Blood collects under the skin. AKA bruise.
All the what ifs. Last week on my last ride for may days to come I planned on a less strenuous ride by foregoing the demanding 10 min climb up the tie from Swampy to Ridge that would give me the enjoyable descent. I chose the easier ride taking Swampy South which in many places was nothing more than unconfined sand boxes. On that slight right turn in deep sand the front wheel stalled pitching me over the right bar, must have hit that bike part on the inside of my right leg and drove my right shoulder into 2 cut back logs on trail edge. Once I finished explicatives uttering I picked myself up and went thru damage assessment learning that other than several open wounds the structures were in tact allowing me to ride out. Back at the van I lifted the bike onto the rack which tested the shoulder which lessened fear that I damaged it more. Fri I see PT Dave who has worked on this shoulder several times in the past I will learn its health. The right knee showed no skin trauma but it started swelling and swelling. I drove to The Center to see an ortho at clinic that provides same day exam. Knee was ballooned. DR examined knee functionality reporting it is sound. He said it was a hematoma. I stood up to leave but the pain was too great. He said I should check into the hospital for observation. Their staff wheel chaired me to the ER which was several sidewalks away.
Into the ER. Waited my turn to be seen. Wheeled into an exam room. Because I take an anticoagulant concern was lack of clotting. Hematoma is arterial bleeding. Blood draw needed to learn of hematocrit level which its level would indicate amount of bleeding. I was dehydrated which flattens my veins and the many valves in my arm adversely affect the insertion of the IV plumbing. Took her 3 pokes to finally get the needle in. Hematocrit level was low. They flushed me with a reversal agent to counteract the Xarelto. Then admitted me into the hospital. The staff pushing my bed were faster than the speed of my fall. 5th floor private room. I accepted several small doses of vicadin(?). I was offered even stronger which I refused. Yes I was in great pain, right up there level wise as previously lacerated kidney. In bed I could not establish a pain free position. Then like every 6 hours a phlebotomist would draw blood, every drawer was different, some had better success hitting a vein. My arms are black and blue from all the pokes. In short while the hematocrit level leveled off and started climbing indicating bleeding had stopped. I was put back on the anticoagulant while blood was monitored. Body performed such that I earned release on Sat noon. My van with my bike on the back had remained in the parking lot for 3 nights. Sat I hobbled over to parking lot, empty of all but my van with bike still on.
The dots are measurement points for standard measuring swelling. Knee is wrapped from toe to mid thigh.
Today I was seen by PA Whitney. She said many days will pass before body reabsorbs the dead blood.
I am taking Tylenol every 6 hours for pain that takes the edge off. Walking is best described as a shuffle. pain, pain ,pain.
To slide out of bed I lead with right leg, which has no movement because of the wrap, When I put weight on it the pain sensors activate, buzzer stuck on until I can swing the good leg off bed to take weight off left. Just constant pain.
So, I’m still here in Bend recuperating. Some days heavy smoke blankets here. I will be meeting my sister in Bozeman in Sept. I will be reinventing my life style until I can bend my knee. What’s bad is I can’t walk.
Crazy: I had a PT appointment for my right shoulder from a load I placed on it resulting in relocating something. Time was 4:40. PM. I was in the ortho waiting room which is other side of wall from PT clinic. I called the clinic reporting my status, I hoped that I could be knee seem then over to PT. Darn, ortho DR occurred at PT time. I called to let them know. I was told an opening the next day which I took. Then I was admitted. I called the PT clinic leaving an afterhours voice mail cancelling it, I checked with clinic yesterday about appointment this Fri to see if I was still in the good person status. Yes.
Yesterday I scored a follow up ortho exam because of the pain and increased swelling. DR said he is happy with the present condition.
A CT scan of my head revealed no bleeding which could happen as a result of hitting my head. My knee hurt so badly I could not help the tech slide onto the table so they slid me over on a board. Next was CT of knee with and without contrast. The tech hooked the contrast plumbing to the left arm inserted plumbing then tested it for flow. Ouch, would not go in. I was wheeled back to ER where another tech painfully inserted needle in my right arm. Back to CT lab, another slide onto the table. This time my vein allowed full force contrast flow. Artery bleeding was observed. Both my forearms show results of all the blood draws.
So no biking blogs. I might post snippets along the way. Stories will different.