Fat pad injury (knee)

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robbodj Jul 2011 9:43am, 30 Jul 2011 8 posts	0 robbodj I have injured the fat pad in my knee, wondered if anyone else has suffered with this. Getting impatient as have rested for nearly 3 weeks and havent seen much of an improvement. Anybody know a timescale for this type of injury to heal or has anyone got any advice. Have a race a 10k race a week on sunday and a half marathon in september and i am desperate to run them both but dont want to risk further injury. Any advice wud be greatly appreciated.
Krissie Aug 2011 8:54pm, 2 Aug 2011 8 posts	0 Krissie I'm not an expert, but based on memory of having previously I recall that if it is just inflammed or irritated then it can settle with time and rest, but if it has become so inflammed that it has become 'impinged' in the joint then it may need surgery to trim back. I had surgery for fat pad impingement last year, I started to get pain through the back of my knee in February last year and any twisting movement caused intense pain. Everyone I saw thought it was cartilage, until I had an MRI which showed the fat pad impingement. I have read that taping, strenthening and other treatements have worked for many people, I tried these and ultrasound with a lot of improvement initially but the pain on twisting didn't resolve so surgery was recomended. I had the fat pad trimmed back last July, it was very sucessfull and I got back to running again quickly, and have managed to avoid any further problems by correcting my dirty heelstriking habit and an excellent strengthening program from the physio. Google 'fat pad impingement taping methods' to see if that helps. I also found cycling didn't aggrivate and kept me fit for the time I had off and the increased leg strength helped me recover from the surgery and get back quickly. Fingers crossed yours settles down quickly.
robbodj Aug 2011 10:27pm, 3 Aug 2011 9 posts	0 robbodj Well it did settle down and have managed 8 miles this week and no pain the day after. Iced it after the run and then an hour later. Also my physiotherapist thinks that the injury has been caused by overpronation. I alreadywear orthotics to correct this but looking at the wear on my trainers it appears that my right leg is still overpronating. I am going to have custom made orthotics and may try the taping. Did have it after the last physio session but not sure how much it helped. It was suggested that i stop kneeling on my right leg and i think this has helped make an improvement. Thanks for taking the time to reply. Good to hear from someone who has managed to get back to it after surgery as well because all the info i had read on the internet was doom and gloom. Taking things steady for now and see how things go.
Krissie Aug 2011 1:55pm, 4 Aug 2011 11 posts	0 Krissie I heard all doom and gloom too, event the surgeon said I probably wouldn't run again , but I have been totally symptom free for a year now
hellen Aug 2011 2:03pm, 4 Aug 2011 10,893 posts	0 hellen My physio did some funny sort of taping which was supposed to tilt the kneecap and take the pressure off
robbodj Aug 2011 7:58am, 5 Aug 2011 10 posts	0 robbodj Did the taping work for u? Back at physio today so going to ask him to tape it for me as i have a race on sunday and will see if that helps. Also will ask about strenghtening exercises as some people have found this helpful. I am hoping that i have caught it early and that taping and strenthening will help to get it back to normal. Have cut down on running the last fw weeks as well and hoping that it becomes symptom free again.