Knee pain issues anyone?

[Dantilla]

I had knee surgery when I was in college, and it has bugged me on and off ever since.

90% of the problems faded away when I was swimming regularly- Building strength with no impact.

[vash]

what kind of pain?

does it hurt going up or down stairs? any crepitus (the clicking)?

man, i hope it isnt Gout. good luck. in my experience, an x-ray shows very little to help diagnose knee pain. my doc said it shows, bone spacing..whatever that means.

[stuartj]

Originally Posted by Brando

6 weeks of physical therapy three times per week and I've never been better. It aches from time to time but stretching and working the joint helps a lot.

You've got the right idea with next steps. Typically physical therapy/rehab helps with keeping the muscles strong and reduces risk of more trauma. If you've torn ligaments and require surgery it's a whole 'nother ball game. I wish you a speedy recovery either way.

THis.

Ive had problems in both knees, couldn't drive, couldn't get down the stairs, moved like a 90 yo.

Both times it was tendon, ligament muscular, both times fixed with some deep manipulation and specialist exercises. Good as new with a maintenance stretch and exercise regime.

Baz- find a good Osteopath - they do soft tissue and skeletal- before you go down the surgery route. They seem to be very good at diagnosis, and they will send you off on the surgery route if you need it.

[Danimal16]

Originally Posted by stuartj

THis.

Ive had problems in both knees, couldn't drive, couldn't get down the stairs, moved like a 90 yo.

Both times it was tendon, ligament muscular, both times fixed with some deep manipulation and specialist exercises. Good as new with a maintenance stretch and exercise regime.

Baz- find a good Osteopath - they do soft tissue and skeletal- before you go down the surgery route. They seem to be very good at diagnosis, and they will send you off on the surgery route if you need it.

Similar to what happened to me. I had run all my life until an IT band injury and it appeared to be meniscus tear.

It flared up in late 2012 after the Festival of Speed in San Diego. I was taking photos and doing a lot of kneeling. I could not walk or get up for two days due to the pain. After eating a ton of Motrin I finally got to my GP who recommended an orthopedic surgeon.

This surgeon got the pain under control and did all the diagnostics on my knee.

What turned out to be the solution was the surgeon's insistence on a detailed evaluation by a Physical Therapist.

After four months of PT, some shoe arch supports the old nagging knee pain has disappeared. I found the PT worked for me. The surgeon did detect a minor medial tear but said it would heal as the joints all worked out.

Now it is my dang back.

[not sharp]

Family history of arthritic problems. PT, meloxicam- only short term.

[Baz]

Quick update......

First - THANK YOU to all who posted responses. I will keep all of this useful info on hand going forward.

Second - sorry for those who have or am suffering from knee issues. I never thought having a knee issue would impact my lifestyle so much - man it really does!

Third - after a weekend of rest and some rehab efforts...the knee/leg is feeling much better and I even got some work done this morning without any big issues. I'm going to try and take it easy this week and see what happens before going to any medical provider.

I will keep you posted with any further developments - I may have dodged a bullet sorta-speak.

Again - my thanks for your input and supportive posts!

[madmmac]

I have had complex meniscus tears in both knees. One I had cleaned out by arthroscopic and the other calmed down on its own.

The x-ray provides as noted, bone spacing and/or compartment compression. It will show how much or how little cartilage you have left between your knee and leg and whether you are bone on bone. That's where I'm at, but the pain amazingly according to my Dr is not really that bad for me.

Usually when you are getting comfort from heat, it kind of points towards arthritis which is pretty common once past 50.

Good luck.

[oilcan]

About 4 months ago I was advised that, due to arthritis in both knees, they should be replaced. Since that time I've lost about 15 lbs and I can't tell you how much the pain has subsided. I am planning on taking more off.
FWIW, if you are a bit heavy, consider taking off that weight & it may be the answer.

[sammyg2]

Had a meniscus surgery on left knee about 15 years ago. Messed it up at my second autocross.












I have a torn meniscus on right knee now according to MRI.
I will not get it cut, as I now believe it leads to bone on bone and ka-nee replacement. Cortisone and PT are my friends.

Believe it or not a cortisone shot will lower the temperature of the skin on my knee about 7 degrees.

Get an MRI, find out what the problemo is, and then figure out what to do about it.

[rilriley]

Originally Posted by Baz

The past couple weeks my right knee has been a bit painful to the extent I have been limping and supporting myself as much as possible to keep the weight off that leg.

As far as I know there was no incident that happened to cause this issue, although I did hurt that same knee a couple years ago but it wasn't anything that I sought medical attention for - the pain went away after a few weeks on it's own.

So - I was thinking of getting an X-ray of my knee for diagnostic purposes. There's a place here that will X-ray it and provide a report and the X-ray on a disc.

There's also an orthopedic doctor in town who can X-ray it in house.

I'm hoping whatever the issue is - it will go away with just some basic rehab....but without knowing what is causing the pain - it's hard to know.

I have been taking some Ibuprofen (Advil) and Naproxen sodium (Aleve), use ice therapy machine on knee and just trying to rest the leg - which has helped.

I realize that pain in the knee can be caused by a variety of things but wanted to throw this out in case anyone has gone through something similar and would like to post their thoughts.

I talked to a buddy of mine who went through this and after getting his X-ray it was discovered he has 2 ligament tears and a small cyst and the doctor told him he could either rehab it or have surgery - he elected to rehab it and after a month the pain went away. That's what I am hoping for.

It is advisable to have surgery as early as possible. I completely replaced my left knee in 2014, and I still want to know why I waited so long for two days after the operation to have fewer knees than before the operation. Just be sure to follow all instructions, including physical therapy, and never ignore it.

[Tervuren]

There are so many different parts of the knee that can have pain.

[masraum]

This thread is just a few years old. I think Baz's knee issue is long gone or he's learned to live with it.

[Baz]

Wow - my 7 year old thread shows back up!

Well FWIW my knees are doing just fine and I never needed any doctoring aside from just doing what I could at home.

Now there are also CBD products to help with joint pain, but I'm happy to report I haven't needed any for quite a while now.

That old adage...use it or lose it. Riding my bike almost every day!

[billybek]

I my left knee has recently given me some grief and it was never the trouble maker the right one had been.
It seems that I was keeping my foot too square to the ball when golfing and that flaring it out to the left a bit limits the rotational force on the lead knee... Golfers knee. Apparently the second most common golf injury.
My right knee has been pretty clicky recently too... That one has a couple of skiing injuries in the past.