How long do bone bruises in the knee area usually take to heal?

4-6 weeks: A "bone bruise" is actually a fracture or break in the bone within the marrow of the bone that does not extend through the outer shell (a bit like scrambling an egg yoke without breaking the shell). It is not visible on x-ray but can be seen with mri. Because it is a broken bone, the normal healing time in adults is 4-6 weeks.

Highly variable time: The natural history of bone bruises within the knee has been the subject of ongoing study. Conflicting data exists suggesting that there really is extensive variability in the recovery timeline. Researchers are seeking to elucidate tell tale clues or factors that may one day help us better predict which bruises will resolve rapidly from those that may take an extended period of time.