So while in NYC I woke up and found a weird bump on the side of my knee. It was pretty hard but slightly squishy. It didn't hurt any but it was rather odd to just have this weird bump appear on me. I of course decided that I had cancer and that I should deal with it once I returned from NYC... Long story short it was a small bakers cyst which is normally some sort of sports injury. Yeah me and sports, I think it happened in my sleep, oh well they drained it and I am all good but my hospital visit was pretty freaking amazing so I figured I should share.
I haven't seen a doctor since moving back to Boulder, so I just find a list of doctors in my health insurance network and randomly call. I get set up at Boulder Community Hospital, when I call in they even have someone that can see me in about 2 hours, great. So I head over fill out all the first paperwork and see my new doc, he thinks it is a bakers cyst and should be drained and sends me to ortho. I am told they can see me today but it will be about an hour, 10 minutes later I am in to see my ortho. They decide it is pretty hard and want to schedule a sonogram to make sure it is fluid and not a solid. They send me over to schedule the scan and tell me they will call in a couple days with the results. When I get to the receptionist for scheduling they tell me they can fit me in right now. The tech does the scan and says the doc will send the results over in a few minutes so I should go back to ortho and tell them the scan is done. I return and I am immediately sent into a room, 5 minutes later my ortho doc walks in and says yep it is a fluid and she is prepared to drain it right now. So needle in my knee and the thick vasaline like fluid is drained and my bakers cyst is gone. My knee is wrapped and I am on my way home. All in all I was in 4 different hospital rooms and went from knowing nothing to having my problem solved in less than 3 hours. Simply amazing.
Thanks Boulder Community Hospital. so happy to have a positive health care story for once, now lets just hope my bill isn't to big.
My Awesome Hospital Pants!
The bump on my ugly knee
Anyways since there is another smaller bubble on the side of my knee, I know I need to go get it drained again. The problem is that I am pretty busy at the moment... I really need to just schedule it for sometime next week. LAME!
Comments (2)
Interesting...the traditional definition of a Baker's cyst is that it is behind the knee (in the popliteal fossa). Often they are found in older people who have arthritis because they get extra inflammatory fluid caused by the bone rubbing on bone, which is then pushed behind the knee. Also, they have shown that draining them also doesn't do a whole lot (unless it makes you feel better) because they usually come back.
On another note, I loved draining abscesses (not quite the same thing) when I did my ER rotation! It's like popping a huge zit. Very gratifying. :-)
Hope your knee gets better!
Posted by Laura V1 | November 15, 2008 10:29 AM
Posted on November 15, 2008 10:29
I had the same thing on my knee when I was a kid. Never hurt and one day after playfully squishing the awesome little bump on my knee for 10 years I went to push on it and it was gone! Very disappointing. I'm hoping it comes back some day.
Posted by -Dominic | November 20, 2008 4:43 PM
Posted on November 20, 2008 16:43