The main purpose of the knee joint is to ensure normal motor activity of the lower limb and achieve a stable trunk position. In this case, this part of the body is assigned the most important role - participation in the processes of flexion and extension of the limb.
Despite the complex structure and sufficient strength of this joint, it can be subject to injuries, thermal influences, physical overload, various complications due to chronic infectious processes and, as a consequence, severe inflammatory processes with a greater likelihood of limiting movement and accumulation of exudate . To prevent such undesirable manifestations, it is recommended to immediately contact a qualified specialist for a complete diagnosis and drawing up a competent treatment plan.
The knee is the largest and most complex joint in the human body.
Every day, a large load is placed on the knee joint. It is responsible for the process of flexion and extension of the lower limb, supports the weight of a person and ensures its stable position. It is the knee that allows us to walk, jump, run, squat and turn.
The ability to perform these actions is guaranteed by the following components:
- Tendons;
- Bones;
- Cartilage;
- Ligaments and muscles.
This explains why knee joint pain can occur in people of any age group. We can only talk about effective treatment and complete recovery after finding out the cause of the disease.
Reasons why knees hurt
Thus, the knee joint plays an important role in the human body: it is responsible for the motor activity of the leg, keeps the body in a stable position and supports the weight of a person. Furthermore, the knee has a complex structure, represented by several interconnected elements.
If a person has knee pain and is trying to find a solution on what to do, first of all it is necessary to discover the factors that cause the discomfort. As a rule, the causes of the disease are the same for all situations.
The risk factors are identical in almost all cases: musculofascial dysfunction. This leads to significant tension, which causes compression and destruction of the cartilage. As a result, the person begins to feel unpleasant sensations, signaling damage to the knee joint, and begins to look for a way to eliminate the pathological process.
Wound
If you don't know what to do when your knees hurt, pay attention - the reasons may be hidden in a joint injury. This is the part of the body that gets injured more often than others. As a result, joint dysfunction occurs, accompanied by pain.
This discomfort may be due to ligament damage. Representatives of professional sports activities are more often susceptible to injuries. Furthermore, pain and ligament problems may occur in people who do not follow the running technique. Very often, knee injury occurs as a result of hitting the ball - during a football game.
It should be noted that such injuries occur quite often. Moreover, discomfort can occur not only during an exacerbation, but also after it.
In the case of a fracture, several bones can be destroyed at the same time. More often than others, this occurs in elderly patients and people susceptible to degenerative pathologies.
In case of severe damage to the joint, surgery, physiotherapeutic procedures and exercise therapy are performed.
Bursitis
The main purpose of the joint capsule is to ensure easy sliding of the ligaments and improve the functioning of the knee joint itself. Chronic injuries and unexpected blows can cause damage and cause inflammation.
The presence of bursitis is indicated by the following signs: swelling, pain, limitation of motor activity, increased temperature in the knee joint.
If your knees hurt a lot, to know what to do and how to treat this disease, you must first carry out a complete diagnosis. Only an individual approach to the problem will make it possible to draw up the correct treatment plan and select effective medications with an anti-inflammatory effect. You should also adhere to a rest regime for the knee joint.
In advanced forms of bursitis, they resort to more serious measures - surgical interventions and special injections are performed.
Dislocations
We are talking about a displacement of the kneecap from its normal position, which is also accompanied by more intense pain.
In this case, only an experienced specialist can answer the question of what to do if there is pain under the knee - after a thorough diagnosis and examination.
To identify fractures and draw up the correct treatment plan, they resort to x-ray examination. In advanced situations, surgical intervention is performed.
Often, a knee joint dislocation can cause pain. This is a rather serious injury that occurs after a strong blow.
Degenerative disorders
One of the common pathologies associated with degenerative changes in tissues is osteoarthritis. In this case, the cartilage decreases in size, which is accompanied by impaired motor activity in the joint and pain. As a rule, these pathological processes are caused by age-related changes in the body that occur in people aged 55 to 65 years.
Despite the irreversibility of degenerative changes, there are treatments that can deal with discomfort and help improve quality of life. In advanced forms of the disease, the implant is installed surgically.
Autoimmune diseases
We are talking about inflammatory processes that affect the joints. They are characterized by dysfunctions of the immune system, as a result of which it begins to perceive its own tissues as foreign and destroy them.
This process is accompanied by the following undesirable manifestations: swelling, pain and degenerative changes in the joints, erosive lesions of bone tissue.
