Dr. LaPrade has had several questions about patellar dislocation treatment and recovery since the Kansas City Chiefs’ star quarterback Patrick Mahomes’ patellar dislocation injury last night. Here is his response
“Most athletes who have a patellar dislocation have a good prognosis for returning to play without surgery once their strength returns 4-6 weeks after injury. Those who may require surgery include those who have dislocated their patella in the past or have knocked a piece of bone and cartilage off their kneecap during the dislocation. An injury to the kneecap is a bit different than say an ACL tear where almost all athletes require surgery to be able to return to play. However, the risk of having the patella dislocate again depends upon one’s normal patellar joint bony geometry. Those who have “normal” geometry with a deeper end of the femur (the trochlea) where the kneecap sits, have a relatively low risk of redislocation (5-10%). However, those who have a flatter trochlea or who have a kneecap that sits up higher than normal (patella alta) have a much higher risk of redislocation (30-40%) because their less stable bony geometry does not provide them as much protection against another injury. Even in these athletes, it is still worth an attempt at trying a rehabilitation program after their original injury to try and return back to competition.”
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Dr. Mohit Bhandari discusses input from top sports medicine surgeons, including Dr. LaPrade, in this video.
