Why Does My Knee Hurt
If you are experiencing knee pain when walking, knee pain when bending, knee pain when resting, or are hearing popping/clicking in your knee, etc., it may be a minor concern or indicator of a serious issue.
Knee pain is usually caused by traumatic injuries, repetitive motion injuries, long-term wear & tear, or tissue disorders. Below are injuries that are common causes for knee pain, but it is best to enter your symptoms into our Knee Pain Diagnosis Symptom Checker to gain a better understanding of your injury.
What Is Knee Pain
Pain is a common knee problem that can originate in any of the bony structures compromising the knee joint , the kneecap , or the ligaments, tendons, and cartilage of the knee. Knee pain can be aggravated by physical activity, as well as obesity, affected by the surrounding muscles and their movements, and be triggered by other problems . Knee pain can affect people of all ages, and home remedies can be helpful unless it becomes severe.
How Do I Stop My Knees From Popping
This depends on the cause of popping.
Try these ideas if the knee crack didnt start during or after a trauma, and theres no pain associated with it:
- Change the position of your feet, or bend a little more your hips. This could reduce the popping if it comes from rubbing tissues or the stick-slip phenomenon described above.
- Strengthen your legs, preferably under the guidance of a personal trainer.
- Walk more throughout your day.
For some people, the popping doesnt go away no matter what they try. If its painless, this should be normal.
However, knee pops can also be linked to a number of pathologies. These noises will stop when you manage the underlying cause.
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What Is The Treatment For Knee Pain
Treatments for knee pain are as varied as the conditions that can cause the pain.
Medications
Medications might be prescribed to treat an underlying medical condition or for pain relief.
If you are taking over-the-counter anti-inflammatory pain medications regularly for your knee pain, you should see your doctor to be evaluated.
Physical therapy
Sometimes physical therapy sessions to strengthen the muscles around the knee will make it more stable and help guarantee the best mechanical movements. Working with a physical therapist can help avoid injuries or further worsening of an injury.
Injections
Injecting medications directly into your knee might help in certain situations. The two most common injections are corticosteroids and lubricants. Corticosteroid injections can help arthritis and other inflammations of the knee. They usually need to be repeated every few months. Lubricants that are similar to the fluid already in your knee joint can help with movement and pain.
Is It Possible For Adults To Have Growing Pains
No one knows for certain what causes âgrowing pains.â They are defined as self-limited and recurrent pains in the extremities of children with no other explanation or clear musculoskeletal causes. These usually occur during sleep and may awaken the child. Some physicians believe they occur due to fatigue, overuse, and mild orthopedic abnormalities, but the cause is still unknown. No matter what causes growing pains, we know that adults do not have them â most growing pains occur between age 2 and 12. It is possible to have similar pains, however, due to very mild injuries or overuse of muscles.
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When Do You Feel Better Or Worse
For instance, does walking up or down a flight of stairs trigger pain behind your kneecap? That could be a sign of osteoarthritis. With osteoarthritis, pain also tends to get worse over the day as youre more active.
On the other hand, pain that starts strong in the morning and gets better as you move during the day sounds more like an inflammatory condition, such as rheumatoid arthritis.
If you are seeing a doctor, make note of all of this. The smallest details even the resting positions that bring you the most relief will help infinding the right diagnosis.
Quadriceps Or Hamstring Tendonitis
Overuse and repeated stress to your thigh muscles may cause inflammation in your tendons. This condition is known as tendonitis.
Symptoms of quad or hamstring tendonitis include:
- Pain in the front or back of your thigh, usually near your knee or hip
- Difficulty walking or climbing stairs due to pain
- A feeling of weak muscles in the front or back of your thigh
Symptoms usually last for four to six weeks and slowly get better with gentle exercises such as walking, leg raises, wall squats, and the Nordic hamstring stretch.
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Leg Muscle Cramp Or Spasm
Leg cramps or spasms can affect the muscles in the calves and cause varying degrees of pain and tightness in the lower leg for no reason. Muscle spasm is also called Charley horse and it may affect any muscle, however Charley horses are most common is the legs. Severe Charley horses can cause muscle pain that can last from a few hours to a day.
The journal Medical Hypotheses reported that leg cramping and knee pain affect many people. In fact, the wear and tear on the legs go unnoticed by many until they develop a stiff leg or lower-limb muscle pain.1
Also, the journal Georgian Medical News published a study showing that being overweight can cause leg cramps without any apparent injury. In fact, about half of overweight people report suffering from frequent leg cramps. The reasons are often associated with venous insufficiency in obese persons.2
Doctors recommend that stretching can help resolve leg cramping and reduce the frequency of nighttime cramps.
