If You Have Leg Pain In The Back Of Your Knee Or Calf:
This is most likely a symptom of gastrocnemius tendonitis . The gastrocnemius muscle, which is the muscle that makes up your calf, controls the bending of your knees and the pointing of your toes. A sport that requires you to accelerate quickly can strain or tear the calf muscle. Other symptoms include swelling and bruising of the calf or trouble standing tiptoe.
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Whats Behind Your Knee A Brief Anatomy Lesson
The back of the knee is a complicated area. There are several critical structures back there. From a functional perspective, we have many muscles, such as the hamstring and calf muscles. The hamstrings start at the pelvis, cross the back of the knee, and attach to your tibia or shin bone. The calf muscles start on the back of your thigh bone or femur, cross the knee and form the achilles tendon, which attaches to your heel.
Behind our knee, we have critical structures such as the popliteal artery and the nerves to the leg. The nerves are the peroneal nerve and the tibial nerve. The peroneal nerve is a troublemaker sometimes. It doesnt cause pain in the back of your knee but can cause pain elsewhere. We discuss the peroneal nerve elsewhere on this page.
Most people think their knee joint is in the front. But the back of our knee goes further back than we think. The attachment of both the medial and lateral meniscus is in the back of the knee. These meniscus attachment points are called roots. Root tears can be a cause of severe knee pain which may start in the back of your knee. We cover root tears of the meniscus in this post.
There is cartilage on the bones in the back of the knee. Osteoarthritis can start back there, so the first sign of osteoarthritis could be pain in the back of your knee.
Below we are going to cover some of the more common causes of pain behind your knee.
How Is Knee Pain In Teens Treated
Treatments depend on the cause of your teens pain.
Pain from overuse and general knee pain management tips include:
- Apply ice to the knee. Ice, wrapped in a towel, relieves inflammation and swelling. Apply up to 20 minutes at a time.
- Take anti-inflammatories, such as ibuprofen , naproxen or aspirin, to reduce pain and swelling.
- Rest. Rest allows tissue to heal. Your teen should take some time off from the activity that caused the pain.
- Use compression around your knee if prescribed by your healthcare provider or physical therapist.
- Elevate the knee to reduce swelling. Keep the injured knee elevated above the level of the heart anytime your teen is sitting or icing their knee.
- Follow through with the physical therapy plan. Physical therapy can help relieve pain, reduce swelling, increase strength and flexibility, improve range of motion, increase speed and endurance and improve coordination and balance. Physical therapists teach strengthening and stretching exercises and can suggest braces, insoles or other orthotics as appropriate.
- Lose weight if overweight. Extra weight puts strain on the knee joint.
Osgood-Schlatter disease:
- Take anti-inflammatories to reduce pain.
- Apply ice to reduce pain and swelling.
- Commit to an exercise program.
- Relieve pain and discomfort through electrotherapy and/or hydrotherapy .
Sindling-Larsen Johansson syndrome:
- Soft tissue treatments, including myofascial release, trigger points, massage.
Ligament treatment:
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Treatment Of Pain Behind The Knee
Rest, applying ice packs, taking painkillers and physiotherapy can all be used to treat posterior knee pain. Depending on the severity and underlying cause of your knee pain, your doctor may also prescribe medication and/or recommend surgery.
Treatment for Bakers cysts
Bakers cysts can go away on their own or with treatment of the underlying condition causing your cyst . However, if you have a large or painful cyst, your doctor may recommend steroid injections, physiotherapy or drainage of the cyst.
Treatment for gastrocnemius tendonitis
Your knee pain should subside with rest, elevation of your leg and applying ice packs. How long this takes will depend on the size of the tear.
Treatment for meniscus tear
Rest, elevation of your leg and applying ice packs may be enough to treat your tear. However, if your tear doesnt improve on its own, your doctor may recommend surgery.
Treatment for ACL injury
Rest and physiotherapy can treat an ACL injury. However, if your ACL is torn, you may need surgery.
Treatment for PCL injury
Your knee pain should subside with rest, elevation of your leg and applying ice packs. However, your doctor may recommend surgery if you have injured more than one ligament, are unsteady on your feet or have also damaged cartilage in your knee.
Treatment for chondromalacia
Applying ice packs, taking over-the-counter painkillers and physiotherapy can treat chondromalacia. However, if the cartilage in your knee is damaged, you will need surgery.
How To Relieve Pain Behind The Knee
You can efficiently treat some of the mentioned conditions at home. However, more severe conditions should be treated by your doctor. For example, suppose the pain behind the knee becomes more intense and starts to interfere strongly with your daily activities. In that case, you should immediately visit the healthcare provider and get proper treatment of the condition that causes the pain.
But, when we talk only about the sense of the pain, you may wonder what can help you at the moment when youre feeling it? How to relieve pain behind the knee by yourself?
