My knee has just been stitched..

crispybug2
crispybug2 Posts: 2,915
edited December 2012 in Training, fitness and health
..How long before I can exercise again?

Basically, out on a run two nights ago tripped over the kerb went base over apex and ended up with quite an imprressive gash to my knee (without going into too much gruesome detail you see right through to the air pocket behind the knee) which required five stitches to close it up.

Now I've been advised not to exercise for ten days by the doctor but my theory is that they always err on the side of caution and nore often overly cautious.

So the question is how soon would you start exercising again?



p.s. I'm not going out on the road, I'm talking about going on the turbo or a cross trainer.

Comments

  • mattshrops
    mattshrops Posts: 1,134
    Not wishing to sound like an @rse but are you really asking someone to say the doctors dont know what they're talking about?
    If you feel comfortable with it you wil have to decide for yourself-no?
    Death or Glory- Just another Story
  • chrisaonabike
    chrisaonabike Posts: 1,914
    I've been in exactly this dilemma - twice. I had a couple of ops on my leg years ago. The first time, I started exercising again way too soon - before the scar tissue had toughened up. Each time I bent my leg, it stretched the new scar, which ended up a good half an inch wide (not including the stitch holes, some of which were a right mess). Scar tissue doesn't heal well if it's cut, so it was very vulnerable.

    The second time (several years later), I waited a lot longer. I left it a fortnight before bending the knee at all, and then didn't bend it completely for a couple of months. I had to work hard to eventually recover the movement, but it was worth it.

    Since the second op was in exactly the same place as the first, the surgeon was able to remove all the old scar tissue, so I ended up with it looking like this. A lot neater, and nowhere near as liable to getting re-injured. That's the inside of my left leg in case it's not obvious (my skin isn't as mottled as that - I've cranked up the contrast to make the scar more obvious!). The scar is about 4 inches long.

    I'm not suggesting you do the same, but depending on where exactly the cut is (ie, how much it will get stretched when you bend the leg), how long it is, and how quickly you heal, you might want to be a little cautious.
    Is the gorilla tired yet?
  • pcb24
    pcb24 Posts: 98
    edited December 2012
    I would suggest you follow the Dr's advice. He wants you to rest 10 days for the wound to heal. If you start using the Turbo you could split the cut open (as Chrisonabike found). Also you are in a proliferative stage (see electrotherapy.org and go to tissue healing) in case you are really interested!!! This means your tissue has not fully healed and instead scar tissue is starting to form and you don't want to disturb this. In the remodeling stage (week 1 - 2) then you can start, hence the Dr's 10 day warning.

    I dea. with injuries on a daily basis by the way.
    Cervelo S2
    Langster for the winter
  • GiantMike
    GiantMike Posts: 3,139
    As an unqualified sofa doctor, I'd say exercise as hard as you can as soon as possible. What could possibly go wrong? WTF do these so-called experts know anyway. I bet they slept through most of their 7 years training.

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