Definition
Knee pain is often condition from which people at any age may complain. It can result from a surgery, for instance a raptured ligament or torn cartilage. Also, it can be cause by medical conditions such as arthritis, gout and infections.
The place affected by pain and the severity of the pain are subjects to the cause of the problem.
Depending on the severity of the pain, treatment approaches may differ. Minor knee pain, for example, can be treated well with self-care measures. Knee braces or physical therapy can relieve knee pain. However, in some cases, surgery may be required.
Symptoms
Symptoms that appear alongside knee pain are:
- Reddish skin in the part that hurts
- Feeling of warmth
- Weakness
- Instability
- Inability to straighten the knee fully
- Crunchy noise when bending the knees
It is advisable to see the doctor if a person is experiencing: inability to extend or flex the knee fully; feel unstable; can notice swelling, redness and pain accompanied with fever; can see a deformity in the knee; or cannot tolerate weight on the knees.
Causes
Knee pain can result from injuries, mechanical problems, types of arthritis and other conditions.
Injuries can affect the ligaments, tendons or bursae that surround the knee joint as well as those that form the joint.
Common knee injuries are:
- Tearing of the anterior cruciate ligament
- Tearing of the meniscus
- Knee bursitis
- Patellar tendinitis
Some mechanical problems can be:
- If the loose body interferes with knee joint movement
- Disclosed kneecap
- Hip or foot pain
- Iliotibal band syndrome
Some types of arthritis can also cause knee pain:
- Osteoarthritis
- Rheumatoid arthritis
- Gout
- Pseudogout
- Septic arthritis
Other problems that can bring to knee pain include: chondromalacia patellae-pain between the patella and the underlying thighbone that is common among athletes, young adults that have a slight misalignment of the kneecap, and older adults that can develop the condition because of arthritis of the kneecap.
Risk factors
The following factors can increase the risk of knee pain:
- Overweight
- Biomechanical problems
- Previous injury
- Certain sports
- Diminished flexibility and strength of the muscles
Complications
Pain knee may become serious when certain knee injuries or medical conditions, such as osteoarthritis for example, result in increased pain, disability, joint damage if they aren’t treated.
Having even a minor knee injury makes it more probable that a similar one may happen in the future.
Treatment
Knee pain treatment depends on what is causing the pain exactly. The treatment can include: medications, therapy, injections or surgery.
Medication: pain reliving pills or medicine that will treat any possible underlying condition such as rheumatoid arthritis or gout.
Therapy: training in order to make the muscles stronger, as well as balance exercises, and wearing braces that will help support the knee joint.
Injections: corticosteroid injection into the knee may reduce the symptoms and provide pain relief (injections are not always effective and a risk of infection exists).
Surgery: The operation doesn’t have to be immediately. The decision of having a surgery should be carefully considered. If having a surgery is the choice, the following options can be the solution:
- Arthroscopic surgery
- Partial knee replacement
- Total knee replacement
Prevention
- It is not very likely to avoid knee pain, but the following tips may help:
- Maintain healthy weight
- Stay in shape
- Build up muscles
- Exercise smartly