The first thing you should do is to get off your feet and get proper rest. The RICE rest, ice, compression and elevation treatment can be very helpful. First, lay down and raise your leg high, above the level of your heart. Then, put a cold pack in a cloth or towel and leave it on your knee for 10-20 minutes at a time, several times a day. Cold packs can help decrease inflammation of joints. When youre up, make sure you have snugged an elastic bandage around the knee.
If you have a problem with tight muscles, you can relax them with warm showers, hot packs, or a heating pad. Important notice: dont put the heat on an inflamed joint.
You could also massage the affected area with sports creams that cause a cold or hot effect. The massage will also relax the muscles.
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Posterolateral Corner Injury Creating Behind Knee Pain
Experiencing stiffness as well as discomfort behind the knee could be due to injury to fragile structures in the knee. These types of injuries are called posterolateral-like corner injuries .
According to the publication Revista Brasileira de Ortopedia, PLC injuries prevail if knee tendons have been harmed by trauma. This can cause severe pain and the failure to put stress or weight on the hurt knee. Sometimes, PLC injuries occur without damaging any of the knee tendons.
PRESSED NERVE. Really feeling continuous pain behind the knee cap can be caused by a compressed nerve in the knee joint.
The nerves in the reduced back and the nerves in the leg can cause differing degrees of discomfort otherwise trapped or trapped.
Dr. Minoo Hadjari Hallis on Medscape claims that some pinched nerves behind the knee can trigger weakness in the knee joint. Additionally, trapped nerves in the leg can be a reason for knee discomfort and/ or a prickling sensation in the legs or feet.
According to the Journal of the Canadian Chiropractic Association, physical treatment can assist launch trapped nerves as well as minimize the discomfort behind the knee that they create.
pain in the back of the knee when strolling discomfort behind the knee when flexing.
Pain In The Back Of The Knee: Self
Muscles: Gastrocnemius, Plantaris, Popliteus & Soleus
Here, were dealing with muscles, which, for nearly every person with pain in the hollow of the knee, have tension and trigger points.
For this massage, I recommend you use a foam roller or your thumbs.
The massage can bring on symptoms similar to that of sore muscles especially when you have just started. This is normal for this region and goes away quickly. Stimulating the circulation in your legs by walking on level ground will help.
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Symptoms Of Pain Behind The Knee
Pain behind the knee is sometimes referred to as posterior knee pain. Your knee joint is made up of ligaments, tendons, cartilage, muscles, and bones.
According to Dr. Matthew Hoffman on WebMD, the knee is one of the most complex joints in the body. Tendons connect the thigh bone and shin bone to your leg muscles. These work together to provide stability and movement to your knee.1
For example, your hamstring is at the back of your thigh and helps to flex the knee. However, a pulled hamstring will cause pain in your thigh and at the back of your knee.
Dr. Jerry R. Balentine on MedicineNet says that damage to the ligaments and tendons in your knee can cause bones to rub together and result in inflammation, redness, and pain around the back of the knee or kneecap. This can make walking difficult, and instability in the knee joint could result in more pain and damage. In some cases, the pain can be so disabling and severe that it is impossible to put any weight on your leg.2
Bakers Cyst And Pain In The Back Of The Knee
A Bakers cyst is a fluid-filled pocket in the back of the knee. Bakers cysts are a common cause of painful swelling. If the cysts are small, they do not create much discomfort.
A Bakers cyst can grow larger. If a cyst becomes large, it can put pressure on the muscles, blood vessels, and nerves behind the knee and can cause discomfort. Most people with a Bakers Cyst will also have osteoarthritis.
In most instances, treatments to diminish the swelling associated with arthritis will help reduce the pain and swelling from the cyst. In the majority of cases, these cysts are not dangerous. An ultrasound can usually tell if you have a simple cyst versus something more complex that warrants further evaluation with an MRI. If the Bakers cysts are huge, then one treatment alternative is to have the fluid drained. While that will result in relief of pain, the fluid might come back again.
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What Causes Pain Behind The Knee
There are many different causes of posterior knee pain, including injury, inflammation or infection of the knee joint, overuse, wear and tear with age, osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, cysts or in very rare cases, cancer.
Leg cramps
Leg cramps occur when your leg muscles tighten up. Symptoms include a sudden muscle spasm, with pain lasting from several seconds up to 10 minutes. After the spasm, your muscles may feel sore for several hours.
Leg cramps are most common during exercise and pregnancy. However, they can also be caused by:
- Dehydration
- Problems with the nerves in your legs
- Toxins in your blood eg lead or mercury
Jumper’s knee
This is also known as patellar tendonitis and occurs when a tendon in your knee is injured, often while playing sport. The tendon develops tiny tears that cause swelling stiffness, weakness and difficulty bending and straightening your knee.
Biceps femoris tendonitis
Your hamstrings are three muscles that run along the back of your thigh and help you bend your knee. Hamstring injuries most often occur when playing sports, usually when the hamstring is overstretched . However, the hamstrings can also be torn, which can take several months to heal.
