Knee Pain Led To Fainting

[ponyrider]

In 2002, when I was 22, I was carrying a planter down a grassy hill and slipped. My right knee twisted. I did not go to a doctor to have it looked at. Now, if I sit in one place for too long, it stiffens and causes pain. Today, I was in the backseat of a SUV for 2 hours, then sat in a conference for an hour. I stood up, instantly got excruciating pain in my knee and sat back down. A few minutes later, I fainted. I came too fairly quickly, the pain gradually went away and now is fine. Today it hurt worse than when I did it. What can be causing this? Could I have torn something and it never healed correctly? What can I do?

[Dr. Kokil Mathur]

Hi
Welcome to the MedHelp forum!
I agree with Caregiver that you need a MRI of the knee. Excruciating pain can trigger a vasovagal attack and cause fainting. Sudden onset knee pain can be due to ligament tear, bursitis, meniscus injury or due to dislocation of patella. The pain can be severe enough to be felt throughout the leg. Please consult an orthopedic specialist. Take care!

[caregiver222]

Fortunately, the new tool called the MRI can usually diagnose knee problems far better than an x-ray, especially the newer 3T (3 Tesla) models.

The usual reason is a torn miniscus, which is a part of the mechanism that mother nature designed to make everything work. Sometimes it is simply fluid accumulation, which is dealt with by withdrawing the fluid with an hypodermic needle.

The answer to your question is that you require a professional examination by an M.D., an generally,  an MRI. An x-ray alone is not sufficient.