Torn Ligament in Knee

A few weeks ago I joined a badminton club. This is a sport that I really enjoy but it is hard on the legs and arm. Unfortunately I managed to tear a ligament. I didn’t notice until later.

I think I tore it slightly before since I had mild pain in my left knee. But lately it became very painful the day after a run.

I had throbbing continuous pain to the right of the left knee. Now I understand it’s a problem with the Meniscus. This is a “shock absorber” between the thighbone and shinbone that is often torn due to stressing the knee joint when it is bent and twisted.

Sometimes this requires surgery to fix, but due to the location of my pain, I think it should self heal since the outer part has blood flow that can heal the wound. The inner part doesn’t so requires surgery. At least that is my understanding. So I am avoiding and strenuous activities involving the leg until the problem is cured.

I think my one should self cure since the pain has mostly gone and I don’t see swelling. But definitely the problem is still there. So I am guessing this could take weeks to completely heal. I can walk OK but sport and running will have to be put on hold.

I may try swimming to maintain my fitness where I don’t have to use my leg.

Next time I play badminton, I will try and take care not to do any deep lunges and maybe play less often so any aches and pains completely heal before the next session.

Where I live, I don’t have medical insurance so the last thing I want is to require surgery, so I have to be extra careful from now on.

To learn about this problem of the knee joint I found an excellent article on Meniscal Tears.