bonz50

was playing street hockey with my son yesterday, ended up in the ER with a ~possible~ slightly torn MCL (I will confirm with an Ortho if it does not start feeling better after a week or so) , I'm told this could take up to 6 mos to heal, however, I know nothing about the physiology of biking and what kind of strains will be on my knee when i start feeling a little better...

any thoughts???

umd

Listen to the doctors?

LowCel 

Do some research on your doctors. A bad doctor can make a six month recovery turn into a two year recovery.

bonz50

that's why i'm laid up at home with a brace on and hobbling around on crutches... what i'm curious about is recovery stuff, has anyone dealt with MCL sprains and even when beginning to feel better how do they affect biking??

umd

Knees are important. Ask jmechy.

bonz50

that's why i'm asking!!!

LowCel 

After four knee surgeries I can vouch for that comment.

GoLoaf

I don't think a "slightly torn" MCL counts as a blown out knee. Ask my disintegrated ACL.

bonz50

maybe... when I have to use crutches to get to the bathroom and need to wear a brace to help mitigate pain, I call that blown out... apparently there are degrees of 'blown out' eh??? haha

MegaTom

There are Dr's that specialize in sports related injuries, perhaps you should find one. Your recovery will depend on your condition pre-injury, how well the doctor(s) diagnose and treat the injury, and your ability to follow their directions.... No one can really properly advise you any better on the internet than the professionals you already have access to.

JamieElenbaas

+1 on 'slightly torn MCL vs destroyed ACL/meniscus.

Also, don't self prescribe a brace. In some cases a brace can cause more harm than good. If it's too messed up to walk on the day after the injury, call the ortho now, not in a week or so. Sorry to sound preachy (especially with my low post count) but take it from a guy who ignored too many knee injuries, you want to follow a good doc's advice instead of listening to the blogisphere.

bonz50

the brace came from the ER doc... as I said, no improvements by the weekend then the ortho gets called immediately...

Salmosebago

Snapped my ACL 2 years ago - feel your pain. I don't even play a doc on tv but here's my .02: (1) get to a sports med ortho - worth their weight in gold. had a US Ski team doc do mine - priceless (2) LISTEN TO HIM! (3) if you have surgery, get your quads in the best shape you can before surgery. you will atrophy like mad after. (4) take full advantage of PT. One site I found pretty helpful was this: https://www.kneeguru.co.uk/KNEEtalk/ Good luck!

Slowrollin'

I didn't tear my MCL, but I did severely strain it riding my YZ. Anyways, the good news is that it was completely pain free while riding bikes, and I got the 'okay' from my doc to ride. Now, with that being said, I would give it a few weeks to heal prior to do any riding.

Mike

DaveSSS 

Things could be worse. My left knee joint is bone on bone on the medial side (inside). I know take synvisc injections and use a medial unloader leg brace while cycling. It makes for strange tan lines. I'll get a knee replacement in a few years, when the injections are needed 4 times a year or more.

GoLoaf

Dude, you need to get to a doctor ASAP. If you've braced your knee and you're using crutches, you're running the risk of serious scar tissue build up and loss of range of motion and leg strength. Go see an ortho. In the meantime, don't let your knee get stiff on you. Hit the stationary bike, and ice it afterwards. Hit the advil hard. Swelling is your enemy, but so is your knee freezing up on you. The motion in your knee will counter-act the stiffness, but will also encourage blood flow and increased swelling; so counter that with the ice and advil.

Also don't limp around, try to walk normally. The only reason a brace would be good is to keep the swelling down (assuming its a neoprene brace with no structure).

Knees are the million dollar joints, don't mess around with them.

rumrunn6

take up swimming for a while

ultraman6970

Agree with rum on this. Got my left knee dislocated twice, the second time the swimming pool accelerated the healing big time. And get a GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOODDDDDDDDDDDD sports doctor broken bones guy. The guy did a scan of your knee already????

That u have a mcl thorn doesn't mean u will have surgery just in case. Maybe you dont need it at all but PT will be needed tho.

slowgo

an MCL injury is probably the easiest injury of the knee to heal. Wear the brace for 6 weeks and don't force the knee into valgus (which stresses the MCL) and it will heal fine. BTW, a blown out knee is also know as the "terrible triad". ACL, PCL, and MCL. Or try a Posterior Lateral Corner disruption. That is a bad injury.

GoLoaf

I don't even want to know what that is. It's painful to read.

milnerpt

'unhappy' triad is actually the standard, never hear 'terrible'.

but thats splitting hairs. generally, go see your doctor, dont tell them what to do, get second opinions.

MegaTom

Oh. I just now really took notice that bonz50 has only seen an ER doc. Definitely go see a orthopedic/sports medicine doctor, dude! The ER Doc's function is to stabilize the injury and make sure that things aren't going to get worse in the immediate future, not the long-term healing & recovery process. As someone else has said, your knees are million dollar joints.... and if an injury to them is bad enough to send you to the ER, then it's bad enough that you should at least be examined by a specialist.

spry

You were too out of shape to play street hockey with the kids.
Next you'll be wearing one of those spandex knee braces for 6 months if nothing is damaged.

2 aspirin every morning,2(large) shots of Capt. Morgan Select Rum every evening and cycling seems to help.

bike eagle

I only have mild knee issues compared to the OP, but I would add that pedals with LOTS of float help me. Of course, this only applies after the doc says you can ride again.

bonz50

update - off of crutches now for about 2 wks, still have a hitch in my gate once in a while... knee will not fully straighten to a locked position without pain and flexing the muscles to straighten my legs gets a bit sketchy as I get close to the locked position... I can support weight just fine when i walk... certain movements still cause pain and there is a modicum of stiffness... muscles are still weak in keeping alignment, I was, however, able to pedal around the block this past weekend for the first time... so flexibility is returning... pain is only induced at extreme bends and during some twisting movements with weight... progress continues and as things develop I am seeing another month or two before I can return to full activity... on the lighter side, seems like I could ride at a moderate pace pretty soon here... another week or two without problem... biggest issue now is the ankle, wasn't very sore for the first week but now hurts more than the knee itself... though also improving... slow process... when improvements stop and pain remains I will seek out the ortho (my cousin is an ortho for Univ. TN football, I've consulted him and he tells me it won't hurt to wait as long as I'm not in pain) if I'm not back to 90+% by month end the MRI is imminent... maybe I'll have it done over T-giving break if I can get it scheduled by then...