How do I know if my knee pain is serious?
If your knee becomes very swollen and red, this can be a sign of infection, gout or an autoimmune process. It is best to seek medical attention from a licensed physician if this happens. Another sign that your knee pain is serious is that if you notice swelling in your knee. Arthritis, tear in the cartilage or ligaments in your knee can cause swelling.
What can I do to relieve knee pain?
There are many ways to relieve knee pain. Knee pain can be relieved by ice, over the counter pain medications, including ibuprofen and Tylenol. Many causes of knee pain can be fixed by a good physical therapy and knee strengthening program. Dr. Kevin Mangum specializes in therapeutic injections for knee pain. Some of the injections include prolotherapy, corticosteroid, platelet rich plasma (PRP) and hyaluronic acid injections. Most knee pain does not need surgery. However, if there is a knee injury that needs to be corrected surgically, surgery is a great option to relieve some types of knee pain.
What causes knee pain without injury?
Most knee pain that occurs without an injury is likely due to a biomechanical or alignment issue. If you are older and develop knee pain that occurs without an injury, you may have osteoarthritis or wear and tear arthritis.
Is walking good for knee pain?
In general, walking is very good for knee pain. If you have a cartilage or ligament tear, knee pain can make your knee pain worse. If your knee pain is from osteoarthritis, movement is very good for your knee. Walking can be a great intervention for knee pain. Sports medicine physicians can prescribe a walking program for you to help you with your knee pain.
How do you relieve kneecap pain?
Kneecap pain can be from a variety of conditions. The most common cause of knee pain that is felt in the front of your knee is called Patellofemoral pain syndrome. Kneecap pain is very common in all types of patients. If you are younger, kneecap pain is likely due to your quadriceps or thigh muscles being weak and unconditioned. A good quadriceps and thigh strengthening program is the keystone of good relief from kneecap pain. If your kneecap pain is from wear and tear arthritis and degeneration in your knee, some types of knee injections or a knee replacement may be more beneficial to you. X rays are very important to figure out what type of kneecap pain you are experiencing. Talking with a licensed physician may be beneficial to figure out what is the cause of your kneecap pain and how to best relieve it.
Why does my kneecap hurt?
Kneecap pain can happen from a fall on your kneecap, bad kneecap alignment, weak thigh muscles, arthritis and fat pad impingement syndrome. If you recently fell on your kneecap you can experience kneecap pain due to inflammation and swelling of the bursa and other soft tissues that are around your knee cap. If you are very active individual, kneecap pain can be from abnormal tracking or weakness in your thigh muscles. Kneecap pain can also be from pinching of the tissues inside your knee joint. This could be analogous to biting the inside of your cheek. Every time you straighten your knee, you can pinch the tissues inside your knee joint that can cause pain behind your kneecap.