Of all the joints in the human body, knee pain is the most common complaint experienced by humans. The knee joint is complex, bears a large load during various types of physical activity, therefore, there are many reasons for pain in it. Knee pain, although it occurs occasionally and goes away on its own, should not be ignored.
Knee pain, regardless of intensity, significantly impairs quality of life. There's no fun from your favorite type of outdoor activity, efficiency drops, and simple shopping trips become a problem.
In our article, we will consider what to do if the knee joint hurts, how to treat it and whether it is possible to get rid of discomfort in the knee forever - the last question is especially relevant for parents who consider sedentary movements and joint pain syndrome an indispensable age companion.
Pain diagnostics
- It is necessary to know the nature of the pain. The pain can be sharp, burning, stabbing, aching.
- Eliminate the state of onset of pain - at night, after activity, when walking, in the morning, a sudden sharp pain.
- Are there other signs of joint damage: swelling, hyperemia (redness), joint deformity, wrinkling, restriction of mobility.
- Check for a history of infection, stress, leg injuries, or increased physical activity.
- Undergo instrumental examinations in medical and preventive institutions (LPU) - blood tests, X-ray diagnostics, synovial fluid analysis.
Causes of knee pain
There are more than 200 articular pathologies, most of which are accompanied by more than just pain. Only based on symptoms and a complex examination can you determine what is causing your knee pain.
Traumatic pathology
In traumatic pathology, knee pain occurs with joint injuries (blows, falls, prolonged stress on the joints - typical for athletes) or with general ailments of the body.
Let's consider the main traumatic pathologies.
Broken knee
Fracture or displacement of the patella, fracture of the condyle of the femur and/or tibia. When you fall from a height on your knees, in case of a car accident, etc.
The victim experiences a sharp sharp pain at the time of impact, over time the pain does not stop, it may become slightly weaker, but increases with pressing or walking.
The joint swells, becomes deformed, fills with blood (hemarthrosis), the knee does not bend, and the patella becomes abnormally movable.
Knee sprain
It is characterized by the displacement of the bones of the joint relative to each other. Knee joint dislocations have varying complexity (complete, incomplete, complicated by soft tissue rupture, etc. ).
A habitual dislocation occurs as a result of a knee injury or as a result of congenital anomalies: weakness or excessive elasticity of the ligaments, flat shear path of the femur in the joint, too high position of the patella.
Dislocation of the knee joint is a rather serious injury, and if you do not treat it in time, it can all end in serious complications. Knee joint dislocations are the most painful of all types, although they are rare.
Serious injuries such as dislocations must be treated in a medical institution, so there should be no independent intervention. This is what traumatologists do.
Sprains, ruptures of tendons, ligaments
Depending on the degree of damage (partial rupture of individual fibers, incomplete tear, complete rupture), symptoms occur: crackling and clicking during movement, bruising below the site of rupture, limited flexion-extension of the joint, swelling of the knee, overly mobile joint (with complete ligament damage). ). The pain is sharp and severe, but with minor injuries it may not appear immediately, but after a while.
Bursitis
Inflammation of the periarticular bursa due to trauma, infection, metabolic disorders, autoimmune diseases. It often occurs in athletes and people with weight gain. The knee swells, the pain varies in intensity, but increases with exertion and at night.
Meniscus tear
It may be the result of trauma or degenerative changes in the cartilage tissue. Acute trauma is characterized by severe pain, swelling, and limited mobility. Symptoms for degenerative changes are mild.
Joint disease
Knee pain can be a symptom of a medical condition.
We have registeredthe most common diseases with knee pain syndrome:
Rheumatic
Diagnosis is much less common than in the 19th and 20th centuries. This is due both to the discovery of penicillin (and later the production of other antibiotics), and to its low diagnostic ability in the past, when almost all joint diseases were associated with rheumatism.
A characteristic sign of rheumatism is alternating joint pain: first, one joint becomes inflamed, then the other. For example, knee pain subsides, but occurs in other large joints (elbows, hips).
Rheumatism is more common in children and adolescents, the disease develops after a streptococcal infection of the upper respiratory tract.
Note: advanced rheumatism causes damage to the heart (rheumatic heart disease) or the nervous system (chorea).
Reactive arthritis
This is more common in people of reproductive age, because arthritis is most often caused by pathogenic microbes that enter the human body sexually.
Much less often, reactive arthritis is caused by an infection of the gastrointestinal tract or inflammation of the nasopharynx (sore throat, flu). After 1-4 weeks after the pain, the patient notices that his legs start to hurt at night.
Large joints (knees, ankles) and small joints (painful or sore toes) can become inflamed and painful. Knee pain with swelling and/or redness.
Sometimes symptoms include conjunctivitis (inflammation and pain in the eye), keratoderma (thickening of the skin on the soles of the feet).
Reiter's syndrome
Urethritis (frequent painful urination) and bowel disorders join the common symptoms of reactive arthritis.
Osteoarthritis
Parent's disease. Periodically the knee hurts at night "for the weather. "The load on the joint (walking long distances) increases pain, swelling, and impairs joint mobility.
After resting and warming up, the pain went away.
Baker's cyst
Swelling at the back of the knee, causing a feeling of constriction, difficulty moving.
Osteochondritis dissecans (Köning's disease)
The cartilage that covers the bone is peeled off, the affected knee is painful, and when the fragment is completely exfoliated, joint movement is impeded.
Osgood-Schlatter disease
More often diagnosed in adolescents. Knee pain increases when going up and down stairs, squatting.
