The patella tendon connects the bottom of the knee cap to the shinbone.

If you have pain and tenderness in your kneecap, swelling and difficulty bending and straightening the leg then you may have damaged your patella tendon.

Treatment

The damaged parts of the tendon are removed and then stitched back together. If your patellar tendon is badly ruptured you may have the tendon replaced with tissue from elsewhere in the body or with donor tissue.

Patella tendon repair surgery is carried out as a knee arthroscopy procedure.