What Is Knee Dislocation?
A dislocated skin looks and feels like below your knee, all the way to your weight.
Surgery. Your doctor may need to do surgery to correct the dislocation and other damage from your injury, including:
- Broken bones
- Torn ligaments
- Damaged nerves
- Damaged blood vessels
You might not have surgery until 1 to 3 weeks after you’re hurt, to allow time for the swelling to go down. While you wait, you’ll need to wear a splint, keep your leg raised, and put ice on the injury.
Your surgeon may do arthroscopic knee surgery. This is done through small cuts made around your knee.
You might need “open” surgery, with bigger cuts. The type you need depends on the damage to the rest of your knee.
Knee Dislocation Recovery
After surgery, you may wear different knee braces as you heal. Some let you bend your knee — to ease stiffness.
After you’re finished wearing splints or braces, your doctor should send you to a physical therapist to rehab your knee. You’ll do exercises to strengthen the leg muscles around your knee and work to bring a full range of motion back to your joint.
Your recovery will depend on how serious your injury is and whether you had damage to your blood vessels and nerves. If you got treatment quickly, you will likely heal well. Recovery from a knee dislocation can take a long time. You may need to rehab your knee for up to a year. You’ll recover faster if you stick to your doctor’s advice. Athletes who dislocate their knees may be able to return to their sports, but they might not be able to perform at the same level as before.
Knee Dislocation Complications
Knee dislocation is a serious injury that can have major complications if it isn’t treated right away. If the dislocation causes a big loss of blood flow to your legs, your doctor may have to amputate. Knee dislocations also can lead to in deep veins of your legs (deep venous thrombosis).
Acute compartment syndrome is another common complication. This happens when the swelling in the muscles causes pressure to build up in the blood vessel, nerves, and muscles. If this happens, it’s painful. You’ll need to see a doctor right away.