Knee Pain: Causes, Treatment, Why Knee Injury, What to Do, How to Treat

The knee joint is one of the largest and most complex joints. Every day it's under a huge load, so it's no surprise that it stops functioning properly on a regular basis. If your knee is injured, the swelling is noticeable, and the pain is almost constant, you should definitely see your doctor. This pathological condition may signal the development of one of the diseases that cause joint deformation. Of course, it is necessary to learn to distinguish between situations when a visit to the doctor is sorely needed. But lack of treatment or self-treatment can lead to complications.

structure of the knee joint

To better understand why your knees hurt, you need to understand their anatomy. Thus, joints include the femur, tibia, and patella. The two largest bones each have two protrusions: the medial and lateral condyles.

All surfaces in contact with each other are covered with hyaline cartilage. Thanks to him, the mobility of the knee joint, its depreciable properties are guaranteed. This connection around the bone is a capsule lined from the inside with a layer of synovial membrane. It is filled with synovial fluid, so it nourishes the joint and ensures its mobility.

The knee joint is not only made up of bones. All its elements are held together by cruciate and collateral ligaments, femoral muscles, and tendons. The kneecap is connected to other elements by its own ligaments. In order for the knee to move, 6 synovial bags are required. Nutrition and innervation of the presented joint is carried out by nerves and blood vessels located in the soft tissue surrounding the joint.

Knee Pain: Causes

If your knee starts to ache, becomes swollen, has limited mobility, and is severe, you should seek immediate medical attention. If the destruction process has already begun, it is impossible to completely heal the knee. However, it is possible to stop or slow down its progress.

Therefore, we can distinguish these causes of knee pain:

• Arthropathy.It occurs in nearly 50% of all joint injuries. Pathology has developed over a long period of time. Among the symptoms of this disease, the following can be distinguished: the knee does not hurt at rest, but it becomes difficult to climb stairs, walk for a long time, squat and get up from the hips. During exercise, the patient will hear the creaking of the knee and his mobility decreases. Over time, the distance between bone surfaces decreases as the cartilage wears and tears. In this case, osteophytes appear, nerves and blood vessels are compressed, and the knee itself is deformed;

• meniscal disease, and the formation of meniscal cysts. In most cases only one knee is injured. The cause of the pathology may be a single injury or periodic damage to the joint. During exacerbations, the pain is acute, throbbing, sharp, and severe. With this disease, joint deformation is not a threat, but inflammation affects the synovial bag;
• Circulation problems (necrosis).This destroys the nutrition of the knee. Most of the time, this happens to teenagers. It is their bones that grow so fast that nutrition is somewhat difficult. If the pain in the knee joint is strong enough at first, it will decrease in intensity over time. The pain is usually localized to one point and does not spread to the entire knee. Hypothermia may exacerbate discomfort;
• arthritis.This is an inflammatory condition of the knee joint that can be diagnosed in young people, especially women. At the same time, the knee is very painful, the affected area is swollen, and the skin turns red. Pain becomes more pronounced at night. When the weather changes, the knee can hurt even while resting. The reasons for the development of the pathology are excess body weight, old age, a weakened immune system;
• Bursitis.This is an inflammatory lesion of the synovial bag of the knee joint. Characteristic symptoms of pathology are skin reddening, swelling and reduced range of motion in the affected area. The cavity of the synovial bag is filled with exudate, which contains harmful microorganisms. The reasons for the development of the pathology are trauma, excessive physical activity. Not only does the knee hurt badly, a person can also experience general weakness and discomfort;
• synovitisHere, inflammation affects the synovium of the knee joint. At the same time, swelling and burning pain in the joint area;
• arthritis.The disorder is more common in women who are overweight and in their 40s. At the same time, you may experience discomfort when climbing stairs and straightening your legs. The pathological process affects tendons, ligaments and muscles, joint capsules. pain, swelling in the extremities;
• chondromatosis.The disease is characterized by small nodules of cartilage that form in the outer shell of the joint pocket. He also exhibited joint dehydration, limited mobility, and crunching sounds when moving. The patient experiences severe pain due to the squeezing of the soft tissue;
• Chondromalacia patella.Here, the cartilage undergoes degenerative changes: it simply dies. The causes of this pathological condition are banal: knee injuries, characteristic of certain occupations. At the same time, the knee is sore, and any movement will make the discomfort more pronounced. On the left or right knee, a crunching sound can be heard. One can barely stand on the affected limb;
• Bone tumor.Knee pain occurs as a tumor growth presses on the soft tissue of nerves and blood vessels;
• Baker's cyst.This is a small hernia that can occur in young adults and children between the ages of 3 and 7. It is so small that it cannot always be diagnosed by examination. It does not pose a threat to human health and does not cause discomfort. However, if it grows, the joint can be injured, especially when bending and straightening the leg. If the hernia is large, surgical removal;
• Knee tendonitis.This is an inflammation of the tendons in the knee area, preventing them from functioning properly. Almost everyone is affected by this disease. Pain is usually pain, and the affected area responds to changes in the weather;