Arthritis
Autoimmune disease, mechanism unclear. It is seen that the initial state is a list of the usual burdens on the immune system: from stress and infection, to hypothermia. Immune bodies attack their own cells causing inflammation of the joints, especially the synovium.
Under the influence of the attack of immune cells, the membrane swells, increases in volume, and then begins to grow into cartilage and nearby bone tissue. The result of this process is pain in the knee joint, which becomes unbearable in the second half of the night.
The disease lasts for many years, treatment consists of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, corticosteroid hormones, gold preparations, immunosuppressants, antimalarial drugs.
Arises from improper metabolism. Due to alcohol abuse, "purine" products (meat, smoked meats, pickles).
Uric acid produced in the blood is stored in the joints in the form of sodium urate crystals. Gradually growing "deposits" affect joint mobility, attacks of severe pain appear, the time interval between attacks gradually decreases.
Vascular pain in the knee is characterized by a pulling sensation along the vein, sometimes the patient feels an acute tingling sensation.
Only a doctor, after a detailed examination, can find out why the knee hurts, if there is no obvious injury. It is unwise to rub the knee joint with a "helpful neighbor" remedy. After all, what helps to heal joint injuries can provoke an exacerbation of the autoimmune mechanisms of the disease.
Knee pain treatment
Doctors choose a treatment regimen depending on the diagnosis.
Therapeutic measures are aimed at combating:
- with the cause of the disease - infection, tumor, abnormal metabolic processes, failure of the immune system.
- with pain syndrome - symptomatic treatment includes pain relief, intra-articular blockade.
- with degenerative processes - drugs with chondroprotectors help to restore joint cartilage tissue.
If necessary, use surgery, endoprosthetics, use physiotherapy and therapeutic exercises for joints.
Pain Relief Products
Checklist for those with knee pain - what to do to relieve the condition.
| Cause of pain | What to do |
|---|---|
| Pain is clearly due to trauma | Give immobility of joints and extremities, ice or cold compresses on the knee. Immediate medical attention. |
| Pain in arthritis (reactive, rheumatoid, etc. ) | Special treatment with antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory drugs is prescribed only by a doctor. For night pain, you can apply a warming compress, an ointment based on bee venom. |
| Pain in arthrosis (post-traumatic, age-related, overweight people) after exercise or at night | Any warming compresses with herbal tincture, rub with ointments with a chondroprotector. |
Severe joint pain is relieved with nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs).
But most patients (overweight people, age-related changes in the joints) do not need to think about what to do with pain if they observe a minimum of prevention:
- Proper nutrition with a sufficient amount of calcium, vitamins, the fight against excess weight;
- Reduction of severe stress on the joints to a job change, if it consists of "standing on your feet" all day;
- Systematic physical therapy to strengthen muscles and ligaments - a good muscle corset reduces the load on the bones;
Joint disease can develop over years and cause a significant reduction in quality of life. Timely visits to the doctor and the arsenal of folk remedies will help keep the joy moving into old age.
Joint care at home - folk recipes
Homemade recipes for ointments and compresses based on natural ingredients are used in the course - this is the only way to achieve a lasting result.
7 simple folk remedies for knee pain:
- Cabbage leaves. On fresh leaves, cut so that the juice comes out. Put a spoonful of honey in the center and apply this "compress" to the knee. The sheets are fixed with a bandage. Wear a bandage throughout the day or perform the procedure at night. Burdock and plantain leaves are used in the same way.
- Propolis tincture for arthritis. If the knee "twists" at night (the cause of dull pain can be from a change in weather to stress on the foot), lubricate the joint with the mixture, rubbing it into the skin until it dries. If the knee hurts very much, then they make a full compress: moisten the soft tissue with tincture and apply to the joint, cover it with a film, and wrap it with a scarf. It is also used to warm the joint if the sore knee is cold. Likewise, they use tinctures of natural stimulants: aloe vera, Kalanchoe, mummies, dead bees.
Important:biologically active substances cannot be used if the disease is autoimmune in nature. Stimulants activate the immune system and make the disease worse.
- Gelatin compress. A piece of gauze soaked in hot water is squeezed out, 1 tsp is poured into the center. jelly, applied to the joints, wrapped in food foil and wrapped. Repeat this procedure for 14 days at night. This product promotes joint nutrition and cartilage regeneration.
- Mustard compresses will help if your knee is in severe pain. Take honey and dry mustard in equal proportions, add warm water and salt until a porridge consistency is formed. Lubricate the knee with the mixture, lie down with a cloth with a film and bandage. Exposure time 20–40 min. , Remove in case of severe burning sensation. Mustard compresses are used for pain every day.
- So that the legs do not hurt, the drug is prepared for oral administration: gelatin is stirred in 0. 5 liters of water at night, heated in the morning until completely dissolved. The potion is taken before eating as much as - 1/2 cup, taken for a month.
- Inner goat fat (100 g) is mixed with the balm "Zvezdochka" (1 jar), the resulting ointment is applied for sore veins and joints in the knees.
- Kefir mask. 0. 5 l of kefir crumb bread, add 1 tsp. soda. The mixture was allowed to stand for 6 hours. Then the liquid is filtered, moistened with gauze and the compress is carried out overnight for several days, until the pain goes away.
It is advisable to regularly apply home remedies with folk remedies, combining them with folk remedies and modern methods. Do not wait until the disease is established and manifests itself with severe pain, joint deformation. An early visit to the doctor will speed up recovery, while the chronic form of the disease is more difficult to cure.
Notes:treatment with traditional medicine is allowed only with the approval of a doctor, after examination and diagnosis.