Swelling Over Knee Cap After Fall, Painful, Sore Thigh Muscle, Patella Feels Bruised. Not Taken Treatment

Posted on Thu, 23 Aug 2012

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Thu, 23 Aug 2012 Answered on

Thu, 13 Sep 2012 Last reviewed on

Question : I fell on my right knee cap 4 weeks ago; it swelled right away but I could stand on it and bend it back as well. It hurt but not a lot. I then over used it and had greater swelling above the knee cap. Very busy summer has had me just return from a canoe camping trip. The knee is better than before but still has heat on the knee and going down stairs is painful. Going upstairs has little pain but feels awkward. The tendon/muscle on the right side of my thigh is sore; the muscle on the right side of the XXXXXXX bone feels bruised to the touch but I've had no bruising color anywhere. The patella itself still feels bruised but has no color of bruising.

I've had no treatment or diagnosis so far. I'm 66 yrs old, fell over my dog while running
YYYY@YYYY

Answered by Dr. Ram Choudhary (1 hour later)

Hi XXXXXXX
Thanks for writing in to Heathcare Magic!
You should have got Xrayed your knee by now.
One thing is sure, it is not a simple Got hurt and Will heal case, because in that case you should have recovered by now fully.
There are so many structures in and around knee which can get damaged.
Patella fracture, quadriceps tendon rupture, meniscal damage, injuries to cruciate ligaments are all close contenders.
You should rather get examined by your Orthopedic surgeon and get investigated and be proactive to get the issue resolved soon because further delay can mean much complications.

If you have any further query please let me know I would try to answer it for you.
Wish you a great health!

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar