messed up my knee

HalberdBlue

Last night I did something bad to my left knee. I think I dislocated it, but I'm not entirely sure because I was very drunk at the time. I popped it back in, sat for a couple minutes, the alcohol numbed the pain, and then I went on dancing. This morning my knee hurts quite a bit. I'm limping about, and it hurts to bend it. I've dislocated this knee before, but that was bad enough that I had to go to the hospital to pop it back in and I was on crutches for awhile, they considered surgery (but ended up not doing it), blah blah blah. I haven't dislocated it since (until last night, maybe) though its definitely not as strong as my right knee (I've felt it come close to dislocating several times before, after the first dislocation).

Is there anything I ought to do? Should I put ice on it? Should I go see a doctor? Should I just take some advil and wait it out? I actually don't know how much a doctor could help because I'm in China for the summer, and I don't speak Chinese. But the option is there if I need it; the study abroad program I'm in has medical insurance for all the students. Thanks.

Hawkstone

Here is the thing, you could have tendon or ligament damage. Frequently when you dislocate a joint since the tendons and ligaments are streched so tightly acrossed it you can get a partial or full tear of one or more of them. It sucks that there is concern about being able to communicate with doctors, but perhaps someone in the hospital will speak english to translate, because really if its as bad as you seem to thing an MRI is probably needed to be sure.

Do you notice a lack of ability to stand on it, or diminished strength in the joint ? is there swelling or localized black and blue marks ?...some of these can be indicators. The nice thing about partial tears is that they heal if you just get a knee brace and dont play sports or anything for a while. Full tears however need surgery and mean crutches for several weeks. Still I would say you really should consider getting an MRI.

HalberdBlue

Its definitely swollen a bit, but I don't see anything miscolored. I can also stand on it fine, it just hurts a bit to do so. I'll try and get a knee brace. Will I be fine if I wait a couple days to see if the pain dies down before deciding whether to get an MRI? If it turns out that I DO need surgery, will I be fine waiting until I get back to the US for it (in 5 weeks or so)?

Hawkstone

usually with tendon damage you cant make anything worse than it is when its a full tear. Hense why athletes will often play with them for the rest of the year if they can. If its partial you have to be careful with it so as not to tear it the rest of the way. If you have bone damage you can certainly make it worse by using it at all....of course this all assumes that there is anything that wrong to begin with. You could have just pulled the muscles and such seeing as you can put weight on it an all. I would get a cheap brace and wait it out a few days if it were me.

HalberdBlue

Alright thanks, I'll post again in a few days if it hasn't gotten any better

Suckafish

Can you explain what you mean by dislocation? I don't think the actual knee can be dislocated because it isn't a socket joint. Are you referring to your knee cap?

I tore my ACL and what it amounted to was having it give out and 'pop' at the time of injury, feel a little sore but basically okay minutes afterwards, then swelling up alot that night and over the next couple of days.

Cauld

If you're in a major city you should be able to find a doctor who speaks at least some English. Also, I know that there's an entirely foreign owned/run hospital in Beijing, the only one in the country I guess... I imagine they have english speakers there.

Also, actual medical care should be much cheaper in China, and the quality shouldn't be too bad unless you're in a rural area.

HalberdBlue

Yeah, I meant dislocate my knee cap. Sorry. I'm going to a hospital in a couple of hours with a chinese speaking guy. My knee feels significantly better than it did yesterday, so I'm taking that as a good sign.

chromdom

RICE, my friend, RICE. Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation. Don't stand on it, definitely don't go walking or running or anything, ice it down to get the swelling down, wrap it or put a sleeve on it, and keep it up above your heart. Repeat for a few days, see if it gets better. If it doesn't, then most definitely find yourself a doc.