At the last play of last Thursday’s futsal session, as we were jostling a bit for the ball, one of my futsal buddies lost his balance and fell on the outside of my right knee.

As he went down, so did I while experiencing 3 popping sounds that is very similar to cracking knuckles, but quite a bit louder. That followed immediately a sharp pain to the ankle. I managed to stand up after a while and managed to drive home too.

Dr. Gan's office, my knee brace
Dr. Gan’s office, my knee brace (will have to wear this for a while)

I thought that it could have been a minor sprain at first, but the next day I had to drive to work in the morning when I realized that walking to & from the LRT stations was going to be too difficult.

The same morning I also discovered that I couldn’t lift my leg to the rear past 20 degree or so, and any left & right pressure was unbearable.

That was when I made the decision to seek professional help, and ended up at Damansara Specialist Hospital after getting recommendations from FA who had her ACL surgery done by  the orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Gan.

MRI done at Damansara Specialist Centre
MRI done at Damansara Specialist Hospital

After a bit of moving my knees around and pushing here and there, the good doctor (who specializes in knee and sports injury) arrived at the conclusion that I suffered an MCL tear from the impact.

The good news is, there’s no surgery required. I was fitted with a knee brace and prescribed anti inflammatory drugs. Total cost was RM 564

  • RM 355 for knee brace
  • RM 180 for consultation
  • RM 5 medical record service
  • RM 24 pharmacy

Pretty reasonable I think. I have a Prudential insurance but that was only for hospitalization, so this was paid out of pocket. Luckily my company does allow employees to claim outpatient medical treatments up to a certain amount. This will be covered.

MRI first impression - MCL tear
MRI first impression – MCL tear

According to Dr. Gan, MRI was not strictly necessary, but a good precaution measure to check if there’s any further damage to the knee (especially the meniscus). I opted in and made an appointment for the next day and went there with Haze.

MRI is really a wonder of modern medical technology and a direct result of our understanding in quantum physics. I was sent into the machine, the friendly staff provided blankets and even a special headphones (with air tubes delivering music instead of traditional speakers since metal doesn’t play well with the giant magnet). 20 minutes of clicking and humming sound later. I was done.

Another 45 minutes later, the results were out. The initial report: MCL tear.

MRI cost: RM 900.

I’ll have to see Dr. Gan again next week for a follow up with the MRI result, but it seems like a 4-6 months from high impact exercise and plenty of cycling is all I need to have a full recovery. Lucky I already have the mountain bike. 😀

My impression of KPJ (Damansara Specialist Hospital) is a positive one. Service was good and there is no need to run around to process payment and such. The only little problem they have there is the lack of parking space, but I guess that pretty much happens to every hospital these days.

Futsal & badminton will be on hiatus for me in the mean time.

 

MCL Tear from Futsal – Medical Care & Cost
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36 thoughts on “MCL Tear from Futsal – Medical Care & Cost

  • February 18, 2012 at 3:40 pm
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    Wah piangz! Ex man!!

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    • February 18, 2012 at 3:48 pm
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      Suertes: that’s medical care for you! hahaha

      Reply
  • February 18, 2012 at 3:45 pm
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    I snapped my ACL on the right knee 10 years back while playing basketball. That was it for active sport. It took me several months to strengthen and stabilize my kneel. Take care.

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    • February 18, 2012 at 3:49 pm
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      Sin Tai Lim: ouch, ACL must have been max pain.

      Reply
  • February 18, 2012 at 5:26 pm
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    Take care mate. Drink more pork bone soup!

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    • February 18, 2012 at 10:50 pm
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      Michelle: thanks! just did 😀

      Reply
  • February 18, 2012 at 6:21 pm
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    u shud seriously write about 1care policy after this.. asking everyone to oppose it

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    • February 18, 2012 at 10:50 pm
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      nic: if only we have a bit more information on the issue. :S

      Reply
  • February 18, 2012 at 7:09 pm
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    you were so lucky! i had shitty service the first day i was there. but i will always recommend Dr Gan. he is a good doctor (although loves to nag at me lol)

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    • February 18, 2012 at 10:50 pm
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      FA: haha ya, a good doctor!

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  • February 18, 2012 at 7:58 pm
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    Get well soon buddy. I had taken a MRI before more than 10 years in Penang Gleneagle. I recall waiting outside the room and saw this poster which proclaimed that “our MRI machine is very quiet”. I was like, quiet?? Why the emphasis? When I was in the large tube, then only I realised that it wasn’t quiet at all LOL.

