Please does anyone know about this?Partially ruptured Quadracept(?) muscle

[MrsDoylesMole]

Dp has slipped over today and twisted his leg.He was going down some stairs and he heard his muscle tear.The nurse at minor injuries said that it looks like a partially ruptured Quadracept(?) thigh muscleHe was sent away with crutches and painkillers and an appointment with consultant for monday.
Does anyone know how long recovery will be ?

We are very worried because he takes care of the dd's whilst i am working each evening and he cant bend hardly or lift his leg
I dont know how we will cope.

bump

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it's the quadriceps muscle, the big one in the front of the thigh

recovery depends on the degree of the tear, and where the tear is located

if it's in the middle of the thick part of the muscle, it will probably heal by itself in about 4-6 weeks

he'll need those painkillers and crutches, muscle tears are agony

if the tear is anywhere near the muscle's attachment at the knee, it may require surgery

how old are your DD's?

he may be able to hobble around in a few days

meanwhile, you should be able to see where the tear is located - it will be the most swollen area and may have bruised

apply ice very diligently, in fact, you could try ice massage: using a flannel, hold some ice cubes so that the actual ice is touching the skin of the thigh, and your hand is protected by the flannel. Rub the painful area with the ice for 5 minutes. Keeo the ice moving all the time. It will get cold, then achy, then burn and then go numb - it doesn't feel all that nice but really helps with controlling the bleeding inside the muscle, and with swelling and pain. 5 min doesn't seem very long but when you're doing it, it's a long 300 seconds!!

you can do ice massage up to 3 times a day but no more than that

but you can put a regular ice pack on the leg as often as you want

after 2-3 days, you can switch to alternating ice and heat: ice pack for 10 min, hot pack for 10 min, repeat 3-4 times with each. Doesn't matter which you start with but END with ice

my qualifications: i've been a chiropractor for going on 11 years, have taught first aid, have been on a volunteer medical team for sports activities and races for several years - in case you're wondering about the reliability of my advice

did they tell you that it will feel worse each time he rests the leg for a while and then moves it again? because that can happen and it's normal

and what kind of painkillers did he get? he should go easy on anything aspirin-related as it thins the blood and could cause the intramuscular bleeding to get worse

muscle spasms in that leg will also be common after an injury like this

tell him no hot baths for 48 hours after the injury, they would also worsen the bleeding and swelling

Dont have the tablets to hand but i think they were co-Hydramol? and ibuprophen.
His muscle is very swollen at the front of the muscle above the knee.
The dd's are 7 and 3 today (worried he wont be able to change dd2 as she is still in pull ups)
Thanks so much for the advice
They didn't really tell us that much and it has been such a busy day with dd2's birthday etc.
Thanks again

ok then, that's good stuff

do tell him take it with the ibuprofen, they do this thing called "potentiating" where each medication makes the other work better when taken together

and do keep up with the pain meds!! tell him to take them on a schedule - whatever you were told, say every four hours or so, because if he only takes them when the pain gets bad, he'll have to wait for them to kick in again... it's better to take them round the clock, really, muscle tears are bloody horrible and it's not wimpy to keep up with the pain relief

could your 3-year-old perhaps be changed on the sofa so he could sit and stretch the bad leg out alongside?

let me know if i can help any more - they really don't tell you very much do they

and happy birthday to your little one

Thanks so much we are very grateful.

And great idea about the changing of dd2

Looks like jacksmama's got this thread under control.
Good work.

Like the namechange Dragonbutter

thankyooooooo
it's my new year's diet name.

oohhh i like that dragon!
But does your low-fat spread have saturated fats in it? ;)

i'm a dragonhighinpolyunsaturates

v healthy, good on you ;)

I'm jacksmamadranktoomuchoverchristmasandisnowtryingtocutback

good one

Hey MrsDoylesMole, how's your DH doing today?? Pain and swelling any better?

Hello
The pain isn't too bad but the painkillers are very good.His thigh(above his knee)is still very swollen,it hides his kneecap it's so swollen.He is taking it very well though.
Thanks for asking,very kind of you.

I heart good pain meds.
Is he icing it above the knee cap? Good luck with the consultant Monday. One thing, you should ask if it could be a ruptured bursa rather than a torn muscle, they can cause huge swelling but heal a bit more quickly.

Yes he is holding the ice there.
Right will do and fingers crossed.
Thanks again.

Please update on Monday, k?

Yes will do.

So how is MrMole today? What did the consultant say?

Hi
Well the consultant confirmed that it is a partial rupture of the quadracip(?)muscle and it is the outer part.He said it may take 6-8 weeks to fully recover and has signed dp off for 3 weeks but said he could go back to work a bit earlier if he was given desk duties.
He has given dp some exercises to do and a follow up appointment is booked for 9th feb.
Dp says it is much easier to move already.so fingers crossed.

Thanks for checking back

I still can't spell it lol.

Great that he's moving more easily. After 6 weeks or so you ought to look into getting massage therapy because he'll need the spasms and scar tissue worked out in the area.
If the consultant didn't mention it, keeping up with ice and heat is a good idea. When it's been about ten days he could just switch to heat only.
Good luck!!!