Taking into account the clinical picture, the specialist will tell you exactly what you need to do when your knee joints hurt. As a rule, the patient is recommended to take the following medications:
- Anti-inflammatory medications;
- Steroid hormones;
- Antirheumatic medicines and biological agents;
- Analgesics and others.
Salt deposition in joints
This is a metabolic disease associated with the deposition of uric acid salts in the body's tissues. The main signs of gout are: severe swelling, limited physical activity and severe pain. To break down urate crystals, special medications are prescribed, as well as anti-inflammatories.
Infectious processes
Even a small scratch in the knee area can contribute to the spread of the infectious process to nearby tissues and organs, including the joint area.
In people with a weakened immune system, this poses a real danger to the body. In other words, any damage to the skin can worsen the patient's condition.
What not to do when your knees hurt?
Regardless of the reason why your knees hurt, below we will tell you what not to do to avoid worsening the condition:
- Avoid knee injuries;
- Avoid foods that contribute to weight gain (fried and fatty foods, confectionery, foods rich in salt, potatoes, sugary soft drinks, fast food);
- Avoid any excessive physical activity associated with sport;
- If your knees hurt and you don't know what to do with such discomfort, as the reviews indicate, it is better to give up your addictions (excessive consumption of alcoholic beverages and smoking);
- Avoid wearing tight shoes, avoid high heels;
- Minimize the likelihood of stressful situations;
- Ensure healthy and full sleep;
- Avoid staying in the same position for a long time.
In what cases is a visit to the doctor necessary?
There is no need for medical intervention if the pain in the knee area is caused by minor skin damage, minor injuries or deformation of the joint. In these situations, self-treatment is permitted.
With more serious processes, there is an urgent need to consult a specialist. First of all, this is due to the likelihood of damage to the joint capsule, which can facilitate the penetration of pathogenic bacteria into the body.
If the consequences of the injury are not eliminated in a timely manner, the functionality of the joint may be lost. It is necessary to consult a doctor in the following situations:
- Your knees hurt a lot and you have no information about what to do, what to do;
- Pain syndrome of increased intensity does not disappear for several days;
- There is swelling, redness and fever in the joint area;
- Increase in body temperature;
- Decreased motor activity, bruising.
Experienced specialists carry out a complete diagnosis of the condition of the knee joint, draw up a detailed treatment plan and select the most effective treatment even for the most advanced pathologies.
Knee pain treatment
Often, people don't know exactly what to do when their knee joints hurt and they try to deal with the discomfort on their own. Unfortunately, uncontrolled use of medications and the use of special ointments can give the opposite result.
To quickly relieve pain, an integrated approach is needed. Within its scope, not only medications are used, but physiotherapeutic procedures are also carried out and special orthopedic devices are used. This includes knee braces and braces, which help prevent the likelihood of relapse and ensure a faster recovery period.
Medication use
To relieve pain, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, steroid hormones, vasodilators and chondroprotectors are prescribed. Specialists prescribe painkillers with extreme caution, as they do not allow determining the real condition of the knee joint. Below we will talk in more detail about the medicines used:
- Ines. Since eliminating the inflammatory process and pain is the main task for discomfort in the knee area, doctors mainly recommend using non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. To do this, they resort to the help of special tablets and ointments. If the pain increases, patients receive intramuscular injections. If your knees hurt a little, in this case, when asked: "What should I do? ", any doctor will advise using ointment. Often, when the knee joint is injured, products containing glycosaminoglycan are used. In turn, to eliminate swelling, they use compresses with dimethyl sulfoxide;
- Chondroprotectors.Regardless of whether your knees hurt after a run or a long walk, or against the background of other pathologies, only an experienced doctor can advise exactly what to do. However, the general recommendation for all patients to relieve pain is to take medications with chondroitin and glucosamine. Thanks to its use, it is possible to accelerate the process of restoration of cartilage tissue, prevent oxidative stress and ensure the growth of healthy cartilage cells. In addition, chondroprotectors contribute to a faster rehabilitation period after injury, minimize the likelihood of serious consequences and almost do not cause side effects. At the same time, experts recommend taking complexes with a high content of minerals and vitamins;
- Antispasmodics and vasodilators.They help improve tissue supply and also help restore connective tissue and eliminate swelling. In the presence of chronic pathological processes, for example, if your knee hurts for a whole year, the discomfort returns and you don't know what to do, it may be necessary to take additional antibacterial and immunobiological drugs.