Cycling Knee Pain: Causes And How To Fix It
Your knee is the part of the body that moves the most when you cycle your ebike. This implies that any form of pain or tightness in the knee would affect your general cycling process. Aching knees can be linked to the various body and multiple factors that include incorrect equipment and bike positioning. In light of this, it is best first to decipher the kind of knee pain you have, as this will help to know why the inside of your knee hurts and how to relieve the pain and make it feel better for an improved cycling experience.
A lot of cyclists, irrespective of their years of experience, ask, ‘why does the inside of my knee hurt.’ They go through interior knee pain and aching knees very frequently. The knee pain is often an indication of a more complex health issue somewhere in the body, but there are also instances where the pain and tightness in the knee resulting from biking. It would be beneficial to state that having aproper and well-fitted e-bike in the first place would help you avoid all types of knee pain you could get from biking. We would be discussing 5 major types of cycling knee pain
- Posterior knee pain
- Lateral and Medial knee pain
- Spring Knee Pain
- Knee pain caused by a weak core
These types of cycling knee pains are different and are caused by factors that are similar but at the same time different.
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How To Keep Knees Healthy
If youre between 18-64 years old, do a variety of exercises regularly to strengthen your legs and knee joints.
- 150-300 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity, AND
- Strength training twice a week.
- Do it under the guidance of a personal trainer to prevent injuries.
Also, try to keep your BMI below 25. The higher the BMI, the lower your knee health.
Combine this with a healthy lifestyle for best results eat nutritious foods, sleep well, and take care of your mental health.
If you have knee osteoarthritis, please follow the indications of your healthcare provider to prevent it from getting worse.
Tips For Healthy Knees
There are a few things you can do to keep your knees healthy whether you are experiencing pain or not.
Keeping your knees strong year-round will help you avoid any type of pain, and it will help prevent you from suffering from the many common knee injuries.
First, exercising regularly will help strengthen your legs and knees.
You can use weights, bands, or bodyweight movements and do it at least twice a week.
You can also do things as simple as walking up your stairs, around the block, or hopping on your bicycle.
Be sure to warm up before you exercise because exercising cold increases your risk of injury.
You also need to stay flexible.
Incorporate dynamic stretches into your workouts.
When youve finished exercising, do static stretches,
Regularly stretch the muscles in the front and back of your thigh.
Make sure your shoes fit and that they are in good condition.
All of this exercise should also help you maintain a healthy weight.
Being overweight or obese puts added stress on your knees, and it is a significant risk factor in developing early arthritis of the knee.
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Other Injuries And Conditions
Because the knee is the largest joint in your body, it is prone to injury and strain. If you fall or bump your knee, you may experience pain from bruising. If youve fractured any of the three bones in your knee, you may experience weakness, sharp pain, or deep throbbing sensations.
Rheumatoid arthritis can present similar symptoms to osteoarthritis, but this autoimmune condition may require different treatments than joint damage caused by the wear-and-tear typical of aging.
If you are experiencing knee pain that interrupts your daily life and persists after several days of rest, consider consulting with a healthcare provider.
You Notice An Obvious Deformity
If you notice your knee jutting outward in a way it never has before, take note. A dislocated or fractured patella can cause injuries like this, explains Brian Schwabe, C.S.C.S., board-certified sports physical therapist based in Los Angeles.
While some deformities occur over time, when the deformity is a result of an injury, it could be the result of a fracture or chronic wear on the knee joint. If you are already experiencing any kind of misalignment in your lower extremities, then you could be more prone to this type of injury.
If you notice a bone deformity after an injury, he recommends seeking the assistance of an orthopedic doctor immediately. The doctor will likely take x-rays as well as perform a visual diagnosis to determine if you need surgery.
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For Ligament Cartilage And Joint Tears
Ligament, cartilage and joint tears in your knee will need to be addressed by your doctor.
After imaging diagnostics and a clinical assessment, your doctor will let you know if your treatment will include physical therapy and anti-inflammatory medication, or if youll need to undergo surgery to repair the injury.
Recovery from knee surgery can take some time. It may take anywhere from 6 months to a year to resume your normal activities.
