Seeking A Doctor For Help
If you experience knee pain when standing irregularly , if your knee becomes swollen or painful when you are sitting or bending forward, or if you feel any tenderness in your knee, it may be time to visit a doctor for knee pain. Even if you feel better with rest and stretching exercises, most doctors will want to examine your knee for a further diagnosis, like seeing any swelling in the quadriceps tendon that may cause pain when bending or sitting.
Why Is My Knee Aching Without Injury
You should know that sometimes your knee can start to hurt without any injury or strain. The reasons behind this are not fully known, but studies say that it may be due to underlying medical conditions like gout, arthritis, osteoporosis, etc. Its important to see a doctor if you experience knee pain even after properly warming up and stretching before your exercise routine.
Have You Found That After Sitting For A While Your Knee Begins Hurting Badly
But then it gets better after youve been up for a while? Whats going on here?
One of the most common causes of knee pain is known as patellofemoralsyndrome which simply refers to pain sensed by the nerves surrounding the kneecap, says Devin B. Peck, MD, owner of Austin Interventional Pain in Austin, TX.
This may result from a wearing away of the cartilage between the patella or kneecap and the femur, known as chondromalacia patella. The femur is the thigh bone.
This can lead to inflammation between the femur and patella, leading to pain with movement.
There is often pain when standing and walking after a period of prolonged sitting, a phenomenon known as theater sign.
Patellofemoral syndrome may also lead to what is known as a tracking problem with the patella.
The patella bone is supposed to track nicely in its groove, but if it strays off its natural fit in the grooveyou may experience a lot of pain after sitting for prolonged periods. Oddly, it may feel nearly fine after youve been up and about for a while.
Patellar tracking problems happen more often to women, but men are not immune.
Improper biomechanics during exercise or athletics may cause it. Chondromalacia patella in athletes is commonly caused by jumping or fast running. But longer, slower running can also cause it.
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Exercises For Aching Knees
This may sound counterintuitive, but medical experts agree if you have aching knees, sitting on the sidelines might not be the answer. Getting out and exercising may be the best way to get rid of your knee pain.
Sacheen Mehta, MD, an orthopedic surgeon on the medical staff at Baylor Regional Medical Center at Plano, spoke at a Finding Your Fit seminar and discussed how to overcome past sports injuries, joint pain and back pain to find the right exercise routine for you.
One of the areas that Dr. Mehta addressed was knee pain, a common area of concern that he sees in his patients. Dr. Mehta said that many times, patients come into his office with knee pain because the muscles around the knee are not as strong as they could, or should, be.
While its always important to consult with your doctor before starting any new exercise program, Dr. Mehta offered some advice on the types of exercises that can help strengthen the muscles around your knees, thereby reducing knee pain.
What You Need To Know
- The most common causes of knee pain are related to aging, injury or repeated stress on the knee.
- Common knee problems include sprained or strained ligaments, cartilage tears, tendonitis and arthritis.
- Diagnosing a knee injury or problem includes a medical examination and usually the use of a diagnostic procedure such as an x-ray, MRI, CT scan or arthroscopy.
- Both non-operative and surgical treatment options are available to treat knee pain and problems depending on the type and severity of the condition.
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Did You Know That Inactivity Is Actually Hard On Your Knees
Between working from home and being glued to the television watching the latest election updates, many of us are guilty of increased couch potato behavior lately. And weve all heard of the dangers of sedentary lifestyles contributing to obesity, etc., but did you know that *not* moving can actually weaken your knees and increase your chances of osteoporosis?
Continue reading for more from Noyes Knee Institute and the Journal of Public Health.
Do you spend a lot of time sitting? Maybe you work at an office where most of your time is at your desk, or maybe when youre at home, you prefer to rest on the couch instead of being on your feet. Many people live a mostly inactive lifestyle, but they might not realize that inactivity can be the reason why they experience increased joint pain.
Learn the reasons why inactivity can hurt your knees and what you can do to change it.
Weakens Your Knees
If you live a life or limited activity, your body adapts to that lack of motion. Essentially, when you arent using your legs muscles, ligaments, and joints for moderate levels of activity, you are losing them. Your knees become weaker as you require less of them.
If you spend your day sitting, you also experience pain in other areas that can also aggravate the knee. Your quadriceps become tight, which exert a pulling sensation on your knees.
Increases Your Risk of Arthritis Pain
Promotes Weight Gain
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Who Gets Pfp Syndrome
Patellofemoral pain syndrome usually happens in people who do sports that involve a lot of knee bending and straightening, such as running, biking, and skiing. It also can happen to people, particularly young women, who do not do a lot of sports.
PFP syndrome is more common in women and happens most often to teens and young adults.
Tight or weak leg muscles or flat feet can make someone more likely to get PFP syndrome.
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Your Chair Is Uncomfortable
An uncomfortable office chair will likely leave you in some kind of pain even if you take breaks. Now, you might be asking:
What makes a good sitting chair?
