a tele knee tweak… will it just go away?

[mark g]

Seeing as the internet is the best place to go for medical advice…
Just got back from a nice couple of days at Skoki Lodge with my family. Mostly xc stuff but I did get a chance to get some nice turns in the trees low down on Mt. Skoki. Going over a buried log I felt a little spasm in my knee - probably compressed low after landing the little drop coming off the log. I did not think anything of it, and skied out that day with my monster pack (carrying the whole load of supplies for the family including a mind boggling array of cosmetics for my daughter…), getting more turns descending Deception pass with the jumbo pack bouncing nicely. Knee felt great. Getting home, noticed some pain in the tweaked knee getting up from kneeling on the floor. Kind of sharp pain running inside of the patellar tendon to beside and above the knee cap. I have noticed little hints of this since. Just today tried a little skiing with a couple of tele turns on the local hills without feeling the pain but the knee feels a little weird. Normally I would not care about this, but I have a big ski trip coming up and would like to figure out what is going on before then. Seeing as this site appears to be a major gathering place for tele-folk, I thought some of you might have had similar issues.

[SkaredShtles]

Surgery. HTH.

[chamonix]

I would see a good Orthopod before your trip for an evaluation.. If you have any range of motion issues, or "clicking" which I get in my knee sometimes, I wouldn't head out on a big trip. I think heavy packs might aggravate this issue.
Rest is the best cure.

I get back pain day after a long day of skinning; no problem during a skin up, or skiing out.
this is all advice from someone with no medical training, but I stayed at the Holiday Inn.

[mark g]

I do have an appointment with a physio set up for end of the week. They are generally pretty good. I don't think this is a meniscus tear - no restriction on movement, no weird clicking.

[jfb]

Seeing an ortho or physio is a must. I'll also suggest using a foam roller to work the IT band (plenty of examples on YouTube). I get symptoms around my patella(s) that sound like yours and appear to be myofascial in origin. Working the inner and outer margins of my vastus lateralis (the outside muscle of the quadriceps group) from knee to hip on that roller hurts like hell but produces astonishing results. The hurting like hell is important, as I don't get results without that. Cheap, easy and might help.

[Seeker]

I'd also ice the knee. Can't hurt. I've had some knee pain here and there (overuse after multi-day ski trip) and after icing and taking it easy for a week or so, the pain went away.

[mark g]

The IT band work is a good idea. I have a stretch that the physio recommended that seems to help that - also I have a roller. Plus I probably ski too low for the ultimate health of my knees - see my avatar. That pic was several years ago on old gear, been trying to ski taller since.

[Carpe Canem]

All good advice so far, especially that about seeking professional help, which you apparently intend to do. For my money, it sounds like a bruise on the back of the Patellar. May be that the tendon was compressed against the patellar. If so it will get better without intrusive procedures or even much PT, just need some healing time... and a lot of it. You may be feeling that sharp pain for months. I did anyway.

[riser3]

Lots of booze, loose women and blow. Or go see an ortho doc.

[dschane]

Going over a buried log I felt a little spasm in my knee - probably compressed low after landing the little drop coming off the log.

Low or high stance, I doubt it matters in terms of this or most other injuries. Perhaps long-term, skiing low will wear the knees more, but twists can happen for all sorts of reasons regardless of stance.

Lots of booze, loose women and blow. Or go see an ortho doc.

Why are these mutually exclusive?

If it's not significantly improved in 2 weeks (my arbitrary waiting period), I would see an ortho doc. There are lots of push, pull, bend tests they can perform to rule out certain serious injuries. Hopefully, your trip is weeks, not days away.

[Todd Eastman]

Sore ankles/feet - low boots

Sore knees - tall boots

Sore attitude - not enough skiing...