A bruised knee bone can be very painful and cause extreme discomfort. Although all bruises will eventually heal, it is important to treat bone bruises properly. Physical therapy can help strengthen your knee and surrounding muscles to help treat a bone bruise and prevent it from occurring again.
Knee Bone Bruises
Bone bruises are just what they sound like: deep contusions that reach all the way down to the bone that causes very small breaks in the outer layer of your bone. With knee bone bruises, this means damage to your femur, tibia, or most common, your patella or kneecap. Most often, bone bruises also affect your muscles and soft tissue. They occur from blunt force trauma. These bruises are the most painful and can cause swelling, tenderness and discoloration. Although the pain from knee bone bruises can linger, all bone contusions will heal eventually.
Acute Care
It is important to treat a knee contusion right away. The first step in rehabilitation involves rest, ice, compression and elevation. During this time, avoid any activities that cause pain in your knee and use crutches if necessary. Whenever possible, elevate your knee above your heart. Apply ice on your injured knee for 20 minutes at a time, two to three times per day. Keep an elastic bandage around your knee for about 72 hours. Do not begin physical therapy until your doctor or physical therapist advises you to.
Stretching Exercises
Stretching exercises help you regain full range-of-motion in your knee following an injury. Two muscle groups you want to focus on with knee injuries are the hamstrings and quadriceps. According to the American Association of Orthopedic Surgeons, keeping these muscles flexible can reduce soreness and prevent further injury. For hamstring stretches, sit on the floor and extend your injured leg extended. Keeping your leg straight, reach out and try to touch your toes, and hold this position for 10 seconds. For quad stretches, stand next to a wall for balance and bend your knee behind you and your foot. Pull up on your foot and hold for 10 seconds. Do three or four repetitions of each exercise.
Strengthening Exercises
According to the AAOS, strengthening your leg muscles will reduce stress on your knee by helping to absorb shock. Two exercises you can perform at home are wall squats and step ups. To perform a wall squat, rest your back against a wall with your feet hip-width apart and about 2 feet in front of you. Slowly slide down the wall until your knees are bent at a 90-degree angle. Hold for five to 10 seconds, lift yourself up and repeat. For step ups, simply stand in front of a step or elevated platform, step up with your injured leg and allow your other leg to hang off the step. Hold for three to five seconds, slowly lower yourself down and repeat.
