What Causes Indentation Below The Knee Cap?

Posted on Mon, 31 Jul 2017

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

Mon, 31 Jul 2017 Answered on

Mon, 21 Aug 2017 Last reviewed on

Question : My son lives in Cambodia. His girlfriend had a moto accident and hurt her leg. She has an abrasion on her knee cap, a lot of swelling around the knee, and an indentation right below the knee cap. She can straighten her leg, but cannot walk. He's very worried about this as her family does not want to take her to doctor. He sent me a picture and it looks like a soft tissue injury but that indentation bothers me. Do you have any idea?

Answered by Dr. Dr. Praveen Tayal (25 minutes later)

Brief Answer:
Can be fascia detachment.

Detailed Answer:
Hello,
Thanks for posting your query.
The indentation below the knee cap can be due to a shin splint- tearing of the fascia or muscle attachment. This will improve after rest. The swelling on the knee cap and inability to walk suggests an internal knee joint injury like a meniscus or ligament tear. This can be diagnosed only after an MRI scan of the knee.
Till then bed rest icing elevating the leg on pillows and mild pain killers can help.
I hope this answers your query.
In case you have additional questions or doubts, you can forward them to me, and I shall be glad to help you out.
Wishing you good health.
Regards.
Dr. Praveen Tayal.
For future query, you can directly approach me through my profile URL http://bit.ly/Dr-Praveen-Tayal

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