Baker’s cyst
A Bakers cyst is a fluid-filled sac that sits behind your knee that can develop if you have arthritis or sustain a knee injury, which causes your knee joint to become swollen and inflamed.
Symptoms include sudden pain and swelling, bruising and weakness in your leg.
Meniscus tear
When To See A Healthcare Provider
If you are unsure of the cause of your symptoms, or if you do not know how to treat your condition, you should contact your healthcare provider. Your treatment will depend on the specific cause of your calf pain.
Some signs that you should be seen by a healthcare provider include:
- Inability to walk comfortably on the affected side
- Injury that causes deformity of the lower leg
- Calf pain that occurs at night or while resting
- Calf pain that persists beyond a few days
- Swelling of the calf or ankle joint area
- Signs of an infection, including fever, redness, warmth
- Any other unusual symptoms
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Why Would A Teenager Have Knee Pain
Knee pain isnt a condition that only happens to older people. Despite being young, your teenager can develop knee pain too.
Knee pain in teens is a common result of overuse, but also results from specific knee injuries and medical conditions that affect the knee. Knee pain can also be temporary and not related to an injury, but rather a change in your teens level of activity or sport.
Because of the many different reasons for knee pain, if your teen complains of pain, its wise to get it checked. Never think that knee pain in your teen is simply growing pains. This is not a typical cause of knee pain in a teenager.
Pain Tenderness Warm Or Red Skin Or A Swelling Behind The Knee
May be the indication of a blood clot in the popliteal vein. This is also called a thrombosis, and the block would restrict the circulation of blood in your leg. More importantly a clot could form an aneurysm, which is an abnormal bulging in the vein walls, and could lead to a pulmonary embolism. If you suspect you have a blood clot it is imperative that you see a doctor as soon as possible. Your body can eventually break up small clots, but you may be sent for a CT scan to investigate the blood clot and given a prescription for blood-thinning medication.
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If You Have Pain Behind Your Knee After Sitting:
It is likely you are experiencing a symptom of Chondromalacia Patellae. This is the most common cause of chronic knee pain. Chondromalacia Patellae is caused by your patella being pulled to the outer side of your femur, rather than in a straight line. This will cause discomfort when you stand up from sitting in a chair for a long period of time. In order to prevent this at work, taking microbreaks will help to keep your body loose. You may also feel discomfort after physical activity or a tightness or fullness in the knee area.
Whats A Typical Treatment Plan
Treatment depends on the severity of your injury.
Conservative measures to reduce pain, rest your leg, and stretch and strengthen your leg muscles are generally the first line of treatment. Your doctor will usually advise a period of controlled rest, where you avoid activity that puts force on the knee.
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How Do You Fix This Knee Problem
The first place to look for knee adhesion by a practitioner is addressing knee flexion range of motion.
Knee flexion will be restricted, causing pain behind the knee, and creating an excessive amount of tension that can be felt by a skilled practitioner in the:
- knee capsule.
- where the anterior, medial, and lateral meniscus touches the capsule.
- between the LCL and MCL ligaments and the capsule.
This adhesion is present due to overload of the front of the knee. This happened due to ankle and hip restriction and weakness.
Treatment to remove adhesion in the above named structures immediately increases the range of motion and causes permanent, sustainable improvement, even without further treatment.
If the pain goes away temporarily, then comes back, the meniscus pathology is larger than desired. : (
After knee flexion range of motion plateaus in its improvement, adhesion should be explored in the hip and ankles to restore those ranges of motion and increase strength.
Tell us about your pain behind the knee? Who have you seen? Did it work? How long have you had this problem?
If you know of a friend or family member with pain behind knee or restricted knee range of motion, please forward this information to them so they can get the help they need. Fixing your adhesion matters because it improves flexibility, improves function, reduces pain, and restores normal movement to the body so you can enjoy the things you love. Call us at 862.205.4847.
Thigh Injury As Well As Pain In The Rear Of The Knee
pain in the back of the knee.
An injury to your hamstring is a very common reason for sharp pain in the back of the knee.
Your hamstring starts at the end of your pelvic bone as well as goes across the rear of your knee and also finishes at your leg. Medical professionals from the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons say that your hamstring aids to flex your knee.
Tendon injuries can lead to pulling on the hamstring muscles or totally breaking them. This can cause discomfort in the back of the leg below the knee. You may additionally notice swellings on your leg as well as it may be tough for you to walk for a couple of weeks.
Dr. Tyler Wheeler on WebMD says that hamstring muscle injuries can be avoided by heating up prior to working out. You need to additionally reinforce the glutes that comprise the buttocks to avoid extra strain on the hamstrings.
At the end of the write-up, you can figure out exactly how to treat a drawn or torn hamstring and help ease discomfort behind the knee.
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