What to do if the knee ligament is strained? The treatment method is like this

Knee ligament sprain is a common sports injury that seriously affects the movement of the knee joint. So what should you do if you have a knee ligament sprain? Most people don't know much about this. In fact, there are five treatments for knee ligament sprains, which are differentiated according to the damage to different ligaments around the knee.

1. Fresh collateral ligament injury

(1) For partial ruptures, place the knee in 150-160° flexion and fix it with a long-leg cast (excluding the ankle). After one week, the patient can walk with the cast on. After 4-6 weeks, the cast should be removed and the patient should practice knee flexion and extension, paying attention to exercising the quadriceps femoris.

(2) In the case of complete rupture, emergency surgery is performed to repair the ruptured ligament, followed by fixation with a long-leg cast for 6 weeks after surgery. If there is a cruciate ligament injury, the cruciate ligament should be repaired first, and then the collateral ligament; if there is a meniscus injury, the damaged meniscus should be removed first, and then the damaged ligament should be repaired.

2. For old collateral ligament rupture, quadriceps exercises should be strengthened to enhance the stability of the knee joint. If the knee joint is very unstable, ligament reconstruction can be performed using the tendons of adjacent parts. Recently, there have been reports of using carbon fiber as a material for reconstructing the collateral ligament, with relatively satisfactory results.

3. Anterior cruciate ligament injury: Any anterior cruciate ligament rupture that occurs within two weeks should be sutured surgically. Currently advocated under the arthroscopic ligament suture.

4. Posterior cruciate ligament injury: Current opinion favors early repair under arthroscopy.

5. TCM external treatment for ligament injury

(1) Huashi Bone Patch, applied locally, can repair damaged areas.

(2) Treatment with traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) physiotherapy methods, such as massage.

(3) Keep the sprained area warm and use safflower oil at the same time.