knee movement

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gundalf7

gundalf7

Active Member
knee movement

last year I damaged ligaments in my knee and this effected the range of movement in my right knee and ankle. Unfortunately I don't seem to have regained the full range of movement in my knee especially. I'm having troubly moving it anticlockwise to play any leg side shots. Waht exercises would be best to help me regain movements in the joint.
 
Re: knee movement

the only rehab I really duid on it was some jogging and a little bit of weights to try and get the strength back in it
 
Re: knee movement

Liz will be able to go into more detail but ligaments can be funny injuries.

Did you see a doctor at all? If so, what was said?
 
Re: knee movement

Sounds a huge annoyance. Sorry for all the questions but it will help me help you enormously :)

Was this a tennis injury?
If not, how did it happen?
Which ligaments were damaged?
Was there any reconstruction?
Is there any pain, during normal activities or just sport?
Is there any clicking in the knee?

If you isolate the ankle, how is the range of motion at this joint affected?
 
Re: knee movement

It wasn't a tennis injury, amazingly it was caused by kneeling for most of an afternoon on the floor and when I got up I couldn't stand on my leg at all. Had me on crutches for a couple of weeks and the pain went away after about 2 months.

I didn't actually go see a doctor or hospital( probablly should have in hindsight). It was the lateral collateral ligament that was injured though my mom's friend who's a nurse gave me a quick checkover and just told me to take it easy and not use it at all.

The only pain is if i've done a long run it sometimes aches a bit but on the whole it just seems more stiff than painful and my knee doesn't click noticeably at all.

With isolating the joint do you mean the range of movement in my knee or ankle?
 
Re: knee movement

It does not sound good Matt :(

Are you sure it was the LCL? This is not a common way to cause this amount of damage!

From what you say, it sounds like a second degree sprain, which is damage to an extensive number of ligament fibres. However, it could be a third degree sprain, which would be a complete rupture of the ligament. You really should have seen a doc as the best treatment in this case would have been surgery, especially if you wanted to continue with sport. You should have been referred to a physio or sports therapist, at the least, who could have put you on a proper programme, which would have included running in a swimming pool with the help of a bouyancy aid and a lot of proprioception work. Jogging and weights are not terribly helpful.

After full range of movement work on the hip and ankle had been successful you should have introduced static cycling at about 6 weeks. Any strength work should have been isometric. Of course, you should have been wearing a hinged brace the whole of this time.

There is not a lot you can do now. As mas says, ligaments are tricky little devils and are not as forgiving as tendons. If they are damaged without initial treatment, stability about the joint is lost. Try a good knee support when playing. If this is too uncomfortable during our great summers :), try and get an x-ray and scan sorted out. Surgery may not be out of the question at your age.

As for the isolation, I was wondering, if you take the knee out of the equation, how different is the range of motion about the right ankle compared with the left one?
 
Re: knee movement

doesn't sounds too good then :(, i'm pretty sure it was the lcl, it was about 1cm in from the outside of my right knee near the back directly level with the middle of my knee cap.
I'd say that my movement in my right ankle is probablly about 85-90% of that of my left ankle but my right ankle does click quite alot, it may have been caused at a different time though, though i did suffer ankle discomfort at the same time as the knee injury
 
Re: knee movement

Take a look at http://medimages.healthopedia.com/large/lateral-collateral-ligament-lcl.jpg
The LCL is number 2 on the image. As you can see, it is on the outside of the knee below the knee cap.

About the point where you describe, there is a very rigid structure; it feels like steel rope crossing the back of the knee joint. [There is also one the other side of the knee and they cross the joint like tramlines]. Could this be what you are talking about?
 
Re: knee movement

looking at that diagram in can't be the lcl then its the one at the back of my knee pretty much level with the lcl about halfway along.
 
Re: knee movement

This could be good... or at least better :) but I need you to be more precise.

Is it the outer 'tramline' as discussed in my last post or is the pain right in the pit of the knee?
 
Re: knee movement

If this is the case, then this is the lateral hamstring, not to be confused with the hamstring muscles; it is the insertion tendon of the biceps femoris muscle. I am not surprised that you have difficulty playing leg side shots; the lateral hamstring contributes to lateral rotation and you would automatically do this to move the leg forward in an anti clockwise position for this shot.

It sounds like Bicipital Tendinitis and may be accompanied by a bursitis. However, as I cannot see you, I really, strongly, suggest you get this checked out… even now. You really need to eliminate the possibility of Biceps Avulsion. Injury in this area can result in avulsion of the head of the fibula, the proximal tibia, postereo-lateral capsule and/or ilio-tibial band, which can cause fractures of the fibula head or anterior rim of the proximal tibia.

You are at a good age to get this sorted and if we can eliminate avulsion, good posture and alignment should correct your problem. It is possible that your ankle issues are caused by it having to overcompensate for the biomechanical malfunction of the knee. This will eventually impact on your hip at the same time as rendering your ankle useless. You must warm up and cool down properly though, if you wish to continue with sport.

In the meantime, you need to stretch the hamstrings and calves. Take a look at: http://www.bigcricket.com/forum/t58046/

Let me know how you get on.
 
Re: knee movement

If this is the case, then this is the lateral hamstring, not to be confused with the hamstring muscles; it is the insertion tendon of the biceps femoris muscle. I am not surprised that you have difficulty playing leg side shots; the lateral hamstring contributes to lateral rotation and you would automatically do this to move the leg forward in an anti clockwise position for this shot.

It sounds like Bicipital Tendinitis and may be accompanied by a bursitis. However, as I cannot see you, I really, strongly, suggest you get this checked out… even now. You really need to eliminate the possibility of Biceps Avulsion. Injury in this area can result in avulsion of the head of the fibula, the proximal tibia, postereo-lateral capsule and/or ilio-tibial band, which can cause fractures of the fibula head or anterior rim of the proximal tibia.

You are at a good age to get this sorted and if we can eliminate avulsion, good posture and alignment should correct your problem. It is possible that your ankle issues are caused by it having to overcompensate for the biomechanical malfunction of the knee. This will eventually impact on your hip at the same time as rendering your ankle useless. You must warm up and cool down properly though, if you wish to continue with sport.

In the meantime, you need to stretch the hamstrings and calves. Take a look at: http://www.bigcricket.com/forum/t58046/

Let me know how you get on.
 
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