My 7 year son fell on the front part of his left knee about 9 days ago; he tripped and fell on a cattle guard in the middle of a gravel road. He seemed just fine about an hour after the fall, but since then he s repeatedly fallen on this same knee much to my frustration. Although he did complain of mild pain right after hitting the knee, he was still extremely active and the pain seemed to dissipate rather quickly. Then the night before last he was playing around on the floor and again hit this same knee, twice, again complaining of an immediate pain, but seemed ok by bed time. Then, yesterday he went to the nurses office at school complaining his knee hurt when he walked on it and was unable to participate in recess; a sure sign for him he s in pain. I kept him home today to make sure he stays off it and to see what I m dealing with. So...he only experiences pain when he straightens out this same knee. The pain when extending the knee is coming on the outter side of the knee, not the front. There does not appear to be any swelling or numbness, and the pain he describes as achy not sharp, but that s how a 7 year old explains it. Do I need to have his MD examine the knee? Would over the counter pain meds help at all? What about hot/cold packs? Thanks! -Shelley