People of all ages and different lifestyles may complain of pain in the knee joint while walking, although this symptom is most common in older and professional athletes. Causes of pain in the knee joint include both minor injuries and serious illnesses. Healthy people, as a rule, do not experience painful feelings when moving; Their appearance can be caused by daily joint wear, excessive physical exertion or injuries. In this situation, anxiety and impaired mobility can be felt during sports activities, recreation, homework, or work assignments.
Knee pain: causes
Knee pain can occur if you have the following conditions:
- osteoarthritis of the knee joint (Gonarthrosis);
- meniscus damage (meniscopathy);
- arthritis (inflammation of the joints);
- osteoarthritis of the hip joint (coxarthrosis);
- circulatory disorders of the knee joint;
- Inflammation of the knee tendons (periarthritis of the "crow's feet" sac).
Pain in the knee joint with gonarthrosis
Gonarthrosis accounts for 30-40% of knee pain. Osteoarthritis of the knee joint is most often diagnosed in people over the age of 40-45. The pathological process may develop in one or both knee joints. Initially, the intensity of pain is mild, the onset of discomfort is observed only after a long walk. As the disease progresses, severe pain in the knee joint is noted, which is disturbing when walking, even at short distances.
It is difficult for the patient to get up from the chair, get out of traffic jams, go down and up the stairs. A painful knee does not bother him at night, except when the knee was overloaded the day before.
In the later stages of gonarthrosis, the pain is complemented by a crush in the knee (while walking) and a joint deformity. This symptomatology manifests itself more and more every year.
Pain in the knee joint with meniscopathy
Along with gonorrhea, meniscopathy (meniscus damage) is also a common cause of knee pain (up to 40% of cases).
Knee menisci can be damaged at any age and are equally common in both women and men. Damage to a knee joint is mainly observed.
Meniscopathy can be associated with injuries, but can often be seen in one place. Unlike gonarthrosis, a characteristic feature of knee meniscus damage is running, walking, jumping, skiing, etc. It is a rapid and often unexpected development that leads to a failed move over time.
The injury is accompanied by a crisis in the knee, a sharp pain in the knee joint, the intensity of which is so high that the victim can not move. Generally, the patient's ability to move is restored after a slight weakening of the acute pain that occurs after 10-15 minutes. But the next day or so, the pain syndrome intensifies again, the knee is very swollen. At this stage, the clinical picture of meniscopathy is complemented by the characteristic features of a compressed meniscus - a piercing in the knee when walking, a feeling of "stuck nail" in the knee, or a possible fracture of the knee while walking.
The duration of the acute phase of the disease is usually between two and three weeks, after which the patient recovers. In the absence of appropriate therapy, the disease becomes chronic. Painful sensations decrease, and then any situation (strong loads, squats, unsuccessful sudden movements) causes their recurrence.
Unlike goniscosis, meniscopathy is rarely accompanied by deformity of the bones of the knee joint, which can occur only with the development of osteoarthritis of the knee associated with damage to the meniscus.
Knee pain with arthritis
In 5-10% of cases, knee pain is associated with arthritis. The disease is common in people of all ages, but in most cases begins to develop at a young age. The inflammatory process in arthritis can be found in one or both knees.
Defeat of the knee joints can be caused not only by osteoarthritis and meniscopathy, but also by one of the types of arthritis, which is rheumatoid, reactive, psoriatic. In addition, diseases such as gout, ankylosing spondylitis, rheumatoid arthritis are also called arthritis.
Arthritic inflammation of the knee joint is characterized by a rapid onset (1-3 days), accompanied by an increase in pain in the affected joint at night, along with open swelling and swelling of the knee. The severity of the pain in arthritis can be stronger than when moving, which distinguishes the disease from a similar symptom - pain in the knee joint, osteoarthritis and meniscopathy. Treatment with anti-inflammatory drugs for arthritis can reduce pain and eliminate inflammation.
Pain in the knee joint with coxarthrosis
Coxarthrosis (arthrosis of the hip joint) affects 3-7% of those who consult a doctor for pain in the knee joint. Despite the disease, the preservation of knee mobility, the absence of difficulties with painless bending and stretching, a patient with coxarthrosis spreads his legs to the sides, "hips. "
Pain in the knee joint with poor blood circulation
Vascular knee pain associated with circulatory disorders accounts for 5 to 10% of all referrals to the doctor for knee problems.
Many people are familiar with the deterioration of blood circulation in the knee joints, which is accompanied by pain. As a rule, these anxious feelings first appear during adolescence, because the rate of vascular development during the active growth of the child is sometimes much lower than the rate of bone growth.
If vascular pain occurs once, you should be prepared for it to occur throughout your life. However, the intensity rate decreases after a maximum of 19-20 years.
In vascular disease, the pain is generally symmetrical, ie. the expressions on the left and right knees are the same. The onset of pain syndrome is associated with changes in air temperature, changes in temperature, colds and physical exertion. Warming ointments, massages, self-massage (strong rubbing of the knees) and vasodilators are used to treat such pain. No special treatment is required for these conditions.
Knee pain due to inflammation of the knee tendons
About 10-15% of knee pain is associated with inflammation of the knee tendons (periarthritis of the crow's feet). Most often, this pathology occurs mainly in women after 40 years. Pain syndrome occurs when descending stairs and lifting weights. With inflammation of the knee joints, walking quietly on a flat surface is very rarely accompanied by the appearance of pain.
The pain caused by periarthritis does not spread to the whole knee, but is localized on the inner surfaces of the knees, when gathered together, 3-5 cm below the point of contact of the knees. Unlike arthritis, osteoarthritis, and meniscopathy, periarthritis of the "gallbladder" sac is not accompanied by limited mobility of the knee joints. Bending and stretching of the knee is not a concern, there is no deformation and swelling of the knee.
Knee pain
The main objectives of the treatment of knee joint pain prescribed by doctors of the therapy clinic are:
- eliminate swelling;
- to relieve the patient of anxious feelings;
- restore the function of the knee joint;
- prevent new attacks.
Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and analgesics are used to reduce pain. The use of warming and distracting ointments, as well as strengthening drugs is effective.
In remission, patients are advised to use physiotherapy, massage and therapeutic exercises.
In the absence of the effectiveness of conservative therapy, specialists consider the appropriateness of surgical treatment, taking into account all the pros and cons.
In addition, there are a number of traditional medications that can help reduce pain, but their use should first be discussed with specialists who are following a course of treatment aimed at relieving pain in the knee joint. How to treat this pathology should be decided only by an experienced, highly qualified physician who is familiar with the results of the patient's research, individual characteristics of the body and many other important nuances.