Physiotherapeutic procedures
If you are wondering what to do if your knee hurts when walking or the discomfort is chronic, any experienced specialist will suggest physiotherapeutic treatment. With its help, it is possible to increase the effectiveness of the use of medicines, as well as ensure the delivery of medicines to the deepest subcutaneous layers.
Physiotherapeutic procedures help to improve blood flow, eliminate pain and reduce the source of inflammation, as well as normalize motor activity and ensure the removal of purulent exudate.
Even if your child's knees hurt and you're trying to figure out what to do, the following physical therapy options will be most effective:
- Impact on the body of a magnetic field;
- Laser therapy;
- Exposure to electrical current in combination with the administration of medications;
- UHF;
- Application of galvanic electric current;
- Use of therapeutic mud;
- Therapeutic effects of ultrasound;
- massage treatments;
- Paraffin therapy;
- Amplipulse therapy;
- Treatment with medicinal leeches;
- Acupuncture;
- Cold treatment;
- Diadynamic therapy and other similar procedures.
The duration of a physiotherapy course usually reaches 7-10 procedures. However, a prerequisite before carrying out treatment measures is consultation with a specialist.
UVT for knee pain
The UVT method is widely used to eliminate pathologies of the musculoskeletal system. It is based on short-term exposure to low-frequency acoustic waves on the affected joint.
The powerful analgesic effect during shock wave therapy sessions is achieved through the following processes:
- Better blood flow;
- Development of new blood vessels;
- Improved metabolism.
It should be noted that under the influence of shock waves, a decrease in fibrotic processes in the internal tissues of the knee joint is observed.
The greatest effectiveness is achieved using the UVT method for deposition of calcium phosphate crystals on tendons. The technique is characterized by greater safety and practically no side effects.
UVT specialists will clearly determine the number of treatment sessions and their duration, and will also give valuable recommendations on the implementation of other restorative procedures.
The need to perform a puncture
If there is significant swelling, experts remove the purulent contents that limit the normal functioning and supply of the joint. To drain the exudate, a puncture is performed with a syringe under the influence of anesthetics.
If the desired result is not obtained during physiotherapeutic procedures and the use of medications, the doctor injects hyaluronic acid into the knee joint or performs periarticular anesthetic block. When purulent inflammatory processes are detected, drug treatment is combined with the procedure for washing the knee joint with a medicinal solution (washing).
Surgical intervention for pain in the knee region is performed in rare cases, more often in advanced situations.
Exercise Therapy for Knee Pain
Often, when experiencing knee pain, experts recommend performing therapeutic exercises. By regularly performing simple exercises, the patient can quickly restore the motor activity of the joint, relieve pain and provide optimal load on this part of the body. These beneficial effects are achieved by improving muscle tone. You can get the desired result after 8 to 10 sessions. It is important to exclude any sudden movements during physiotherapy.
The following exercises are suitable for doing at home:
- The patient assumes a "lying down" position and stretches the legs forward. Next, he performs alternating flexion and extension of the fingers of the lower extremities;
- While in the "lying down" position, you need to straighten your legs. After this, the patient turns their feet in different directions, trying to bring them closer to the floor;
- In the "lying down" position and with legs extended, the patient should try to extend their toes towards the knee joint;
- The patient assumes the "lying down" position. Then he places both hands under the knee, trying to slowly bend the limb. In this case, the knee must be gently raised towards the chest;
- While in the "lying down" position, you need to make leg movements similar to riding a bicycle.
Prevention measures
Questions like: "What to do if the nerve in your knee hurts? " or "What measures to take if your knees hurt after a long walk? " will lose relevance if you follow simple preventive measures. These include:
- The elimination of infectious processes and conditions after knee injury must be carried out under the supervision of a professional specialist;
- It is mandatory to eliminate pathological processes of a chronic or hereditary nature (gout, diabetes, tonsillitis);
- Maintain a normal weight by eliminating excessively sweet, salty and fatty foods from the diet, as well as alcoholic beverages;
- Practice moderate exercise;
- Once a year, take chondroprotectors and have an exam with a specialist;
- Follow the rules of healthy sleep;
- Drink about 2-3 liters of still water daily;
- Eliminate any possibility of hypothermia;
- Wear only comfortable shoes and clothes;
- Avoid staying in the same position for a long time.