Case Summary  |  Soccer Injury

I was a goalkeeper for a few different teams and practice many hours a week. One of the drills Our coach had us do was going under a string then diving back over it to save a shot made by the coach. When diving back over the string my foot got caught and i landed directly on my right knee. It hurt, but nothing unbearable so I kept practicing.
The next morning I could barely bend my knee because it was swollen and in pretty heavy pain. I limped my way to get ready for school and got some Vioxx (legal at the time) from my girlfriend because her father was a Dr. Surprisingly by lunchtime that day I had a full range of motion in my knee again (Iguess that's why it's harmful). I concealed the injury from my coaches for a few weeks because of a trip to Costa Rica coming up that I didn't want to miss, after we got back I went to an Orthopedist that told me it was a torn ligament. Then I got a second opinion from a sports Dr that had me get an MRI and diagnosed as Pattelo-Phemoral Syndrome (sorry for the spelling).
I did Physical Therapy for a few months that included biking, swimming, pilate, weights, exercise bands and some sonogram thing they would rub on my knee. To this day it is keeping my hamstrings and muscles surrounding the knee strong that keeps any pain away. I try to stretch often and do exercises that strengthen the core muscles in my legs. Any time I stop working out for a few weeks, my knee hurts a little again. Great motivation to stay in shape!