Knee pain occurs in patients of all ages and lifestyles. Such pain occurs during physical activity for various reasons: from an injury or bruise to significant illness and inflammation. Ignoring it can lead to serious consequences. A common question is what to do if you have pain? At the first painful sensations, it is recommended to consult a doctor in order to prevent hospitalization; treatment should only be carried out by a doctor.
The first manifestation of knee pain is usually caused by heavy loading, wear and tear and deformation of the joint. The disease is felt not only with excessive stress, but also at rest, at rest and performing daily activities. In this article, we will look at why the knee hurts, the main methods of diagnosis and treatment.
What is the knee joint?
The knee joint of our body bears a lot of load and body weight; most injuries and stress occur on it during falls, sports and lifting heavy loads. The knee joint is one of the largest in our body.
The knee joint includes:
- the joint itself;
- muscles;
- knee cap;
- menisci;
- joint capsule;
- the ends of the femur and tibia,
- vessels,
- nerves,
- ligaments
Each of these components is susceptible to damage, although pain is not always felt immediately. For example, with a dislocated or torn meniscus and a torn anterior cruciate ligament, mobility will be reduced and vascular damage will cause a hematoma. Infection can begin in the joint capsule of the knee after infectious diseases. If the patient has a neurological disease, a shooting pain may be felt in the knee. In addition, it can radiate to the joint with pain in the femur, tibia and muscles.
Causes of joint pain
The nature of pain can be divided into two groups: acute and chronic. Acute pain is characterized by rapidly developing and progressive pathologies. Chronic diseases, on the contrary, are quite slow and require lifelong treatment. The causes of such pain are different, and so is the treatment.
Let's look at the main causes of pain.
Pain from injuries
The cause of acute pain are injuries and various traumatic actions. You can get injured due to a bad fall, playing sports or uncomfortable shoes. The pain starts to be felt a few days after the injury. Usually the knee has mild swelling, and victims experience quite tolerable pain. Depending on the severity of the injury, scratches may be present on the surface of the skin. In addition, excess weight, abuse of bad habits, and peculiarities of the profession and work increase the risk of injuries.
Types of injuries:
- A bruised knee.Frequent and mild damage. Swelling and redness occur in the knee area, and the surface temperature rises. Even a minor injury to the knee can cause destruction of joint tissue cells.
- Sprains.Sometimes the stretching of muscles, ligaments or tendons goes unnoticed and causes cracking and sharp pain in the knee, and the joint itself becomes unstable when standing on the leg.
- Ligament rupture.It can occur due to strong twisting of the leg in an unnatural direction and causes severe pain, swelling and swelling.
- Meniscus tear.It appears as a result of a heavy load, a blow to the knee, twisting of the leg and due to its unnatural position. A torn meniscus causes your legs to stop moving normally. It often occurs in athletes and is accompanied by swelling, bleeding and inability to bend the leg. There is one rule about sports: the knee may hurt, but it should be gone the next morning after training. If the disease does not disappear, you need to consult a doctor.
- Fracture of the wrist.As a result of the fracture, there is also damage to the soft tissues, which causes severe pain and deformation of the knee.
Unpleasant sensations in the knee are not always characterized by disease in this department. Sometimes a herniated disc can cause knee pain at night. Discomfort can also occur if the knee joint is used too little and the associated muscles lose tone.
Asymmetry of the sacrum and pelvic bones can also cause pain in the knee joint. It occurs as a result of a difference in the length of the lower extremities, which can be a consequence of congenital features or curvature of the pelvis, including due to scoliosis.
Knee diseases
Any inflammation or damage in the structure of the knee causes discomfort, especially when moving. And the infection is not always localized in the knee itself. In general joint diseases, the whole body is affected, and the knees are more damaged due to severe stress. Also, with injuries or diseases of the spinal column, or a fracture of the neck of the femur, pain in the knee joint may occur. Let's look at some of them:
- Arthritisis an inflammatory process that develops after trauma from infection or metabolic problems. If left untreated, the cartilage in the knee joints continues to progressively wear away, leading to increased pain.
- Rheumatoid arthritis- an autoimmune disease in which the body's defense cells negatively affect the tissue. The joint loses mobility, swelling appears, pain is constantly present, and it is manifested by an increased feeling of stiffness.
- Rheumatism- as a rule, teenagers are susceptible to it, as well as people who have recently had streptococcal diseases. It is characterized by alternating unpleasant sensations.
- Gonarthrosis (arthrosis).It develops in one or both knees. This disease is characterized by the appearance of degenerative-dystrophic processes with the growth of connective and bone tissue that hinders movement. At the beginning of the disease, the discomfort starts to be felt only after walking for a long time, but as the disease progresses, the pain appears even after walking short distances. Difficulty getting up from a chair, squatting or going up stairs. Pain doesn't just bother you when you're at rest. There is destruction or thinning of the cartilage tissue that absorbs shocks. As gonarthrosis develops, creaking in the knee and deformation of the joint is observed.
- Reactive arthritis– starts a few days after an intestinal infection. Severe pain combined with swelling and redness of the skin above the right or left knee usually indicates reactive arthritis.
- Bursitis– inflammation of the joint capsule that leads to severe pain and discomfort during movement.
- Periarthritis– inflammation of the tendons, muscles and ligaments surrounding the knee joint. Painful sensations appear with increased load on the bent leg.
