Does a grade 2 MCL sprain require surgery?

Depending on the injury’s severity, these methods – a period of rest, bracing and physical therapy – usually suffice to heal the tear. However, if the torn ligament doesn’t heal sufficiently, you may experience instability and be more susceptible to reinjury. Surgery may be required in rare cases.

What is a MCL Grade 2 sprain?

Grade 2: A grade 2 MCL tear is a moderate tear in which your MCL is partially torn — usually the superficial part of your MCL. Your knee will likely be loose when it’s moved by hand, and you’ll probably have intense pain and tenderness along the inner side of your knee.

Will a MCL sprain show on MRI?

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is the investigation of choice to confirm injury to knee ligaments, including the MCL [1]. Although an MRI is not 100% sensitive for detecting MCL injuries [2], surgeons can rely on its findings for a diagnosis in grade 3 MCL tears.

How serious is a grade 2 MCL tear?

Grade 2 (partial MCL tear) – Tending to cause swelling, knee instability and more severe pain, a grade 2 partial MCL tear is an incomplete but significant tear. Patients with this kind of MCL injury can expect a recovery period of around 2-4 weeks.

How long does a grade 2 knee sprain take to heal?

Knee Sprain Recovery Time Typically, a grade 1 knee sprain or a grade 2 knee sprain involving the MCL or LCL will heal in 2 to 4 weeks. More severe sprains or injuries involving the other ligaments may take anywhere from 4 months to an entire year.

How do you treat a Grade 2 knee sprain?

At-Home Care for a Knee Sprain

1. Take Ibuprofen or Tylenol to manage the pain and swelling. Always follow the dosage directions on the bottle.
2. Compress your knee with an elastic bandage.
3. Elevate the injured knee to decrease swelling.
4. Continue to ice every few hours to reduce swelling.

How accurate are MRI scans of the knee?

MRI of the knee is used to diagnose disorders of the knee because the high soft tissue resolution allows precise imaging of intra-articular structures [3]. MRI of the menisci has proven useful for more than 10 years, with current sensitivity and specificity for meniscal tears ranging from 90 to 95% in most reports [1].

Is a grade 2 tear a sprain?

MCL tears/sprains are ranked by severity using a graded scale. For instance, a moderate MCL injury might be described as a grade 2 partial MCL tear.

Can a sprained MCL get worse?

While some symptoms occur immediately after injuring the MCL, such as swelling and tenderness, others may appear or get worse in the days following the injury, such as bruising.

How long is recovery for sprained MCL?

MCL Tear or Sprain Nonsurgical Recovery Time It can take anywhere from a few days to 8 weeks for an MCL injury to heal and a person to return to normal activities and sports. Generally, the timeline is determined by the severity of the injury, although this is not true for every person.

How do you tell if MCL is torn or sprained?

How Can I Tell If I Tore My MCL? Signs & Symptoms to Watch For

1. A popping sound when the injury is sustained.
2. Pain (ranging from mild to severe depending on injury grade) on the inside of the knee.
3. Instability, or feeling like the knee cannot bear weight and may give out.
4. Knee stiffness.

Does an MRI show ligament damage?

MRI has proven valuable in diagnosing a broad range of conditions, including tendon, ligament, muscle, cartilage and bone abnormalities that are not as visible on x-rays or CT scans.

What do white spots on a knee MRI mean?

A radiologist will review your knee MRI scans and give the results to your doctor. MRI images are black and white. Abnormalities may appear as bright white spots. These indicate areas where the contrast dye has collected due to enhanced cell activity.

Is an MCL sprain a tear?

A grade one sprain involves stretching and minor tearing of the MCL fibers; a grade two sprain involves partial (50%) tearing; and, a grade three sprain is a complete tear or rupture of the MCL. After sustaining any type of MCL injury, there may be difficulty bending and straightening the knee.

What does a Grade 2 MCL sprain mean?

Your diagnosis is a Grade II or III sprain of the medial collateral ligament (MCL). This injury represents an incomplete (Grade II) or a complete (Grade III) rupture of the collagen fibers which connect the ends of the femur (thigh bone) and the tibia (shin bone).

How are medial collateral ligament injuries graded on MRI?

Medial collateral ligament injury grading. A.Prof Frank Gaillard ◉ ◈ et al. Medial collateral ligament (MCL) injuries are graded into three groups on MRI, much in the same way as many other ligaments: grade 1: (minor sprain) high signal is seen medial (superficial) to the ligament, which looks normal.

Can a Grade 3 MCL injury be repaired?

As a general rule, the MCL is not repaired in the general population if it is an isolated injury. In athletes, grade 3 injuries often require surgical repair 1. After a few weeks, it may appear as a Pellegrini-Stieda syndrome or a Pellegrini-Stieda (PS) lesion, a post-traumatic/post-avulsion calcification of the proximal medial collateral ligament.

What does a Grade 1 MCL tear feel like?

Grade 1 (mild MCL injury) – When the MCL is stretched but not torn, or less than 10% torn, it is referred to as a grade 1 injury. Symptoms of a grade 1 MCL injury are typically mild. They may include minor pain/pressure in the knee, especially when force is applied.