In the most basic terms, a good chair should let you adjust at least the seat height and depth. Having an adjustable backrest also helps.
If your current chair doesnt let you change these settings, it may be best to buy a new one. It doesnt have to be expensive. But it should be able to adapt to your body.
Heres how to know if your chair settings are ergonomic:
- Sit on the chair with your back straight.
- Your upper and lower back must be in contact with the backrest
- Put your feet flat on the ground.
- Bend your knees about 90°.
If your current setting doesnt let you assume this position, change the height and depth.
You can also make your chair more comfortable with cushions or pillows. Put them on your lower back. Or sit on them to increase your sitting height.
Try different positions until you find the one thats most comfortable for your knee joints.
The Solution: Sitting With Good Posture
If the cause of your pain is the way you’re sitting, the solution is to change your position.
The best sitting position avoids crossed ankles and knees. Rather, proper posture while seated keeps both of your feet flat on the floor. If your feet don’t reach the floor, adjust the chair, if possible. If not, use a footrest. Position your ankles just in front of your knees.
The seat of the chair should support most of your thighs. However, your knees should extend slightly so that there’s a small gap between them and the front of the seat.
Your knees should also be parallel to or slightly lower than your hips. If you notice that your knees are too high or too low, again, adjust the chair, if possible. Alternatively, use a footrest to raise your knees or cushion beneath your glutes to lower them.
Once your lower body is positioned, check that your back is against the chair or use a cushion or backrest for support. Relax your shoulders and sit up straight.
Finally, as before, remember to get up and move periodically if you’ll be seated for a long time. Even the perfect posture is not healthy for extended periods.
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Knee Pain And Problems
Knee pain is a common complaint among adults and most often associated with general wear and tear from daily activities like walking, bending, standing and lifting. Athletes who run or play sports that involve jumping or quick pivoting are also more likely to experience knee pain and problems. But whether an individuals knee pain is caused by aging or injury, it can be a nuisance and even debilitating in some circumstances.
What To Do If You Cant Straighten Your Knee
Identifying the underlying cause of why you can not straighten your knee will provide the best clinical results. Conservative therapy when appropriate is always the first line of treatment. Not all meniscus tears are painful. In fact, in one study 60% of patients without pain had meniscus tears on MRI.
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What Causing Knee Pain When Sitting On Heels
As we mentioned before, a typical reason why you feel the pain when sitting in that position is due to blockage of blood circulation and pressure on your joints.
However, several conditions might be related to knee pain when sitting on top of your heels.
1. Obesity
This is self-explanatory.
Obesity or overweight, along with other health conditions, may have contributes to knee pain when sitting on heels.
More mass in your thighs and your calves can make your butt-cheek more difficult to touch your heels. As a result, your knee received more pressure.
2. Plantar flexion inability
According to healthline.com, Plantar flexion is a movement in which the top of your foot and leg ended in a straight line. For example, a ballerina foot position.
Every person has a different ability to do a movement in this position.
When you are sitting on your heels, your legs are forcing you to make a straight line flat to the ground.
Any injury to these plantar-flexion muscles can limit your leg straightness and making it difficult to sit on top of your heels.
3. Knee tightness and stiffness
Tightness in your knee joint can be caused by injuries, muscle and bone problems, or inflammation.
Lack of flexibility due to muscle tightness is one of the contributing factors of pain in the knee when bend and straighten it.
4. Chondromalacia patella
Runners knee is a common name for this condition.
Common symptoms of runners knee are pain and grinding sensations when moving the knee.
5. Meniscus Tear
What Is The Treatment For Knee Stiffness After Sitting
Treatment for knee stiffness after sitting depends on its underlying cause. Once the cause is addressed, there is relief from knee stiffness after sitting. Depending on the cause, some of the common treatments done for Knee Stiffness After Sitting are:
Medications: For immediate relief from pain and stiffness of the knee joint, pain medications such as NSAIDs or paracetamol can be prescribed.
Ice Pack and Warm Compresses: Application of ice pack and warm compresses to the knee joint gives relief from knee stiffness after sitting.
Supplements: Chondroitin sulfate and glucosamine supplements benefit if the knee stiffness after sitting is due to osteoarthritis. These supplements help in growth and regeneration of the cartilage. Omega-3 supplements also help with knee joint health.
Fluid Drainage: If the knee stiffness after sitting is caused by excessive fluid, then treatment consists of draining the fluid after which the patient needs to rest and take the prescribed medications for the problem.
Surgery: If the knee stiffness after sitting does not improve with conservative treatment and there is worsening of the knee stiffness which impairs daily activities, then surgery is done for a total knee replacement or for realigning the knee cap to resolve the problem.
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Can Someone With Pfp Syndrome Play Sports
Most people with PFP syndrome need to cut back or stop sports for some time. Follow the health care provider’s instructions on when it’s safe for you to go back to sports. This usually is when:
- Hip, leg, and core strength is near normal.