• Knee osteochondritis.This is where the cartilage peels off the joint surface. At first, the knee is not very painful, but over time its intensity increases and inflammation joins the pathological process;
• Koenig's disease.Here, some cartilage can separate from the bone and move within the joint. At the same time, movements become difficult and there is mild pain. Knee swelling was also observed as it progressed. Treatment of pathologies in adults is more difficult than in children;
• Osgood-Schlatter Pathology.It provides a bump that builds up in the knee area. Most of the time, the disease is diagnosed in boys as well as in people who play sports. The pain is severe and worsened by bending and straightening the leg.

These reasons are primary, but not the only ones. Therefore, it is necessary to consider other factors as these can affect knee pain.

Diseases of other organs, as a cause of knee pain

Some conditions unrelated to the knee can cause knee pain:

1. Fibromyalgia.The discomfort is located in muscles and soft tissues, but may also occur in nearby joints. Inflammatory processes do not develop. In addition to knee pain, a person feels stiff, fatigued during exercise, and he may experience twitching.
2. Hip dysplasia or hip joint disease.In this case, the pain syndrome extends to the entire leg.
3. Neuropathy of the sciatic nerve.It is clamped by the vertebrae of the lumbosacral spine. Severe throbbing pain radiates to the thigh and knee.

What systemic diseases can cause knee pain? In addition to the causes already described above, there are other factors that contribute to the development of pain syndrome:

• gout.The presented disease occurs due to disruption of uric acid metabolism in the body. It's hard to remove from it and turns into salt deposits that build up in the joints. In this case, the knee can also be injured. And the pain is very sharp, sharp. More commonly, the morbidity occurs in men who drink heavily and eat improperly. The skin on the affected area turns red, and the pain in the knee joint is worse at night. The duration of the attack varies from a few days to a few weeks;
• Osteoporosis.The pathology is associated with low bone density due to its incorrect formation. The pain in the knee joint is dull and painful, and it is not easy to get rid of it. The bones in this pathology are highly prone to fracture;
• Rheumatoid Arthritis.This is a systemic pathology characterized by inflammation of connective tissue. It begins to develop actively as the body's protective function decreases. Presented as a feeling of stiffness that a person feels after a prolonged period of rest;
• osteomyelitis.The presented bacterial pathology causes quite severe pain of a boring nature. In the affected joint area, the skin turns red and any movement increases discomfort. The danger of this disease is that its consequence is the beginning of bone marrow death;
• Infectious diseases.They are characterized by knee pain that disappears after antibiotic treatment;
• Paget's disease.In this case, the bone tissue does not form properly, so the spine begins to deform. In this pathological condition, it is the tubular bone that is affected, which subsequently becomes very fragile. Recognizing this disease is very difficult because symptoms may not appear. The only thing that could indicate the presence of a lesion was a sore knee that was sore at night and felt heat in the lesion.

If knee pain is caused by a systemic disease or bone disease, it's not always possible to get rid of it completely. However, treatment must be done so that the disease does not progress further or at least slows the course of the disease.

