Can you sprain a knee ligament?

Certainly can!: There are several "ligaments" in the knee. There is the anterior cruciate, posterior cruciate and the medial and lateral collatgeral ligaments. One can hurt other tendons and muscle attachments as well. If you suspect you have this, see your pcp, sports medicine or orthopedic doctor and get evaluated. Ice, rest and Ibuprofen may help in the interim.

I believe Yes: Sprains are injuries to the soft tissue like ligaments and tendons, implies inflammation but not fracture... See what our sport injury or orthopedic dra have to say.

Absolutely : Sprains of knee ligaments are very common, with the inside ligament, the mcl, leading the way. Acl tears often get the most attention, as they often require surgical reconstruction and athletes to miss 6-12 months of competition. A sprain, by definition, is a partial or full thickness tear of a ligament, a soft tissue structure connecting bone to bone.

Yes: The definition of "sprain" is a tear. When someone tells you that you sprained your ankle, it means that you tore the ligament that stabilizes the ankle. It scars over and heals, so we recover quite well. But the fact is it has torn. For the knee, a sprain means you tore something. It could be the mcl, which heals on its own. Or it could be the acl, which doesn't heal, or somewhere in between.