- Flexibility, especially in the hamstring muscle, has improved.
- There’s no pain with everyday activities, such as walking and going up/down stairs.
- Any pain with activity is very mild and goes away within a few minutes of starting the activity.
How To Treat It
Treating this knee pain is all about pain management and what you can do to reduce the stress on those joints. Losing weight is a helpful start. Besides being a key to overall good health, cutting excess pounds lessens the everyday stress on those knee joints and ligaments.
But there are plenty of other ways, too.
Exercise smart
A lot of joint stress is caused by high-impact exercising, especially running on pavement. But there are ways to exercise that can keep you healthy and keep that load off your knee joints. Low-impact exercises like swimming, bicycling and elliptical are good because they exercise the knee joints but dont pound them, says Dr. Stearns.
Knee braces can also be a tool, he adds. There are special braces that work to keep pressure off of certain parts of the knee unloader braces that can sometimes help alleviate arthritis pain.
Medication
If youre considering over-the-counter painkillers to help ease the hurt, Dr. Stearns says its best to take naproxen or ibuprofen because they have anti-inflammatory properties that can help ease the swelling thats causing your knee pain.
Acetaminophen medications, like Tylenol, dont work as well because they mask the pain but do nothing about the source of the pain, he says.
He also recommends taking the dose after dinner as that allows you to have the maximum dose before you head to bed.
Cold versus heat
How to sleep comfortably
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Anterior Knee Pain: The Basics
Pain in the front of the knee or anterior knee pain can affect people in all age groups. Approximately 25% of people will suffer from pain in the front of their knees at some time in their lives. I have seen teenagers who can longer participate in sports, and I have 70 years olds who can no longer walk downstairs without fear of their knee giving way. Why is our kneecap or patella so prone to bothering us like this?
The cause of anterior knee pain might vary based on your age, level of activity, and your chosen sports. We can see people who are inactive and suffer from pain in the front of the knee, and we can also see people who are highly trained and disciplined who are suffering from pain around the kneecap. The majority of people who have pain in the front of their knee do not recall any injury.
In the majority of cases of anterior knee pain, we do not find anything significant wrong with your X-rays or MRI scans. It seems that the pain in the front of the knee is often due to imbalances, weakness patterns, movement patterns, and complex issues that can take a while to figure out. Yes, some of you might have a cartilage defect or some early arthritis in the front of your knee but believe it or not, the majority of you will have pretty normal-appearing imaging studies. That has led to a significant change in our approach to anterior knee pain over the years.
Anterior knee pain is particularly common in young women and many runners.
Stretches And Movements To Try
On days when I find myself exhausted and not wanting to move much, I do my best to get up and move every once in a while, says Steyer. If she’s reading a book or helping one of her kids with a project, she makes sure to get up and move around at regular intervals. Ill get up and put dishes in the dishwasher, get another load of laundry going, or just stretch, she says.
If you have to sit for hours at a time, Ryan recommends the following exercises to reduce pain and stiffness in your joints:
Head Rotations Move your head left and then right, which can help prevent stiffness in your spine.
Chin Tucks While sitting upright and keeping your chest still, dip your chin toward the base of your neck without moving your head too far forward.
Shoulder Rolls Keeping your chest still and arms by your side, roll your shoulders up, then back, and then down.
Pelvic Circles While standing, move your pelvis around to the right and then around to the left.
Back Extensions Place both of your hands on your lower back while standing, and then arch backwards so that you feel an extension in the spine.
Ryan recommends doing one to two sets of 10 to 15 repetitions of each of the above exercises during regular breaks throughout the day. Do more if it feels good, she says, adding that you should do the exercises in pain-free ranges, which means pushing the movement only as far as you can without feeling any pain.
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Educators Spend Countless Hours On Their Feet But These Posture
Key takeaways
- Prolonged standing stresses your legs, knees and lower back, as well as can lead to varicose veins, joint damage and circulation issues.
- Here are five strategies to minimize pain.
Its no secret standing all day wreaks havoc on your joints, ligaments and aching feet. Now a growing body of research suggests it may also increase your risk for chronic disease.
Being still whether sitting or standing, impacts our metabolism and circulation, both of which can contribute to certain conditions and diseases, says Jennifer Spreckley, director and chief learning officer of Kingsway Pilates. Indeed, studies show prolonged standing not only stresses your legs, knees and lower back, it can also lead to varicose veins, joint damage and circulation issues.
While you need to be on your feet to teach, you can incorporate strategies to ease the strain. You may already know its important to maintain good posture, move around and give your feet room to breathe. Here, five additional strategies to quiet barking dogs and minimize pain.
Dansko isnt the only company designing shoes to meet the demands of employees who spend most of the day on their feet. Aetrex, for example, produces orthotic shoes with a focus on fashion, function and quality. The company builds a unique Lynco orthotic system into every shoe, offering comfort, support and proper body alignment. A bonus: All of their shoes come equipped with memory foam cushioning and advanced odor free technology.