Of all the joints in the human body, knee pain is the most common complaint of people. The knee joint is complex, withstands heavy loads during various types of physical activity, so there can be many causes of pain in it. Knee pain, even if it occurs from time to time and goes away on its own, should not go unnoticed.
Knee pain, regardless of intensity, significantly impairs quality of life. There is no joy from your favorite outdoor activity, efficiency decreases and ordinary shopping becomes a problem.
In our article we will look at what to do if the knee joints hurt, how to treat them and whether it is possible to get rid of knee discomfort forever - the last question is especially important for older people who consider sedentary movement and joint pain syndrome isan indispensable companion of age.
Diagnosis of pain
- It is necessary to establish the nature of the pain. The pain can be sharp, burning, piercing, painful.
- Eliminate the circumstances of the onset of pain - at night, after exertion, while walking, in the morning, sudden sharp pain.
- Were there any other signs of joint damage: swelling, redness (redness), joint deformity, crunch, limited mobility.
- Check for a history of infection, stress, leg injury or increased physical activity.
- Perform an instrumental examination in a medical institution (BPH) - blood test, X-ray diagnosis, analysis of synovial fluid.
Causes of knee pain
There are more than 200 joint pathologies, most of which are accompanied not only by pain. Only on the basis of a set of symptoms and tests can you determine what is causing the knee pain.
Traumatic pathology
In traumatic pathologies, knee pain occurs in joint injuries (bumps, falls, prolonged joint strain - typical of athletes) or in general diseases of the body.
Let's look at the main traumatic pathologies.
Knee fracture
Fracture or displacement of the patella, fractures of the condyles of the femur and / or tibia. When falling from a high knee, in an accident, etc.
The victim experiences sharp severe pain at the moment of impact, over time the pain does not stop, may become slightly weaker, but intensifies when pressed or walked.
The joint swells, deforms, fills with blood (hemarthrosis), the knee does not bend and the patella becomes unusually mobile.
A sprained knee
It is characterized by displacement of the bones of the joint relative to each other. The dislocation of the knee joint is of varying complexity (complete, incomplete, complicated by soft tissue rupture, etc. ).
The usual dislocation occurs as a result of a knee injury or as a result of a congenital anomaly: weakness or excessive elasticity of the ligaments, flat sliding paths of the femur in the joint, excessively high position of the patella.
A sprained knee is a very serious injury, and if you don't take care of it in time, it can end in serious complications. Knee sprains are the most painful of all types, although they are rare.
Serious injuries such as sprains should be treated in medical facilities, so there should be no self-intervention. That's what traumatologists do.
Sprains, tendons, ligaments
Depending on the degree of damage (partial rupture of individual fibers, incomplete rupture, complete rupture) symptoms appear: crunching and clicking during movement, bruising under the rupture site, restriction of flexion-extension of the joint, swelling of the knee, toomovable joint (with complete breakage of the connections). The pain is sharp and strong, but with a minor injury it may not appear immediately, but after some time.
bursitis
Inflammation of the periarticular bursa due to trauma, infections, metabolic disorders, autoimmune disease. It is often found in athletes and overweight people. The knee swells, the pain is of varying intensity, but increases with exertion and at night.
Rupture of the meniscus
It may be the result of trauma or degenerative changes in cartilage tissue. Acute trauma is characterized by severe pain, swelling and limited mobility. The symptoms of degenerative changes are mild.
Diseases of the joints
Knee pain can be a symptom of a medical condition.
We have listedthe most common diseases with knee pain syndrome:
Rheumatism
The diagnosis is much rarer than in the 19th and 20th centuries. This is due to both the discovery of penicillin (and then the production of other antibiotics) and the low diagnostic capabilities in the past, when almost all joint diseases were attributed to rheumatism.
A characteristic feature of rheumatism is alternating joint pain: first one joint becomes inflamed, then the other. For example, the pain in the knee disappears, but appears in another large joint (elbow, hip joint).
Rheumatism is more common in children and adolescents, the disease develops after streptococcal infection of the upper respiratory tract.
Note: Advanced rheumatism leads to damage to the heart (rheumatic heart disease) or the nervous system (chorea).
Reactive arthritis
It is more common in people of reproductive age, as inflammation of the joints is most often caused by pathogenic microbes that enter the human body sexually.
Much less often, reactive arthritis is caused by infections of the gastrointestinal tract or nasopharyngeal infectious inflammation (sore throat, flu). 1-4 weeks after the disease, the patient notices that his legs start to hurt at night.
Both large joints (knees, ankles) and small ones (pain or pain in the big toe) can become inflamed and painful. Knee pain is accompanied by swelling and / or redness.
Sometimes symptoms include conjunctivitis (inflammation and pain in the eyes), keratoderma (thickening of the skin on the feet).
Reiter's syndrome
Symptoms of common reactive arthritis include urethritis (frequent, painful urination) and intestinal disorders.
Osteoarthritis
Elderly disease. Periodically the knees hurt at night "for the weather". Joint strain (prolonged walking) increases pain, swelling and impairs joint mobility.
After resting and warming up, the pain disappears.
Baker's cyst
Swelling in the back of the knee, which causes a feeling of contraction, difficulty moving.
