Knee Pain

Why Knee Pain Can Signal Other Health Problems?

Although knee pain is localized in the leg joints, it gives you a signal about other health problems in your body you may not know of.

Know More

Runner’s Knee: Causes, Symptoms, Treatment and Prevention

Runner's Knee is a broad term describing a medical condition that causes a dull pain, typically, around the front of your knees. Pain may also be felt towards the outer part of the knee, depending on the specific cause of this condition.

Know More

What is Osteochondritis Dissecans?

Know More

Knee Pain

What is Osteochondritis Dissecans?

December 23, 2022March 27, 2024
by Eva Hospital

A condition that affects various joints in the body, Osteochondritis Dissecans is the result of a piece of bone getting partially or entirely separated from the end of the bone forming. An obstruction in the blood supply to the area is often the cause of this issue. With the piece of the bone gradually dying, the cartilage covering it cracks too and both may break loose, causing pain and affecting movement. The area where the bone fragment breaks off is called a lesion.

This entire process takes months or years. Consequently, symptoms of Osteochondritis Dissecans may take a long time to appear.

Most vulnerable joint

Osteochondritis Dissecans most commonly affects the knee joint while it can also be seen in elbows and ankles. The condition can also occur in other joints, including the shoulder and hip. Osteochondritis dissecans usually develops in just one joint. Rarely, this condition appears in more than one joint

What causes osteochondritis dissecans?

While repeated trauma or stress to a joint over time are cited as possible explanations for this disorder, the exact cause of osteochondritis dissecans is unknown. Familial osteochondritis dissecans is caused by inherited mutations to the ACAN gene, which is the source of a cartilage-building protein called aggrecan.

Osteochondritis Dissecans: Symptoms

Pain
Swelling
Tenderness
Restricted movement
Locking and catching of the affected joint
Clicking sound when moving the joint

Risk factor

While people of any age can develop the condition, Osteochondritis Dissecans occurs most commonly in children and adolescents between the ages of 10 and 20. Children in this age group who are highly active in sports are also more susceptible to this disorder.

Stages of Osteochondritis Dissecans

Stage I: Depressed osteochondral fracture

Stage II: Fragment attached by osseous bridge

Stage III: Detached non-displaced fragment

Stage IV: Displaced fragment

Osteochondritis Dissecans: Treatment

More commonly affecting children and adolescents, this condition can self-heal among people. However, if the injury has reached its worst stage where the bone and the cartilage both break loose, surgery may be required.

Depending on the stage of the problem, this issue can be resolved through non-surgical and surgical interventions. Rest, stress reduction and cast to immobilise the affected joint are some of the non-surgical methods to treat Osteochondritis Dissecans. Your doctor may also recommend a nonprescription pain reliever/anti-inflammatory medication, like ibuprofen. The injury may heal between 6 to 12 weeks.

Surgery is required in older patients, if the lesions are unstable and in patients who have failed conservative management. In case of surgery, the patient might be able to resume rigorous physical activity four to five months after surgery.

FAQs

What is the cause of Osteochondritis Dissecans?
While the cause of this injury is unknown, repetitive trauma could be responsible for causing obstruction of blood flow. Some people may be genetically more vulnerable to this condition than others. X-rays and an MRI of the joint are required to detect the disorder. Computed tomography (CT) scan may be required to get more detailed results.

Can Osteochondritis Dissecans be prevented?
No, osteochondritis dissecans cannot be prevented since its causes aren’t known.

Knee Pain

Runner’s Knee: Causes, Symptoms, Treatment and Prevention

August 9, 2022March 28, 2024
by Eva Hospital

Runner’s Knee is a broad term describing a medical condition that causes a dull pain, typically, around the front of your knees. Pain may also be felt towards the outer part of the knee, depending on the specific cause of this condition.

These conditions can be anterior knee pain syndrome, patellofemoral malalignment, chondromalacia patella, and iliotibial band syndrome. Even though this ailment is typical among professional runners and one of the most common running-related injuries, a Runner’s Knee can affect anyone who engages in physical activities and sports.