Trauma is the cause of pain syndrome

In this case, the pathological process can occur immediately after the injury or some time after the injury. We can distinguish such injuries of the knee joint:

1. A torn, torn, or torn knee ligament.These injuries lead to the development of joint "advance" syndrome. In addition, a person experiences severe pain, and hemorrhage develops and becomes unstable.
2. Hurt.The intensity of the pain syndrome here is low. There were no serious consequences after the injury. The swelling and hematoma usually go away on their own within one to two weeks.
3. Meniscus tear.It strikes the front area of the knee joint hard. After the acute phase of the pathology has passed, the pain syndrome often worries the patient when climbing stairs, which is difficult to implement. There is slight swelling in the knee joint area.
4. fracture.Occurs when falling from a height or receiving a strong impact. The pain is intense, severe, and the affected area becomes swollen and the skin turns pale. The victim could not stand on the injured leg. During a fracture, crunching and crackling sounds are heard and the bone penetrates the skin.
5. Tendon rupture.This injury is uncommon, but it causes acute pain first and then pain later. Pain in the left or right knee increases when walking.
6. Knee dislocation.In this case, some components of the joint may come out of it.

Trauma can lead to chronic disease.

Most knee lesions have similar symptoms, so it can be difficult to identify them. That's why self-medication isn't worth it, because you can make it worse.

who is at risk

Pain, creaking, and swelling in the affected knee are more common in some people than others. The risk group includes the following people:

1. Presence of primary lesions.
2. Genetic susceptibility.
3. Sustained motion overload of the knee joint.
4. Excessive weight.
5. Hurt.
6. I had surgery on my knee.
7. Knee musculature dysplasia.

In addition, women, as well as older and older adults, are more prone to knee disease.

When to consult a doctor

If a person feels that his knee is injured, he urgently needs to contact a specialist in this case:

1. For more than two months, the patient had been experiencing pain that prevented him from sleeping peacefully at night.
2. If the pain syndrome is characterized by high intensity, it can appear suddenly.
3. Knee creaks when walking.
4. The knee hurts every day, at certain times, under certain conditions.
5. In the knee joint, I feel unstable from time to time.
6. If other pathological signs are present: rash, fever, fever.
7. There is soreness, joint deformation, and limited mobility.
8. Pain syndrome becomes a person's constant companion.
9. Signs of an inflammatory process appear: redness, swelling of the skin, increased local temperature in the affected area.

These signs are enough to decide to see a doctor. By delaying the visit, the patient increases the duration and complexity of the treatment and also allows the pathology to progress further.

all kinds of pain

Most of the reasons why knee injuries, pathological conditions develop, are well understood. But the nature of pain can be different. For example, depending on the disease causing the pain, pain has the following properties:

• Sharp, sharp.It can cause meniscus or ligament rupture, reactive arthritis, acute phase of bursitis;
• Dull, pulling.Bursitis or synovitis can cause it;
• pain.This type of pain is characteristic of arthropathy, arthropathy;
• pulsation.A person has an injury to the meniscus or feels it due to a deformity of the joint;

• combustion.It is characterized by pinching the sciatic nerve, and tuberculosis of the bones;
• prick.It is caused by a cyst in the synovial sac. Tingling, characteristic of osteoporosis, is an old injury to the meniscus;
• drilling.It is caused by osteomyelitis;
• cyclical.Occurs when the patient has tendon or muscle inflammation;
• Shoot through.It causes nerve endings to be pinched.

Pathological Diagnosis and First Aid

Many people complain that their knee is hurt and they don't know what to do. But when you feel pain and tightness in your knee, you must get tested and begin treatment.

Diagnosis involves using the following procedures:

1. Laboratory tests of blood and urine.
2. blood chemistry.
3. Aspirate the bone marrow and synovial fluid.
4. The presence or absence of bacterial microflora on the smear.
5. Arthroscopy. This procedure can be used both as a diagnosis and as a treatment for joint pain. It's easy to do and doesn't require a long rehab.
6. radiography.
7. MRI or CT.
8. Ultrasound.
9. Density determination.

Knee Pain: First Aid

If a person experiences leg soreness or pulling pain in the knee area, first he must secure the rest of the limb. Treatment at home includes taking pain relievers or anti-inflammatory drugs.

Cold compresses can relieve pain. Cold is used as pain relief when the cause of pain is trauma. Limbs are immobilized and placed on the mountain. When there is a wound in the joint area, it should be treated with an antiseptic. None of these measures is a complete treatment. They should only be taken before seeing a doctor.

Knee Pain: Medication

So what to do if you hear a crunch at your joint and experience severe discomfort? First, you need to find out the cause of these symptoms. One of the stages of treatment is medication. Therefore, in the case of knee pain, you can quickly relieve severe symptoms with the help of these drugs:

• antibiotics (when discomfort is caused by a viral infection);
• Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.

