Just a little over 10 days ago I fractured my Tibial Plateau. I went to the ER and had x-rays. They braced my knee and referred me to a an Orthopedic Surgeon whom I saw 5 days later. The doctor came and spent a total of 5 minutes with me. Explained that he anticipates it to heal well but that I will develop arthritis in my knee eventually. He did a quick examination of it and that was it. He sent in one of his nurses to put me in a hinged brace and said to come back in 4 weeks.

I feel he did a very poor job at explaining the injury and what I should expect such as pain and discomfort other than to mention the eventual development of arthritis. Also, there was no mention or additional testing for muscle damage.

The break is in the outside of my right knee however all the pain I am experiencing is in the inner part of my knee. I feel like someone is taking a red hot knife and driving it sidewides through my knee.

My question is, will he address any muscle damage after the bone heals or should that have been evaluated immediately as well? Also, he only instructed me to bare no weight on it but did not indicate that I should avoid any other activities. I have been lifting my leg on it's own to help keep at least my quads strong, I'm not feeling any pain from doing this. I only do it for instance to place a pillow under it.

Also, the brace they gave me seems to be getting too big for my leg as I have been loosing weight. When I stand, it slips down my leg to my ankle. I've tightened it as much as possible but it is still doing this. Should I contact his office and inform them of this to see if there is a smaller size that I should use?

Lastly, I have also been experiencing some terrible lower back pain since this injury. I am not able to lie in bed, I have been having to sit and sleep in a chair with an Ottoman. This worries me as the only time I am getting up and about is when I go to use the bathroom. My home is very small and my steps to leave the house make it impossible to go outside without help and only to go for appointments.

Any advice, tips or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

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