Continual Knee Pain but Doctor Says Nothing Wrong

11-11-2006, 01:07 PM

Hi!!
I am 38/Female. I had a laterel release two years ago on my left knee (i did not need it ...they just did it) This was cause my knee hurt in the back. That healed however, very slow.

I since have had knee pain on the knee DAILY. It is on the inside part of knee. It is only about quarter to 1/2 dollar size pain. Feels like a knife is going through it. my newest MRI after two years since surgery says NOTHING is wrong. The previous MRI before surgery said a few minor things..bone bruise to tibial plateau, bright signal near ACL?? Stain of something...blah blah. This one says I am a-ok.

I had a cortizone yesterday...just for grins. They said if it help then that means I would be able to have surgery as it is something in the joint that can be fixed. I know the doctor thinks I am making this up....heck, i am starting to think I am !!!!!!!!!! Has anyone out there had knee pain and mri be fine. then to find out there is something wrong or torn??????? Please help. I am starting to feel like i am making this up.

Denise

11-11-2006, 05:38 PM

Hi Denise,

You are probably not crazy. I had a misread MRI (said not injury) and two months later off the same films my OS found a significant meniscal tear. So, yes they can be misread. If you are still not satisfied don't be afraid to ask for another opinion. If your still not satisfied ask for a third opnion. We know when something is wrong with our bodies. Good luck and don't give up until you know. - Take care Deborah

11-11-2006, 07:55 PM

Thanks so much. even someone just reassuring me gives me hope. I have said from the beginning it is a meniscus tear. My son is having surgery (same surgeon) next week on his meniscus which showed on the mri. we have the same pain...same spot. Kinda wierd.

Was your tear complete or partial?? Did they repair it?? How was the recovering??

Thanks again
Denise

11-12-2006, 06:35 AM

Hi Denise,

Mine was a complete tear with part of the meniscus removed. The recovery wasn't bad. Some swelling etc but PT was great and helped alot. It is probably the only time in my life I actually followed orders and didn't argue. In fact, I'm still doing the exercises at home. Actually, after the misread of the MRI by GP asked me to do another couple weeks of PT which I did and then he sent me to an OS. It was my PT who kept saying you must have a tear - where the pain and swelling is and I would of course say - but the MRI said no...

For me I was out of work for several months because I work as a medic and had to potentially be able to climb ladders, get into tight awkard spaces and carry a fair amount of weight. If I had a "regular" job I would have been back to work in a matter of days. Unfortunately for me, this did not fix the knee. I've not been pain free since I injured the knee and although the pain was better after he removed the torn portion it is still not right. I'm scheduled for another surgery in January to see what else can be done short of replacing part of the knee (have not read good things about PKR). So keep digging for the reason there has to be one. - Good luck and let me know - I'll watch this post. Deborah

12-12-2006, 06:21 AM

Hello, Denise--

I can say from experience that MRI's should be accurate, but there is only so much you can tell from a image. I know that an MRI saved me from another surgery recently. MRI's will tell you if something is torn, stretched, swollen, etc. But sometimes the source of the pain is more difficult to detect. Perhaps your problem is more complicated. Or maybe the images were taken from all the wrong angles. Maybe it's the type of pain that can't be detected from an MRI. Maybe it's an obscure allergic reaction to something. Or, perhaps you get to be a lucky one to have a new disease named after you.

I'm just throwing out possibilities, I could be way off. But I do know that you're entitled to another doctor's opinion. In the incident that I referred to earlier, it took me four doctors, two physical therapists, along with a few assistants/medical students/etc. before they finally got it right. If you've been given a diagnosis that you know isn't quite right, seek other help.

But if the pain is there, it's there.

12-15-2006, 05:00 AM

Hi all!!
Well I was right on with my own diagnoisis with my knee. MRI said NOTHING WRONG!! surgery was yesterday...they found:
a dent in bone so they did a microfracture surgery. I think they poke holes to stimulate more bone growth. Then, the other doc said they did a partial menisus repair ?? and synoval lining removal and clean up. I will get the actual wording later. I knew I was not crazy!!

Nesy68

12-15-2006, 05:11 AM

Good for you, Nesy!! Hope all turns out well.

By the way, I think the word you were looking for is "meniscus", which is the cushion between the bones, in the joint, of your knee.

12-15-2006, 06:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nesy68

I just hope all this does not put me in a future knee replacement. Do you know what synovial lining removal is? something about inflamed tissue?

I wouldn't be too concerned with future knee replacement. My knee issues are much more serious and I'm still in tact. The (very) short version of the story without any details is that as the result of a nearly-fatal traffic wreck, all of the tendons/ligaments/etc. holding together one of my knees was completely oblitherated, to the point that all of the leg bones were no longer held together by anything at all. It took multiple surgeries and a lot of rehab time, but now, 7+ years after the fact, I'm down to some unsightly scarring and an elastic knee brace. If I'm in line for a knee replacement, it won't be for a long, long time.

Believe me--if you need a knee replacement, there's more going on there than we know of.

Also, synovial lining is a membrane in the joint of the knee. If it gets irritated badly enough, it may cause arthritis later on. Its purpose is to protect the knee, but it becomes counter-productive under the wrong conditions.

Perkins Dired1996

Continual Knee Pain but Doctor Says Nothing Wrong

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