Injured knee....drain the fluid off?!
Question: Injured knee!.!.!.!.drain the fluid off!?
A few hours ago i fell 12 feet off a ladder and landed on my right knee (and my noggin and nose - but no damage there beyond a bit of blood all over the place!! I have a VERY hard head!.) I iced it immediately and applied some self-massage techniques i've found effective in dealing with minor injuries, and am satisfied there are no chipped bones or torn tendons or ligaments!. But, it has swollen to three times its normal size, below the knee-cap!. Possible damage to the synovial capsule/bursa, although it doesn't hurt when i'm not moving it, and i can support all of my weight on it no problem!. 1) Should i see a doctor immediately (long wait - emergency dept!. only!!) or is it the type of thing that can usually wait, and 2) Should i drain the fluid off somehow, to make it easier to bend the knee!? If so, should i just use a big syringe (yes i have such things around here!.!.!.!.!.) or is this something that could be a bit hazardous or unnecessary and best left to a doctor!? Admittedly it isn't quite as easy to do as lancing a boill!!
There is no discoloration by the way, so it is not just a big bruise!. Might be lymph fluid!?Www@Answer-Health@Com
There is no discoloration by the way, so it is not just a big bruise!. Might be lymph fluid!?Www@Answer-Health@Com
Answers:
I would use the RICE method!.
Rest
Ice (ice it for 20 minutes then take it off then ice it for 20 more minutes)
Compression
Elevation (try to keep your knee above your heart as much as possible)
I don't think you have a huge emergency, but it would probably be best to see a doctor in the near future!.Www@Answer-Health@Com
Rest
Ice (ice it for 20 minutes then take it off then ice it for 20 more minutes)
Compression
Elevation (try to keep your knee above your heart as much as possible)
I don't think you have a huge emergency, but it would probably be best to see a doctor in the near future!.Www@Answer-Health@Com
I too injured my knee today and didn't really want to go to the hospital but so glad i did, i also had a lot of swelling which was making my xrays difficult to see, so they drained my knee which did feel better but this had to be done in completly sterile conditions as and sort of infection in the joint is very bad news! and now i have to wait for the swelling to go down a little so the orthropedics can have a look at it but until then im told not to put any weight on it at all because its very easy to damage it further at this stage, so i would defo go get it looked at! good luck Www@Answer-Health@Com
You can't be sure of what is going on without seeing a doctor!. They need to do x-rays and MRI!. It sounds like a lot of soft tissue damage!. But there are tissues you can't just see from outside that have to be examined!. Draining fluid yourself is NOT the way to go since you are not sure what is inflamed exactly!. If the swelling is that bad you need to see a do and unfortunately the ER is the only one that will have one on a Friday!. If you have some crutches lying around try to use them to help support your weight until you see a doctor because extra weight on that weight bearing joint can do extra damage!. It really is best just to go ahead and have a professional do an assessment!.
Good luck!.Www@Answer-Health@Com
Good luck!.Www@Answer-Health@Com