Due to fall, my mom has knee pain which aggravates while sitting and bending the legs. Plese help.

Hello,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

Your mother has osteoarthritis of the knee and the fall may have stirred this further. The pain that you describe is at the back of the knee this can come from the knee cap as well as the degenerative tear of the medial meniscus. As there are very few mechanical symptoms like locking and giving way nor there is much of an effusion I feel that the pain is from the knee cap. The pain in such cases can be at the back of the knee, pain is worse in climbing stairs or coming down, and worse after having sat down for any length of time. This condition is called patellofemoral compression syndrome and can be helped with regular exercise and patellar gaping and a course of anti-inflammatory medications like Diclofenac or Piroxicam. In addition, she can take Paracetamol and Tramadol combination for pain. She will need to do VMO, gluteal, core strengthening exercises, and hamstring stretches, in addition, she needs to avoid squatting. The physiotherapist can in addition give IFT or TENs to help. it will take three to six months for the pain to settle down. MRI also shows an incarcerated needle tip under the patella but I need to have this physically checked if this was recent and if was it from the fall onto a sharp object.

Hello,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

I have seen the picture. (attachment removed to protect patient identity). Yes, I can see a bruise at the back of the knee and surely it will be tender to touch. I will recommend in addition to the above prescription to apply ice to the area of bruise for 15 minutes every alternate hour. She can also apply a pain-relieving gel when she is not icing, make sure that there is a gap of 45 minutes between applying the ice and the gel and vice versa. As far as the sharp object is concerned, I will not panic at the moment and will like to see the pain response to the medication and local therapy for at least two weeks before I start to worry. I feel that pain should respond well during this time and please observe the precautions that I discussed i.e. not squatting during this time period. Keep an eye on the size of the bruising also.