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    • February 18, 2012 at 10:50 pm
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      KM: thanks thanks. haha ya the machine was sure damn loud

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  • February 18, 2012 at 8:10 pm
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    MRI knee! I deal with that everyday >_<"

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    • February 18, 2012 at 10:50 pm
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      Jacquelyn: oOo, interesting!

      Reply
  • February 19, 2012 at 1:57 am
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    My opinion on KPJ Hospital is that they are reasonably well, not too high.
    Take it easy on yourself, KY.. luckily u got Haze take care of you.

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  • February 19, 2012 at 8:39 pm
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    Good luck mate, hopefully you’ll get better soon. Leg injuries sometimes haunt for a long time, especially older age.

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    • February 20, 2012 at 8:02 am
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      JD: what’s this “older” age you’re talking about? hahaha. thanks dude. 😉

      Reply
  • February 19, 2012 at 9:53 pm
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    take care BRO. . . .

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    • February 20, 2012 at 8:02 am
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      foodcrazee: thanks bro. 😉

      Reply
  • February 20, 2012 at 11:16 am
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    hey been a silent reader for sometime now.

    Just dropping a comment to say take care!

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  • February 21, 2012 at 9:36 am
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    ouch! Have a good rest and eat more. i wanna see you fatter than me. muahahah

    Reply
  • February 22, 2012 at 10:12 am
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    Hi Ky,

    If you wanted to, you can claim from your medical insurance under the Emergency Accidental Treatment (EAT) category without having to be hosptalised. You can also claim from the personal accident benefit/reimbursement if you have it.

    Have a speeedy recovery!

    Reply
    • February 23, 2012 at 1:15 pm
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      CO: thanks for the info, very much appreciated. 🙂

      Reply
  • June 4, 2012 at 12:32 pm
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    Hi KY,

    Just browsed thru the Internet to find out more info on my knee injury and got to know u had the same too. So, have u fully recovered? How long does it take for recovery?

    I had sprained my ligament on April 2012 and until now it’s not recover yet.. knee is very weak and wobble when i walk 🙁

    Besides wearing knee brace, did the doctor ask u to do physio or ultrasound to help the recovery?

    Reply
    • June 5, 2012 at 8:51 am
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      Suki: sorry to hear that, knee injury takes quite a while to get healed properly. Mine is probably 80+ percent there, I am now back to playing futsal & badminton but for the first few weeks I was wearing the knee brace still. Yours has been almost 2 months already I think it’s best to start some exercise, the doctor recommended cycling. Good luck!

      Reply
  • March 3, 2013 at 4:49 pm
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    Hi KY,

    Hi KY,

    I had a partial MCL tear few weeks ago. Now I have started to do spme exercises. I have a mountain bike but I heard we should be very particular when it comes to adjusting angle for the cycle pedal. I read from an internet article, and it says the knee should be fully extended when the pedal is in the bottom position… Is that correct?? And which position did you kept while cycling?

    Can let me know??

    Thanks.

    Jack

    Reply
    • March 3, 2013 at 6:57 pm
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      Jack: sorry to hear about your condition, it’s a tough one. Mine was a complete tear and I started cycling a bit after a month or two. Keep it upright and try not to have any side to side movement. Using a brace will help too. Best of luck.

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      • March 11, 2013 at 2:47 pm
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        Did you used to wear knee brace during cycling time?

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        • March 12, 2013 at 8:06 am
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          Jack: yep, I was wearing one when cycling, and later on while playing other sports.

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          • May 13, 2013 at 2:19 am
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            Hi KY,

            How are you doing?
            Well, I went to meet my physio last time and he says that my MCL is almost 75% ok now. I guess the cycling has helped a lot.I can fully flex the knee and can walk at normal speed without any brace at all (but right now walking bare feet only without brace). I put up a normal/non-hinged brace when I have to walker longer durations after wear my work shoes. But until now, I am not been doing any crouching/squats since my injury.
            So, hows your condition now? Are you doing normal activities like crouching/squats/running/taking stairs pain-free? And also after how nany month did you start squatting/crounching?

            Thanks
            Tc.

            Reply
            • May 13, 2013 at 9:01 am
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              Jack: good to hear, and best of luck! Mine is 100% back to normal and I’m back to futsal and badminton without feeling any problem. 😀

              Reply
  • August 30, 2016 at 10:21 am
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    Hey KY, i know this is really late. But did you have reparation surgery? If so, how much did it cost?

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    • August 30, 2016 at 10:57 am
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      Alexander Woo: I did not have a surgery, it was healed naturally.

      Reply
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