Regain Mobility After a Patellar Fracture
Understanding Patellar Fractures
A patellar fracture affects the kneecap, which can be easily broken, and often occurs from a fall directly onto the knee.
- Your kneecap, which is a small, flat, triangular bone, is vulnerable to fractures because it sits right at the front of your knee.
- If you fall directly onto your knee, the impact can easily cause the kneecap to crack or even shatter.
- Patellar fractures are most common in people 20 to 50 years of age and affect men twice as often as women.
- Fractures of the kneecap are serious and can even require surgery to repair.
Function of the Kneecap
The kneecap, also known as the patella, is more than just a protective cover for your knee joint.
It plays several critical roles:
- Shielding the Joint: The kneecap acts as a shield, protecting the delicate structures of your knee joint, like the cartilage and ligaments, from direct impact.
- Supporting Knee Extension: It serves as a fulcrum to give your quadriceps — the muscles on the front of your thigh — extra leverage. This leverage is what allows you to straighten or extend your knee fully.
- Connecting Muscles to Bones: The patella also connects the muscles in the front of your thigh to your lower leg via the patellar tendon, enabling effective transmission of forces needed for activities like walking, running, jumping, or climbing stairs.
When a fracture occurs, all these functions can be compromised, leading to pain, instability, and difficulty with basic movements.
That’s why it’s crucial to understand the severity of a patellar fracture and how it can impact your daily life.
Severity of Patellar Fractures
A patellar fracture is not something to be taken lightly. It is a serious injury that often requires medical attention and sometimes surgery to repair.
Depending on the severity and type of fracture, it can have long-term consequences.
For example, over time, they may cause arthritis of the knee and chronic knee pain.
Effects on Mobility
Although some people walk comfortably after a patellar fracture, others can struggle with daily activity.
In fact, even those who are walking can have difficulty with other forms of movement.
- They might struggle with even the simplest daily activities like standing up from a chair or climbing stairs.
- Bending or extending the knee can become challenging.
This is because a kneecap fracture can result in problems with knee extension, resulting in a loss of movement that affects your ability to perform many common actions.
Range of Fractures
Not all patellar fractures are the same.
They can vary widely in terms of severity:
- Simple Fracture: A simple fracture might involve just a single crack in the kneecap, where the bone remains in place. This type of fracture is less severe and may heal without surgery.
- Complex Fracture: A more complex fracture could involve multiple breaks or even shattering of the kneecap. In these cases, the pieces of bone might move out of alignment, making surgery necessary to restore proper function.
Treatment Options
The good news is that there are several effective treatment options for a patellar fracture, depending on the nature of the break and the patient’s overall health.
Non-Surgical Treatment
In cases where the pieces of the patella have not been displaced by the injury, surgery may not be necessary.
Your doctor may recommend non-surgical treatment, which focuses on immobilizing the knee to allow the bone to heal naturally.
Here’s what that process might look like:
- Casts or Splints: These are usually used to keep the knee straight and the ends of the bones in proper position while they heal. This helps to avoid further injury or displacement of the bone fragments.
- Recovery Period: For six to eight weeks, or sometimes even longer, you will need to avoid putting any weight on your leg until the bone is fully healed. This means using crutches to get around and keeping your leg elevated as much as possible.
- Crutches & Knee Brace: Most people use crutches during this period. A knee brace may be recommended to provide additional support and stability to the knee as it heals.
While non-surgical treatment can be effective, it requires patience and adherence to your doctor’s instructions to ensure the best possible outcome.
Importance of Rehabilitation
Whether or not you have surgery, rehabilitation plays an important role in getting you back to your daily activities.
Rehabilitation helps you regain strength and mobility, and it’s essential for getting back to your daily activities.
Risks of Immobilization
When your knee is immobilized in a cast or splint for an extended period, there are certain risks involved:
- Stiffness: Keeping your knee immobilized in a cast or splint can result in stiffness, making it harder to bend or straighten your leg once the cast is removed.
- Muscle Weakness: immobilization can also weaken the muscles in the front of your thigh. This is why exercises are so important during recovery — they help to rebuild muscle strength and improve overall function.
Rehabilitation Plan
A comprehensive rehabilitation plan typically includes a combination of exercises and therapies designed to restore movement and strength to your knee.
At The Jackson Clinics, our physical therapists will work to help you regain strength and movement, allowing you to continuously improve your range of motion.
Our plan will also include exercises for long-term maintenance of quadriceps strength, as well as hip muscles.
Here’s what you might expect:
- Range of Motion Exercises: To counteract stiffness, you will start with gentle range-of-motion exercises. These exercises focus on bending and straightening the knee as much as possible without causing pain. Initially, this may be done with the help of a physical therapist who will guide you through safe and effective movements.
- Strengthening Exercises: Gradually, you will introduce strengthening exercises, focusing not only on the quadriceps but also on the muscles around your hip. Strong hip muscles support overall leg function and help to stabilize the knee joint.
- Activity Plan: By six to 12 weeks, we will organize an activity plan to have you walking better and participating in other forms of exercise. Activities might include pool running and exercises in water. Water provides natural resistance and is gentle on your joints, making it an excellent environment for building strength without putting undue stress on the healing kneecap.
Did you know you have Direct Access* to Physical Therapy? No referral, no problem!
Final Thoughts
Continuing exercises at home or under the supervision of a physical therapist can help ensure that you stay active and prevent future knee problems.
With regular physical therapy, you can reduce pain and continue to stay active after a patellar fracture.
It may take time, but with patience and persistence, recovery is within reach.
The Jackson Clinics serves 18 locations throughout Northern Virginia.
Find one near you: https://thejacksonclinics.com/locations/