- Chondropathy- destruction of the cartilage that surrounds the knee joint and reduces friction and impact.
- Neoplasms– when they appear, the vessels are compressed and the joint capsule is deformed, causing pain and limiting mobility.
- Osteoporosis- tissues weaken, become more fragile, calcium content in bones gradually decreases.
- Osteomyelitis- inflammation of the bone tissue occurs in the affected area, accompanied by swelling, high temperature and acute severe pain.
- Osteoarthritis– inflammation in the joint capsule is gradually localized to the heads of the bones. The cartilage wears down and thins, causing the heads of the bones to no longer slide easily when moving the limb. Aching pain occurs.
- Osteoarthritis– a disease that affects all components of the joint.
- Patellofemoral pain syndrome- often occurs in young patients. During physical activity, the kneecap moves forward. This happens due to improper foot position, excessive and heavy loads with unprepared muscles.
- Osgood-Schlatter disease– knee pain when bending, walking up stairs, squatting.
- Nerve damage and nervous tissue disorders.There are shooting pains, numbness and tingling in the lower extremity, and loss of mobility. A pinched nerve occurs due to inflammation, neoplasm or previous injuries. Or neuritis develops - nerve inflammation in one or more areas. Severe pain is felt, mobility and sensitivity decrease, and the limb contracts involuntarily.
- Blood supply disorder.
- Various other infectious diseases. The resulting complications contribute to weakness and pain.
In addition to the mentioned diseases, other diseases can also contribute to pain: synovitis, ligamentitis, tendinitis, gout, neuropathy, cysts, etc.
Therefore, pain in the knee is always a sign of a pathological process that affects the cartilage, bone or soft tissue structures of the knee itself, that is, damage to the nerve that innervates it.
Diagnosis of knee pain
To start the treatment, it is necessary to make an accurate diagnosis from the doctor in the clinic using diagnostic measures.
The patient requests an examination by an osteopath, orthopedic traumatologist, surgeon or rheumatologist. If necessary, after examination and examination, the patient can be sent to another specialist.
During the appointment, the doctor collects the patient's medical history - complaints, symptoms and problems concerning the patient, infection and chronic disease. After that, the doctor can palpate the area of concern and ask the patient to perform various movements and tests. For example, bend and straighten the knee. This will provide initial information on the degree of weakness.
In order to obtain additional information and determine the correct diagnosis, the patient is sent for one or more examinations:
- radiography (X-ray);
- ultrasound examination (ultrasound);
- magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) therapy;
- computed tomography (CT);
- arthroscopy (a special instrument, an endoscope, is inserted into the joint);
- puncture to collect synovial fluid;
- laboratory tests (general and biochemical blood tests, serological tests).
MRI and CT are used to diagnose nerve diseases, depending on the contraindications. Some diagnoses require more specific tests.
You can visit an osteopath, physiotherapist, chiropractor or massage therapist for knee pain relief. The osteopath will help restore the normal position of the pelvic bones and internal organs, which positively affects their functioning, improve the nutrition of all spinal structures by activating blood circulation, and improve posture by eliminating spinal deformities.
Treatment of knee pain
It is impossible to choose the best medicine for knee pain on your own. This is due to the fact that first it is necessary to discover the true cause of the symptoms and determine the type of pathological disorders in the body.
Treatment of the knee joint is carried out comprehensively. This set of measures includes:
- medical (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or chondroprotectors - their effectiveness lies in preserving moisture in cartilage cells, inhibiting enzymatic activity and stopping the degenerative process);
- preparations, solutions for external use;
- osteopathy;
- performance of special exercises and gymnastics, physical therapy;
- physiotherapeutic techniques;
- massages;
- vitamin complexes are drugs indicated for improving metabolic processes in the body.
Different types of physical therapy can be used to treat musculoskeletal disorders that cause knee pain.
Exercise classes are simple and accessible to people of any age, as the individually designed program ensures the creation of a precisely dosed load. For complex therapy, local painkillers are also prescribed, for example, ointment with dimethyl sulfoxide (there are contraindications: severe diseases of the kidneys, liver, cardiovascular system, pregnancy, breastfeeding) or anti-inflammatory gel - it is immediately absorbed into the skin, penetrating into its deep layers, relieves swelling and pain.
Pain can also be eliminated with high-frequency techniques: the morphological changes remain, but the pain decreases and becomes lighter. Also, special orthoses are often prescribed - bandages, knee pads, splints, tapes, casts and other similar devices. This allows you to transfer the load from the knee and relieve it, reducing the risk of re-injury and promoting rapid rehabilitation. Plasmolifting is rarely used - injections of plasma obtained from the patient's own blood directly into the affected knee joint or the soft tissue around it.
Sometimes a bone alignment procedure or surgery is performed (for example, if it is necessary to remove bone fragments).
The doctor also prescribes painkillers that do not have a negative effect on the articular cartilage.
Pay attention to your diet - a balanced diet can prevent inflammation.
If you have problems with your knee, you should not self-medicate and attend various procedures in order to avoid surgical intervention (operation) and possible complications. This attitude can only worsen the situation and more serious and complex therapy will be needed. Therefore, it is important to consult a doctor who will make an accurate diagnosis and prescribe competent treatment, procedures and drugs that will give an effect. Take care of yourself and your health!