Causes: Factor that could lead to a Runner’s Knee

The name is self-explanatory — in most cases, running is the cause of this condition. However, a Runner’s Knee can also be developed among non-runners, who engage in physical activities like cycling, walking, skiing, and football playing.

Apart from that, this condition could be a result of a variety of factors, including:

Knee overuse
Irritation of the soft tissues of the knee
Lining of the knee
Worn or torn cartilage
Strained tendons
Knee injury
Sudden trauma to the knee
Excessive training
Week thigh muscles
Poor foot support
Tight hamstrings
Tight Achilles tendons
Certain structural defects
Misalignment of the kneecap
Plica syndrome
Synovial plica syndrome

Who is at higher risk of developing a runner’s knee?

According to Harvard Medical School, runner’s knee is more common among women when compared to men, all other factors being equal. They are in fact twice as likely as men to develop a runner’s knee because a woman’s wider pelvis increases the angle at which the bones in the knee joint meet. Among women, those in the middle age are more susceptible to developing this condition. Those struggling with being overweight are also more likely to get a runner’s knee than people with no weight issues.

Runner’s knee: Key symptoms

A runner’s knee would manifest itself in various forms, primarily in the form of pain in the frontal part of the knee. Pain in the knee would occurring during specific activities, including pain during walking, climbing or descending stairs, squatting, kneeling, running, sitting down or standing up, sitting for a long time with the knee bent

Other symptoms of the Runner’s Knee include:

Swelling
Grinding sound
Clicking sound

Runner’s knee: Diagnosis

Your doctor will conduct a thorough physical examination to determine if you are suffering from a runner’s knee. However, he may also prescribe a blood test, X-rays, an MRI scan or a CT scan to diagnose a runner’s knee.

Runner’s knee: Remedies

In most cases, a Runner’s knee can be treated by applying the following remedies:

Cold packs
Elevating the leg
Compression knee wrap
Stretching exercises
Strengthening exercises
Arch support in shoes

Additionally, your doctor might also prescribe an over-the-counter nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medication (NSAIDs) such as aspirin, ibuprofen and naproxen to deal with the pain. However, surgery may be recommended if your cartilage is damaged or if your kneecap needs to be realigned.

Runner’s knee: Preventive measures

In order to keep your knee safe against a Runner’s Knee condition, the following safety measures could be effective:

Stretching before running
Running leaning forward with your knees bent
Wearing good running shoes
Maintaining a healthy weight
Increasing physical activities gradually

Eva Hospital

Why Knee Pain Can Signal Other Health Problems?

July 6, 2021March 29, 2024
by Eva Hospital

Although knee pain is localized in the leg joints, it gives you a signal about other health problems in your body you may not know of.

Whenever you have knee pain, take a thorough look and get yourself investigated to know the root cause of the problem. Your pain might be a consequence of one or a combination of the following health conditions:-

An injury
A mechanical problem
Kinds of arthritis
Other problems.

Knee Pain Could Signal an Internal/ External Injury

If you are experiencing knee pain it could be due to a recent or chronic injury such as :

ACL tears
Meniscus tear
Fracture
Bursitis
Patellar tendinitis

Also Read: Post-Surgical Joint Replacement Precautions & Tips

You must understand the KNEE STRUCTURE and the terms. This joint joins the thigh with the leg and consists of two joints- the tibiofemoral joint & the patellofemoral joint.

The tibiofemoral joint is the one between the femur(thigh bone) and the tibia (shin bone). The patellofemoral joint is the one between the femur and patella ( knee cap).

The joints contain ligaments, tendons, and cartilage. It permits both flexion and extension along with slight internal & external rotation.

Your knee is vulnerable to injury, mostly affecting ligaments, tendons, or its fluid sacs or bursae that surround the joint. Let us give a look.