Some lesions require surgery. If there is fluid in the knee joint cavity, it must be removed. Cysts can also be treated with surgery or glucocorticoid blockade.

If a joint is damaged by an injury, the bone needs to be repositioned in some cases. Put a bandage, orthosis, or even a cast on the affected joint. It is necessary not only to treat the limbs with the aid of pills. Often, patients are assigned to wear or use special orthopaedic equipment so that loads can be removed from the knee.

It is necessary to treat systemic lesions in a complex manner. In these cases, knee pain must be treated with immunosuppressants, anti-inflammatory drugs, and glucocorticoids. To eliminate the symptoms of arthropathy, drugs are injected into the joints, and chondroprotective agents are used.

Therapeutic gymnastics and massage

If your knee hurts when you stand, hear a creaking sound, or feel uncomfortable even at night, physical exercise and massage sessions will help remove stiffness and reduce pain.

At the same time, gymnastics should be performed if the person is not in great pain and with the permission of the doctor. All exercises are done slowly. You cannot make sudden movements. If your knee is very sore, then you need to switch to the easiest exercises. The weekly load can be increased.

In a lying or sitting position, you can do flexion and extension of the limbs, alternating half-turns, pulling the knees to the abdomen and moving the legs to the sides. After completing a set of exercises, you need to relax before continuing with the massage. This process is also very effective for pain relief.

Sore knees can be kneaded and rubbed on their own, but it is best done by a specialist. In order to get rid of most of the symptoms, you will need to perform a massage program, one of which does not exceed 20 minutes. Apply pressure to the patella by rubbing the inner and outer surfaces and sides of the patella. During this process, you need to make sure that the person is not injured.

How to treat knee joint at home?

Tightness in the knee and pain at night is an unpleasant phenomenon. Why these symptoms occur is known. However, it is not only possible to relieve pain and restore normal joint function with medication. You can do this at home with the help of folk remedies.

Getting rid of pathology quickly is not going to work. In this way, you will need to treat the knee for at least two months. Also, you need to find really effective products with good reviews.

The following recipes may help:

1. In half a liter of boiling water, pour 2 tablespoons of clover, and then let it brew. Drink the medicine twice a day, 100 ml each time. You can apply a spiced decoction to your sore knee as a nighttime dressing.
2. Oatmeal soup will help get rid of the pain. To prepare it, you need to take a liter of water and a cup of grains. Bring the mixture to a boil and let it sit overnight to infuse. You will need to use 2 cups of liquid during the day, divided into portions. It takes 2 weeks to treat the joint in this way.
3. To relieve discomfort and improve circulation in the affected area, you can apply grated potatoes and horseradish in equal proportions. This will help get rid of the pain quickly. Compress the affected knee and cover with a clean cloth. Wash off after 15 minutes. To relieve unpleasant symptoms, only 10 procedures are sufficient.
4. A mustard dressing to put on sore legs at night also received rave reviews. To prepare it, take a tablespoon of mustard and mix it with equal parts honey and soda. By morning, a warm compress will help relieve severe discomfort.
5. If the knee joint is painful, rub with bitter pepper tincture. A half-liter jar should be filled with chopped pepper, then pour the alcohol over the very top of the container. You need to stick to the remedy for a week.

You can perform a knee self-massage at home.

If you already know the cause of discomfort, you can choose appropriate folk remedies to help eliminate them. But before that, you should consult your doctor.

Preventive Pathology

To keep your knee healthy and functioning well in the long term, you must follow simple advice from your doctor:

1. Reduce joint stress.
2. A combination of rest and work is reasonable.
3. Treat any infectious disease in your body promptly.
4. Avoid extremity hypothermia.
5. After 35 years, it is recommended to start taking chondroprotective agents.
6. During sports, it is necessary to protect the joint with a knee brace - a special orthopaedic device for immobilizing the joint.
7. Normalizing your weight is important.
8. Nutrition plays an important role in bone health. It is best to reduce the intake of animal saturated fat, white bread, and sweets. More fiber, vegetable oils, vegetables and fruits should be added to the diet. Proper nutrition not only helps relieve discomfort, but also improves joint function.