Pain in the Knee After a Twist while Playing:
Most commonly children or young adults present with pain in the knee following a twist in the knee while playing. The swelling may start immediately after the injury or 12 hours after the injury. This usually signifies an injury to the menisci and/or the cruciate ligament. In addition to pain killers, an X-ray is needed to make sure there is no bone fracture and then an MRI scan has to be taken to assess which ligament is injured and to study the severity of the injury.
Depending on the severity of injury, you either needphysiotherapy or need to undergo surgery to rectify the injury to the ligament. With the current advances in joint care, such injuries can be managed with state of the art keyhole surgeries (arthroscopy). With such procedures, the patient can get discharged from the hospital the same day or the next day of the surgery.
Pain in the Knee After a Hit from the Side:
Sometimes while playing contact sports you get hurt in the knee due to a hit from the side. If you are not able to walk normally after this injury, it means that your collateral ligaments are injured. These ligaments are needed for side to side stability. An initial X-ray has to be taken to rule out a fracture. After this, an MRI scan will show the severity of the collateral ligament injury. Only the highest severity of collateral ligament injury needs surgical treatment while the lesser grades can me managed with braces and the person has to walk with support for a few days.