felt a pop in my knee, not sure what's wrong..

While riding on the 4th I landed awkwardly on a normal w2w jump (the boat had to turn suddenly in the direction I was going due to an oncoming boat and the rope was slack). I landed pretty flat and my weight shifted somehow on the landing and I felt a pop in my front knee. It didn't hurt but I went on to wakesurf for a while because I didn't want any more impact on the knee.

It was pretty sore the next morning but not swollen. It doesn't hurt me when I walk but I feel a little pain when I twist my leg. I can feel some soreness about an inch below my kneecap when I press against it. Did I just tweak something or is there a chance I did some real damage? I had something kinda similar happen to my other knee on President's Day and it got better after resting it (and only wakesurfing instead of wakeboarding) for a couple months. Should I get it checked out? I would imagine if I tore a ligament I would be in a lot more pain..

Thanks for any advice..

the best advice anyone can give you is to go see a doctor. no one can properly and accurately diagnose what's wrong w/ your knee in a message board.

go see a doc.

did you ever see a doc for the other knee? Just ignoring it and taking it easy will allow the pain to go away, but who's to say theres no real damage? Go to the doc for both knees to make sure they're good/the new one isn't badly injured... makes sense right? if it is a minor injury they can prescribe PT etc, if you dont get em strong you'll be more susceptible to injury down the road...

True, Joe, but many of us have shared similar experiences so it doesn't hurt to hear what those people have to say. Always keeping in mind that what they say is just an opinion like everything else you read on here and not a professional diagnosis.

That said - are you a man? Cuz if it ain't gushing blood and you can still function you don't need no stinking doctor.

I've felt that "bruise" below the knee cap myself. It went away. I've also had a pop in my left knee for 20 years everytime I flex it and never had knee surgery. It sounds to me (me no doctor or anything of the sort - just to be clear) like you just tweaked it and bruised or sprained something.

My advice is - don't jump when the boat is turning!

same thing happened to me and it ended up being an intermediate MCL tear. I was out for a few months with full physical therapy 3 times a week. My knee seems like it's 110% better and stronger.

Happened to me about two months ago. Ended up being a strained ACL. Therapy for two months better than ever.

Yeah, go get it checked out. Personally, when I heard that "pop" my ACL was snapped. The thing is, you can do more damage to your cartilage if your joint is sliding around w/ no ligament support.

go get it checked out by an orthopedic specialist. I kept being told by my regular doctor it was just a sprain for 2 months. I finally saw a specialist and found out it was an ACL tear. Get it checked out don't just wait on it.

hey guys I do the medicine thing for a living
one of the most common injuries is a medial collateral ligament strain
if your knee didn't swell immediately then the chance of a acl or pcl rupture is very unlikely
push on your knee and see where it hurts

I did not see a doc for the other knee.. sounds like I should see an orthopedic specialist for both to be safe.

thanks matt - the only place that hurts when I push is the area about 1 inch below the kneecap, right in the center above my shin

on each side of your knee cap you have a space that you can palpate if it hurts there you may have a tear in the meniscus
trace the knee cap down and if it only hurts in the center then you have strain the patellar ligament
which attaches the quads out and lets you extend the knee
doesn't sound like you have too much to worry about

You could have heard the patella(knee cap) slid over the femoral condyles which could have been the "pop" you felt.
Sounds like that was most likely thing from you comment of "in frontof the knee".

Yup, tore my ACL and thought it was just a strain for over a month. No pain or anything, just awkward feeling knee. Time for a knee doc visit. No point in adding to the injury if the ACL is gone.

Because of the location of pain, I would say you subluxed your patella (your knee-cap came out of place for just a second). that would explain the pop you felt. Also when your patella comes out of place you strain the tendon that connects the quad mucles to your tibia. So if you press on that tendon just below your knee-cap and right above the tibia like you explained, then that is where the strain is. Use ice and do light weight leg extension exercises. If it was a ligament you would feel very unstable when you walk. But like everyone said it wouldn't hurt to go see a doc.

i agree with cosmocat when my acl went i felt a pop, go to the doctor and get it checked asap, acls are funny even if theyre badly sprained or only slightly torn you can still walk fine and everything

Thanks for the advice guys.. I think/hope that Matt and Justin are right and it is my patella rather than an ACL injury, but I will definitely have a doc check it out (and my other knee) just in case.

thank god for wakesurfing..