Sorry in advance for the long amount of text. I (M37) was playing soccer last night with KT tape over my patella because sometimes it feels weak and KT tape makes it seem more stabilized. After the game I went home with no soreness that was out of the ordinary for after a heavy game.
I showered, did some light stretches, and then slowly took the KT tape off with the intention of icing my knee. After I took the tape off my knee below my kneecap suddenly became very swollen, and what was even more concerning was that there was a line (that was less than a quarter inch thick) across the tendon about an inch below the knee cap that was even more swollen than the rest. It started to feel raw and tender so I iced it and eventually the swelling went down, but was still very tender. I went to sleep and woke up this morning and googled patella tear symptoms and one of them was an indention where the tear might have occurred. And sure enough I had an indention, in a line where that extra swollen part was.
It is still tender and sore but I have a full range of motion with it, can walk on it (although painful), and can do a straight leg lift while lying down with the other leg bent.
If I put all my weight on it, it begins to hurt. If I had a partial tear/rupture, how painful would it be? Has anyone had a similar experience? Is it possible to have an injury like this without a tear happening? Should I not walk on it at all? I’m asking here because the knee doctors are closed for the weekend, I plan on meeting one asap.
I have seen pictures of what a complete rupture of the patellar tendon looks like with the knee cap moving up in the quad. My knee is not like that, the kneecap is still in place.
However, if I feel along the side edge of the tendon with my finger, I can feel what could be a tear. It feels like a chunk was taken out of the inner side. Using my good knee as reference, I can see that the indention I'm feeling is not normal.
I am feeling pain, but it is not extreme. it is more like a constant raw/burning sensation. I am worried that my active life is now over. Any advice, experience, links to other similar situations would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!
