slow speed crash 2 mo ago - side knee impact bump still

[SAMbike]

Just over 2 months ago I fell going very slowly trying to navigate through gravel in a parking lot on my bike. Although my tire was in gravel, my body hit pavement. The outside of my left knee took the brunt of the impact. It swelled up a bit and bled a bit, but I still went for a ride that day.

Since then it's improved a lot, and now, 2 months later, the only lingering symptoms are 1) slight soreness when I kneel on the outer edge of my knee cap, and 2) a bony lump. I'm trying to figure out why the lump is so large. It is very noticeable when my knee is bent.

I can push directly on the lump and there is no pain at all. It's not restricting my exercise and doesn't hurt in daily activities, so I feel silly going to a doctor about ... a painless lump. Through google searches, I think it is my "Gerdy's tubercle" ... but I still can't figure out why it's such a big lump 2 mo later. Any ideas? Photos:

Thank you!
-sam

[OakLeaf]

Did you have a hematoma? Those can calcify. And given the location, so near (or at) the tendon attachments, I would kind of worry about that. You probably want to see a doctor.

http://www.sportsinjuryclinic.net/sp...tis-ossificans

[Catrin]

Did you have a hematoma? Those can calcify. And given the location, so near (or at) the tendon attachments, I would kind of worry about that. You probably want to see a doctor.

http://www.sportsinjuryclinic.net/sp...tis-ossificans

I concur with Oakleaf, you really want to make certain you aren't setting yourself up for long term problems. If it is still bothering you 2 months afterwards then getting it check out is a pretty good idea.

[zoom-zoom]

I'd have it checked, but I have a grape-sized lump on my left hip from a paceline crash back in late May. I think it's a residual hematoma (I bruise like few others and it takes a long time for my body to reabsorb all that bleeding). You can see it in this photo from yesterday.

[OakLeaf]

Yeah, I have a calcified hematoma on my hip too from a crash five or six years ago. Doesn't bother me, just makes my saddlebag look bigger. My concern was more about how the OP's could interfere with her ITB attachment - as it seems maybe it is, from her description of symptoms.

[zoom-zoom]

Yeah, I have a calcified hematoma on my hip too from a crash five or six years ago. Doesn't bother me, just makes my saddlebag look bigger. My concern was more about how the OP's could interfere with her ITB attachment - as it seems maybe it is, from her description of symptoms.

Yeah, on a sensitive joint like a knee it could cause a lot more trouble. I forget I even have that bump on my hip. It doesn't have any effect on function. ITB insertion points can be PITA areas, even under the best of circumstances!

[Crankin]

My very first crash (caused when my DS, going down a hill in the opposite direction, on his cx bike, asked me for a sip of my water bottle, about 1 mile from my house) caused a huge hemotoma on the side of my knee. I woke up 3 days after the crash with the lump and excruciating pain. I wet to the pcp, who sent me to an ortho, who wa about to send me for surgery!!! . But, he did send me for an MRI , which showed a hemotoma (which I had self diagnosed). He drained it, and I was done. It took me a week after that to get back on the bike.
I have a calcified hemotoma on my forehead from the car door smacking into me last fall. It's small, doesn't hurt, but will make me have bangs for the rest of my life. Sometimes a tight bike helmet annoys it, but, it's OK other than that.
Get your knee checked.

[SAMbike]

Thank you all so much!! After google searching and searching I'm glad I finally posted here. I never knew that traumatic myositis ossificans existed! That's exactly what it is. It's a hard bony lump. Yes, I had a hematoma, and now ... a lump, new bony lump. Interesting what the body does in response to injury... thank you everyone!

[emily_in_nc]

Thank you all so much!! After google searching and searching I'm glad I finally posted here. I never knew that traumatic myositis ossificans existed! That's exactly what it is. It's a hard bony lump. Yes, I had a hematoma, and now ... a lump, new bony lump. Interesting what the body does in response to injury... thank you everyone!

Wow, I had never heard of this! So, there's nothing that can be done; you just have to live with it?

[ny biker]

Wow, I had never heard of this! So, there's nothing that can be done; you just have to live with it?

Well I'm not a doctor, but I once had a benign bone tumor removed from my shoulder blade. I also have a bony lump inside my mouth (below the teeth on the left side, bottom) that my dentist said could be removed if it caused any problems. So there might be something that can be done to remove a traumatic myositis ossificans. It would involve surgery, though.

[Wahine]

I'd concur with others here that it is likely a traumatic ossification. In that area, if it is not causing you pain or functional limitation, I would not worry about it. It will likely slowly resolve over the next 10 to 20 months. You may always have a slight lump but, again, if it doesn't cause you any functional limitation, do not worry about it.