What Causes Knee Pain?
Knee pain can be caused by various factors, including traumas, mechanical issues, arthritis, and other conditions.
Injuries constitute;
- Ligament tear
- Fractures
- Torn meniscus
- Knee bursitis
- Patellar tendinitis (inflammation of tendons)
Mechanical issues constitute;
- Iliotibial band syndrome
- Loose body , plica , crystal
- Hip or foot pain
Arthritis includes;
- Osteoarthritis
- Rheumatoid arthritis
- Gout
- Septic arthritis
Risk factors include;
- Obese
- Females
- Athletes
- Occupations requiring prolong standing like police -man , teachers , construction workers etc
- Sports like -basket ball , foot ball etc
- Previous injury
- Previous knee surgery
- Quadriceps weakness
What are the Symptoms of Knee Pain?
- Swelling and stiffness in the knee
- Redness and warmth
- Instability or weakness
- Noises of popping or crunching on flexing the knee
- Inability to fully straighten the knee
How to Diagnose Knee Pain?
- X-ray
- Dynamic Ultrasound scan
- MRI
- CT Scans
- Based on the patient’s condition , sometimes blood investigations are adviced.
What can be the Complications of Knee Pain?
Knee pain isn’t always serious. However, if left untreated, some knee injuries and medical disorders, such as osteoarthritis, can lead to increased pain, joint deterioration, and disability. Having a knee injury, even if it’s mild, raises the chances of having more in the future. knee pain can cause decreased mobility which can lead to weight gain , and this can further worsen the pain .
What is the Treatment for Knee Pain?
Treatment options will differ based on the cause of your knee discomfort.
Medications
Medications are prescribed to reduce pain and address the underlying problems causing knee pain, such as rheumatoid arthritis or gout.
Therapy
Depending on the cause of your discomfort, the doctor may recommend physical therapy or different forms of strengthening activities.
Surgery
- Arthroscopic surgery: It is a type of surgery that can be used to remove foreign objects from your knee joint, repair or replace damaged cartilage (particularly if it’s causing your knee to lock), and reconstruct torn ligaments
- Knee replacement surgery: The surgeon removes diseased bone and cartilage from the thighbone, shinbone, and kneecap and replaces it with an artificial joint consisting of metal alloys, high-grade plastics, and polymers during this treatment.
- Osteotomy: To better straighten the knee and decrease arthritic pain, this operation includes removing bone from the thighbone or shinbone.
Non-Surgical Procedures:
- STEROID INJECTIONS : steroid injections will give instantaneous pain relief , but temporarily. But repeated injection can weaken the ligaments and tendons & can be detrimental to the healthy cartilage. Other hazards of using steroid injections are elevated sugars in diabetics or increased blood pressure in patients with hypertension.
- VISCOSUPPLEMENTATION:. Hyaluronic acid, a sticky and slippery drug, is injected into the knee to cushion the joint and relieve discomfort.. This hyaluronic acid acts as a gel between the bones, forming a protective barrier that allows the joint to slide rather than grind.
- PLASMA injection or PLATELET RICH PLASMA : It is prepared from autologous blood by centrifugation to obtain plasma that is highly concentrated with platelets. These platelets are rich in growth factors; these growth factors produces inflammation at the injection site and repairs and regenerate the damaged cartilage. This provides good & long lasting pain relief.
- RADIOFREQUENCY ABLATION of genicular nerve: here radiofrequency waves are delivered to the target genicular nerves, with the goal to interrupt the communication of pain to the brain.. It’s a low-cost, minimally intrusive way to relieve pain, restore function, and even avoid knee surgery entirely.