The Difference Between Sciatica And Hamstring Pain
As a general rule, a lot of discomforts can be caused by sciatica and hamstring pain, both of which are common injuries. Theyre often mistaken for one another, but sciatic symptoms feel like a pain in your back or buttocks region this is caused by irritation on the sciatic nerve and hamstring pains happen when theres too much tension at either end of the muscle so you might be feeling some tightness up near where it connects with bone , right below where they cross over each otheror deep within them just above their attachments onto bones such as tibia and fibula).
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Burning Pain In The Back Of The Knee
Pain behind your knee could come from any of a handful of causes. You may have an overuse injury similar to what causes runners knee.
You could also have something more severe like a ligament tear. If you tear a ligament or cartilage, you will most likely have pain no matter what you do, even if you stop the activity. You will also have swelling shortly after you injure your knee.
You could also have a Bakers cyst. A Bakers cyst is an accumulation of fluid in the bursa behind your knee. You may have pain, or you may just have swelling.
The burning pain behind your knee could be your only symptom. Best of all, a Bakers cyst isnt a debilitating diagnosis. You can get the fluid drained and then return to normal activities.
If you suspect a cartilage or ligament tear, begin with cold therapy. This could include a sleeve with an ice pack that you slide over your knee and keep on the knee for fifteen minutes at a time.
Rapid Knee Swelling After An Injury
A swollen knee that develops immediately after an injury, within minutes, is usually due to haemarthrosis, where blood accumulates in the joint. Essentially what happens is that a structure inside the knee gets damaged and starts to bleed, building up pressure in the joint.
Knee swelling after an injury is normally profuse and the knee balloons up. It will feel tense and very sore and is often accompanied by bruising, although that may take longer to develop.
There are three main injuries that cause a swollen knee from a haemarthrosis:
1. Ligament Tear:Where a knee ligament ruptures . This is the most common cause and usually involves the ACL . Other symptoms include instability and pain Learn More >
2. Meniscus Tear:A tear in the outer rim of the cartilage lining the knee. Associated symptoms include locking and pain on stairs and when squatting Learn More >
3. Bone Fracture: A break in one of the knee bones such as a patellar fracture. In most cases, it will be obvious if you have broken a bone Learn More >
A swollen knee caused by a haemarthrosis like these needs urgent medical attention.
Choose from the links or visit the Knee Injuries section to find out more about these common causes of knee swelling, including symptoms and treatment options.
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Treatment For Knee Problems
If initial treatment methods do not provide relief, and X-rays show destruction of the joint, the orthopaedist may recommend total joint replacement for the knee, also referred to as knee replacement.
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Reason #: You Are Treating Your Knee But Not Fixing The Cause Of Your Knee Pain
It’s human nature to be want to treat the place that hurts. But in the case of knee pain, the cause of the mechanical pressure is rarely due to the knee joint itself. It’s a relatively simple “hinge.” It bends and extends — that’s about it. When things are not moving well in your core, hip and foot, it changes the angle of how the kneecap moves over your femur, causing Runner’s Knee.
If your health care team has been massaging, stretching or strengthening your knee, it’s likely to feel better temporarily and then the pain will come back because the real root cause is in your core, hip or foot. Identifying the root cause during the examination process is key to rapid relief and long-lasting results with Runner’s Knee. By taking this approach, most of my patients experience relief within the first couple of visits and full resolution within 6-8 visits — half of the time it takes with the traditional “knee-focused” approach.
One of my favorite exercises to help prevent Runner’s Knee is the Side Bridge with Hip Abduction. It really gets the lateral side of your core engaged along with your outer hip, which helps keep your femur in optimal alignment. Try adding this exercise to your daily routine and work your way up to 6 reps on each side.
Erin Ducat DC, CSCS, CCSP, DACRB, FACO
Chiropractic Physician, Board-Certified in Sports Medicine, Orthopedics and Rehabilitation
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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.
How Do You Treat Weak Knees
Treatment for knee instability will vary depending on the specific cause. Treatments may include rest, ice, compression, and elevation, better known as the RICE method, as well as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medications for pain.
Conditions such as a torn ACL or arthritis may require knee surgery, but other conditions may benefit more from physical therapy and knee rehab exercises.
A knee brace may also be used in some cases.
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Pain In The Front Of The Knee: 6 Common Causes
Pain in the front of the knee or anterior knee pain is very common. Do any of these scenarios seem familiar to you? You come to a stairway and cringe at the thought of having to walk downstairs. You love to run, but the anterior knee pain you have when running downhill has taken the joy out of running. If youve been sitting for a while, the thought of having to get up is becoming too much to bear. While I could say youre not alone, thats not very comforting. You are here for answers. Lets see how we can help educate you on why the front of your knee hurts so much.