Five Treatments for a Patient with an Injured Medial Collateral Ligament in Bryn Mawr

Pain. Tenderness. Instability.

These are never good terms to hear in association with a knee injury. They usually indicate some sort of damage to one of the four major ligaments within the joint. If you’ve landing on this article, chances are that you’re experiencing some kind of problem with your knee and you’re wondering what the issue is and how to deal with it.

We’d like to provide you with some helpful information, but first...allow us to introduce ourselves.

We are the physicians at Rothman Orthopaedic Institute, and our speciality is orthopaedic care. Each year, we see thousands of patients who suffer from a variety of knee related injuries. One of the conditions we see frequently is an injury in patients to the medial collateral ligament in Bryn Mawr (or the MCL), which is one of the four major ligaments in the knee joint.

MCL Injuries: Making the Grade

As we mentioned, the MCL is one of the major structures that share responsibility for literally holding the knee together. It is the ligament that runs from the inside of the upper tibia (shin bone) to the inside of the upper femur (thigh bone), and it keeps your knee joint from “opening up.”

How is it injured?

This important connective tissue is typically injured by a blow to the outside of the knee, which causes it to stretch excessively, and sometimes even tear. A medial collateral ligament tear is described by doctors in terms of its severity, and this description can fall into one of three levels. These include:

Grade I MCL Injury

A grade 1 injury of the medial collateral ligament is a severe stretch, sometimes including a very small tear. This type of injury usually causes pain and pressure, but some patients with a grade 1 tear won’t experience any symptoms at all. Most people can return to their regular activities and sports within one to two weeks.

Grade II MCL Injury

A grade 2 injury involves an incomplete tear of the medial collateral ligament. This causes pain and some instability of the joint. Patients suffering from this type of injury may take four to six weeks to heal before they are able to return to regular activities.

Grade III MCL Injury

This type of trauma is a complete tearing of the medial collateral ligament, which results in the MCL being separated into two, disconnected pieces. Grade 3 injuries involve significant instability, as well as pain and tenderness in the joint. Those suffering this type of MCL injury may require three to four months of rest and treatment before returning to regular activities.

Diagnosis and Treatment for Patients with an Injured Medial Collateral Ligament in Bryn Mawr

If you’ve suffered an injury to the medial collateral ligament in Bryn Mawr or are a patient in the surrounding area, it’s time to see a doctor at Rothman Orthopaedic Institute about your treatment options.

When you visit your doctor, she or he will perform a medial collateral ligament test to check your range of motion, your joint stability, and to look for possible looseness in the ligament. Once you’ve been officially diagnosed, your doctor may recommend some of the following options for treatment:

1. Ice: Icing your injured knee can help reduce pain and swelling.

2. Resting the Knee: As with many orthopaedic injuries, resting the affected joint and refraining from intensive activity helps prevent further aggravation to the injured area, and allows the tear to heal without complication.

3. Immobilization: In the case of a grade 3 tear, your doctor may recommend immobilizing your knee for a time and even may instruct you to avoid putting weight on it at all. This may involve the use of crutches for a time. Your doctor will also give you some mild MCL exercises to do a few times a day, between periods of immobilization.

4. Anti-inflammatory medication: Anti-inflammatory medications, when used under the direction of a physician, can help relieve pain and swelling associated with a medial collateral ligament injury in Bryn Mawr patients.

5. Knee braces: If you have suffered a grade 2 or 3 injury, you may need a brace to help support your knee as it heals. In this case, you would use the brace for a few weeks, and engage in mild physical therapy exercises as instructed by your physician.

Here’s the Good News!...

You may be surprised to hear that MCL tear treatment rarely has to involve surgery. The majority of these kinds of injuries heal successfully without surgery and patients typically make a full recovery.

However, there are some MCL injuries that do end up requiring an operative intervention; therefore, it is imperative that anyone suffering from a torn MCL see their local Rothman doctor promptly.

If you’re still looking for a doctor who specializes in tears of the medial collateral ligament in Bryn Mawr, we can help. For more information, please visit us here or contact us at 1-800-321-9999.