Muscle weakness

[Kim33sk]

I have had problems getting up from a crouch position. I am 34 yrs old/f and weigh about 200 lbs.  Injured left knee in 98 fell on ice, within a 1/2 hr of the injury my knee was about 2-3 times its normal size.  The doctor took exrays of my knee and there was no injury apparent.  A few days later I had bruising all the way down to my ankle(a real deep purple).  I was on crutches for a few weeks.  It took about a year for the fluid to disappear around the knee.  My mom has limb-girdle Muscular Dystrophy.  

I have found in the past few months that when I crouch down to get something that when I have to get up I need to use my hands and kind of pull myself up.  There is a bit of pain in the left knee but none in the right knee.  I have not had arthroscopic surgery to view the extent of the injury to the knee in 98.  What should I do?  Are there certain questions I should ask my doctor the next time I see him?

[CCF-Neuro-M.D.-CS]

Unless the knee pain is severe, it should not prevent you from standing up from a crouched position. Limb girdle muscular dystrophies can be passed on through genetics. What I would recommend doing is contacting your primary care doctor who can evaluate you, and obtain blood for muscle enzymes. If these are positive, then he/she can refer you to a neurologist, preferablly one who specializes in neuromuscular disorders. Good luck.

[ontherecord]

Doesn't sound like a neurological problem.  Seems like the residual effects of the knee injury.  

If you are looking for a neurological connection, I'll give you one.  Regardless of your height, 200lbs seems on the high end.  Obesity is a high risk factor for Type II diabetes, and Type II diabetes increases your chance of having a stroke.  700,000 people have a stroke every year in the U.S., 75% survive, and 9 out of 10 are left with permanent neurological deficits thereafter.  After a stroke, some people can't talk, some can't walk, amongst other unfortunate sequeale.

Bottom line: the best cure is prevention and therefore it's important to reduce all the risk factors you can.