Dissecans osteochondritis (Köning's disease)
The cartilage covering the bone peels off, the diseased knee hurts, and when the fragment detaches completely, the movement of the joint is difficult.
Osgood-Schlatter disease
It is more often diagnosed in adolescents. Knee pain intensifies when climbing and descending stairs, squats.
Rheumatoid arthritis
An autoimmune disease whose mechanism is unclear. It is noticed that the initial circumstances are the usual list of loads on the immune system: from stress and infection to hypothermia. Immune bodies attacking their own cells cause inflammation of the joint, especially its synovium.
Under the influence of an attack by immune cells, the membrane swells, increases in volume and then begins to grow in nearby cartilage and bone tissue. The result of the process is pain in the knee joints, which becomes unbearable in the second half of the night.
The disease lasts for years, treatment consists of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, corticosteroid hormones, gold preparations, immunosuppressants, antimalarial drugs.
It arises from improper metabolism. Due to alcohol abuse, "purine" products (meat, smoked meats, pickles).
Uric acid, produced in the blood, is deposited in the joints in the form of sodium urate crystals. The increasing "delays" gradually affect the mobility of the joint, there are strong attacks of pain, the time interval between attacks is gradually reduced.
Vascular pain in the knees is characterized by a sensation of pulling along the vein, sometimes patients notice a sharp tingling sensation.
Only a doctor, after a detailed examination, can say why the knee hurts, if there was no obvious injury. It is unwise to rub the knee joint with a tool that has "helped the neighbor. "Ultimately, what helps to heal joint injuries can provoke an exacerbation of the autoimmune mechanism of the disease.
Treatment of knee pain
The doctor chooses 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 analgesic, intra-articular blockades.
- with degenerative processes - drugs with chondroprotectors help to restore the cartilage of the joint.
If necessary, resort to surgery, endoprosthesis, use physiotherapy and therapeutic exercises for the joints.
Pain relief products
Checklist for those with knee pain - what to do to alleviate the condition.
> zxtable border = "1" cellpadding = "0" >Severe joint pain is relieved by non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs).
But most patients (overweight, age-related joint changes) should not think about what to do with the pain if they follow a preventative minimum:
- Proper nutrition with enough calcium, vitamins, fight against overweight;
- Reduction of severe stress on the joint until the change of work, if it consists of "standing" all day;
- Systematic physiotherapy to strengthen muscles and ligaments - a good muscular corset reduces the load on the bones;
Joint diseases can develop over the years and lead to a significant deterioration in quality of life. A timely visit to the doctor and an arsenal of folk remedies will help you keep the joy of movement to old age.
Treatment of joints at home - folk recipes
Homemade recipes for ointments and compresses based on natural ingredients are used in courses - this is the only way to achieve a lasting result.
7 simple folk remedies for knee pain:
- Cabbage leaves. Incisions are made on a fresh leaf so that the juice comes out. Put a spoonful of honey in the middle and apply this "compress" on the knee. The leaf is fixed with a bandage. Wear a bandage all day or do the procedure at night. Similarly, burdock and plantain leaves are used.
- Propolis tincture for arthritis. If the knees "twist" at night (the causes of dull pain can be from a change of weather to stress on the legs), lubricate the joint with a mixture, rubbing it into the skin until dry. If the knees hurt a lot, then make a full compress: moisten the soft tissue with tincture and apply it on the joint, cover it with a film and wrap it with a scarf. The tool is also used to warm the joint if the inflamed knee is cold. In the same way tinctures of natural stimulants are used: aloe, kalanchoe, mummy, dead bee.
Important:biologically active substances cannot be used if the disease is autoimmune in nature. Stimulants activate the immune system and worsen the disease.
- Gelatin compress. Soaked in hot water a piece of gauze is squeezed, in the center pour 1 tsp gelatin, applied to the joint, wrapped in cling film and wrapped. Repeat the procedure for 14 days at night. The product promotes joint nutrition and cartilage regeneration.
- Mustard compress will help if your knee hurts a lot. Take honey and dry mustard in equal proportions, add warm water and salt until a slurry is formed. Apply the mixture to the knee, apply with a cloth towel and bandage. Exposure time 20-40 minutes, remove with a strong burning sensation. Mustard compress is used for pain during the day.
- In order not to hurt the feet, prepare a drug for oral administration: gelatin is stirred in 0, 5 liters of water in the evening, heated in the morning until completely dissolved. The mixture is taken before meals ¼ - 1/2 cup, drink for a month.
- Internal goat fat (100 g) is mixed with balm "Zvezdochka" (1 jar), the resulting ointment is rubbed in venous and joint pain in the knee.
- Kefir mask. 0, 5 liters of kefir break bread, add 1 tsp. Carbonated drinks. The mixture is insisted for 6 hours. The liquid is then filtered, moistened with gauze and compresses are applied overnight for several days until the pain disappears.
It is recommended to regularly apply home treatment with folk remedies, combining it with traditional medicine and modern methods. Do not wait until the disease is firmly established and declared with severe pain, deformity of the joint. An early visit to the doctor will speed recovery, while the chronic form of the disease is more difficult to treat.
Note:folk remedies are permissible only with the approval of a doctor, after examination and diagnosis.