A neuroma is a small knot of nerve endings, which can form when a nerve has been cut.
What causes a neuroma?
A neuroma is really an attempt by the damaged nerve to heal itself, but something goes wrong with its attempts. A neuroma can form in the tissues around the knee after an injury or after knee surgery. One of the commoner neuromas affecting the knee can follow a surgical injury to the infrapatellar branch of the saphenous nerve.
What is Tinel's test?
Tapping over the site of the infrapatellar branch of the saphenous nerve (Tinel's test) may elicit sharp pain if there is a neuroma developing.
Peer-reviewed papers
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Quote:
"...surgeons should be concerned about [infrapatellar branch of the saphenous nerve] injury if they encounter a patient who has pain and stiffness after [total knee arthroplasty]....early diagnosis and treatment are of great significance....Tinel’s test and ROM change after local anesthetic injection could help in distinguishing [this] injury from intra-articular problems."
Citation: Xiang Y, Li Z, Yu P, Zheng Z, Feng B, Weng X. Neuroma of the Infrapatellar branch of the saphenous nerve following Total knee Arthroplasty: a case report. BMC Musculoskelet Disord. 2019 Nov 13;20(1):536. doi: 10.1186/s12891-019-2934-0. PMID: 31722713; PMCID: PMC6854730.