ACL Tears. The ACL or the anterior cruciate ligament is one of four ligaments that connect the shinbone to the thigh bone. An ACL tear is a common sports injury in persons who indulge in sports such as basketball or soccer that require abrupt changes in direction.
Fractures. Fracture pain is very acute, causes swelling and the patient cannot move the part. An accident or a fall can cause the patella or kneecap to break. Another reason for fracture can be severe osteoporosis. People with weak bones as a consequence of osteoporosis may fracture themselves simply by stepping wrong.
Meniscus Tear. The tough, spongy cartilage that acts as a shock absorber between your shinbone and thighbone is the meniscus. You may tear it if you twist your leg the wrong way with a strong force or weight.
Bursitis. There are small sacs of fluid called bursae that cover the knee all around to give the joint a cushioning. An inflammation in them is called bursitis and is painful.
Patellar tendinitis. Tendinitis causes tenderness & inflammation in the tendons – the patellar tendon in this case. It is a fibrous tissue that connects your kneecap to the tibia and allows you to kick, run and jump. an injury to his tendon causes bursitis and eventual pain.

Mechanical Problems

The musculoskeletal structure is after all a piece of machinery, and any part can dislocate or behave in an unaligned way. Such mechanical problems may happen in the knee as well- causing pain. Some examples of mechanics problems include:

Loose body. Sometimes a piece of bone or cartilage might break off or float in the joint space. It could be the result of an injury or deterioration. It is something like an object being caught in a door hinge, not allowing it to close properly.

IT band Syndrome. IT Band is the tough band of tissue that stretches from the outside of your hip to the outside of your knee. When it becomes so firm that it rubs against the outer portion of the femur, it is called the Iliotibial Band Syndrome. Runners & cyclists are particularly susceptible to iliotibial band syndrome.

Kneecap Dislocation. This happens when the triangular bone that covers the face of your joint slips out of place, normally to the outside of the knee. In most cases, you are able to see the dislocation.

Hip or foot pain. Your pain might be connected to a problem in the hip or foot. Hip and foot pain usually makes you change your gait to save yourself from foot pain. Your altered way of walking puts more stress on your knee & causes pain.

Kinds of Arthritis

Maybe your knee pain is a signal for arthritis in the bones. There are several types of arthritic conditions. The most common ones are:

Osteoarthritis. Also known as degenerative arthritis, osteoarthritis is a wear-and-tear condition that occurs when the cartilage in the knee damages with use & age.

Rheumatoid arthritis. The most weakening form of arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune condition that can affect any joint in the body, including the knees. It is a chronic disease, which keeps varying in severity. Also, it comes & goes.

Gout. This type of arthritis occurs due to uric acid deposits in the joint. While gout most commonly affects the big toe, it can also occur in the knee.

Septic arthritis. It occurs due to infection in the joints, causing swelling, pain, and redness.

Category: <span>Knee Pain</span>

Knee Pain

Why Knee Pain Can Signal Other Health Problems?

Runner’s Knee: Causes, Symptoms, Treatment and Prevention

What is Osteochondritis Dissecans?

What is Osteochondritis Dissecans?

Most vulnerable joint

What causes osteochondritis dissecans?

Osteochondritis Dissecans: Symptoms

Risk factor

Stages of Osteochondritis Dissecans

Osteochondritis Dissecans: Treatment

FAQs

Can Osteochondritis Dissecans be prevented? No, osteochondritis dissecans cannot be prevented since its causes aren’t known.

Runner’s Knee: Causes, Symptoms, Treatment and Prevention

Causes: Factor that could lead to a Runner’s Knee

Who is at higher risk of developing a runner’s knee?

Runner’s knee: Key symptoms

Runner’s knee: Diagnosis

Runner’s knee: Remedies

Runner’s knee: Preventive measures

Why Knee Pain Can Signal Other Health Problems?

Knee Pain Could Signal an Internal/ External Injury

Mechanical Problems

Kinds of Arthritis

Can Osteochondritis Dissecans be prevented?
No, osteochondritis dissecans cannot be prevented since its causes aren’t known.