I was injured in a hockey game one month ago when another team member smacked the front of my knee with her hockey stick. The bruising just above the kneecap is going down, but my knee feels weak when I try to squat down. I was told I had a “nerve bruise” and that it would just take a while to get better. Could my problem be from the nerve bruise?

There aren’t any major nerves that pass by the area you’ve described. The feelings of weakness you have may be from a condition called “muscle inhibition.” When there is pain or swelling around a joint, the muscles in the area may shut down; that is, they become “inhibited.” The condition starts to improve once the pain and swelling are taken care of. If the problem continues, physical therapy treatments using muscle stimulators and exercise may be needed to get the muscles working correctly.