"Screaming knee pain"

My wife suddenly couldn't bear weight through her knee, so was made almost immobile. After trying ice packs and rest, we went to A&E. Sunday A&E was full of sports injuries, but a wheelchair was found and we were triaged efficiently after a short wait. People were processed steadily by a stream of medical staff and when our place came round, the examination was friendly but thorough and an X-Ray was organised. We felt that 3 hours was a reasonable wait given the severity of the pain she was in if she moved.

Although X-Ray showed no obvious break, a follow-up to a fracture clinic appointment was made for the following morning.

At the clinic, one particular consultant was very thorough and explained the way the knee worked and how it might have deteriorated to cause the problem. Another X-Ray was taken and analysed with us to explain the nature of the problem.

The better detail in an MRI would open up a number of treatment options depending on the extent of the damage to the knee. We felt we were completely across the injury and the treatments that might be suggested by the MRI results when available.