I have done this three times. Twice as a teenager, and again at the age of 40. I had surgery the first two times (teen years) because there were no MRI's back then and they wanted to see what damage I had done. They scraped away loose cartlidge and did some repair work on a damaged ligament. When I did it again a few years ago, an MRI was done and I had no ligament damage, so I just did PT. I no longer have any cartlidge under my patella so high-impact exercise is out for me. I think the reason I went so many years between the second and third dislocation is because I was very adament about doing squats, lunges, and other weight work to keep my knee strong and stable. Then I had 3 kids, and my time to exercise went to nill. I got weak, and thus another injury. Now, at the age of 45, I make sure that I do my knee stabilizing exercises 2-3 days per week, without fail. Hope that helps!
  • tquig
    tquig Posts: 176 Member
    Well I decided to go ahead with surgery. I will update this as I recover and try to regain my previous level of fitness. Watching my wife complete a Warrior Run this past weekend filled me with both pride (for her- awesome job) and jealousy (because I really wanted to be out there with her)!!
  • sunshinestater
    sunshinestater Posts: 596 Member
    Good lucky with the surgery! I did this while dancing on a cruise ship over 10 years ago. Popping that sucker back on was one of the most painful experiences of my life. I was in a cast for a while, followed by several weeks of PT. Doc said I was at risk for it because of the way my ligaments have uneven tension on each side due to years of horseback riding. Thankfully it's never happened again.
  • tquig
    tquig Posts: 176 Member
    Well, three weeks post-op and it seems to be healing nicely. Just started PT, slow but don't wnat to rush it and delay my recovery due to re-injury. Hope to be back in reasonable condition by Labor Day. Figure it will take at least that long to rebuild my atrophied quads! Seems as stable as it was pre-injury so I am very optomisitc that there will be minimal long-term impacts.

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