Anterior Knee Pain: The Basics

Pain in the front of the knee or anterior knee pain can affect people in all age groups. Approximately 25% of people will suffer from pain in the front of their knees at some time in their lives. I have seen teenagers who can longer participate in sports, and I have 70 years olds who can no longer walk downstairs without fear of their knee giving way. Why is our kneecap or patella so prone to bothering us like this?

The cause of anterior knee pain might vary based on your age, level of activity, and your chosen sports. We can see people who are inactive and suffer from pain in the front of the knee, and we can also see people who are highly trained and disciplined who are suffering from pain around the kneecap. The majority of people who have pain in the front of their knee do not recall any injury.

In the majority of cases of anterior knee pain, we do not find anything significant wrong with your X-rays or MRI scans. It seems that the pain in the front of the knee is often due to imbalances, weakness patterns, movement patterns, and complex issues that can take a while to figure out. Yes, some of you might have a cartilage defect or some early arthritis in the front of your knee but believe it or not, the majority of you will have pretty normal-appearing imaging studies. That has led to a significant change in our approach to anterior knee pain over the years.

Anterior knee pain is particularly common in young women and many runners.

Causes Of Pain At The Front Of The Knee

Pain at the front of your knee may come from your kneecap itself or from the tendons and ligaments in your knee. Tendons connect muscles to bones, and ligaments connect bones together. There are several things that can cause pain at the front of your knee or increase your risk of developing it. These include:

• using your knee a lot for example, doing lots of exercise or playing sports
• injuring your knee for example, having a direct blow to your knee
• being overweight because this puts your knees under more stress
• problems with the alignment of your knees
• having flat feet
• having overly flexible joints

Workspace Ergonomics: Best Practices

According to Mayo Clinic, if you work at a desk or counter, you can take these steps to ease knee and other joint pain:

• Select an ergonomic chair that properly supports your spinal curves.
• Set the height of your chair so when your feet are resting flat on the floor, your thighs are parallel to the floor.
• Consider a footrest if you cant adjust chair height properly, or if the height of your desk requires you to raise your chair beyond where you can rest your feet flat on the floor.
• Adjust the chairs armrests so your arms can comfortably rest on them with your shoulders relaxed.
• Your desk should allow clearance for your knees, thighs, and feet.
• If you work at a computer, put the monitor directly in front of you with the top of the screen at eye level . It should be about an arms length away when youre sitting up straight in your chair.
• Your keyboard should be directly in front of your monitor.

If you have knee pain while sitting, you might also consider a standing desk.

If you have knee pain when sitting, a number of reasons could cause it, including:

• sitting with your knees bent for too long
• poor furniture ergonomics

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Patellar Tendinitis / Tendinopathy

Patellar tendinitis means inflammation of the tendon below the kneecap.

Tendinopathy means an abnormal condition of the tendon in which there is no inflammation. Both of these problems can still hurt, and the pain is usually felt on the front of the knee just below the kneecap.

This type of pain is caused from too much load on the quadriceps muscles, for example when squatting or going up and down stairs.

Flexibility of the quadriceps muscles can play a role in this type of pain, but more often it comes from the muscle overworking because the glute muscles aren’t doing their fair share.

What about those patellar tendon straps? Do they work?

Patellar tendon straps can help take the edge off the pain if you have patellar tendonitis. They relieve stretch on the attachment point of the patellar tendon below the knee, and thus they help temporarily. Unfortunately,they don’t fix the main problem. If the quadriceps muscles are still stiff, the pain will eventually come back. Keep reading to learn how to relieve pain on the front of the knee.

Knee Pain When Running

If you suffer knee pain when running, a knee brace can help. Read this ARTICLE about knee braces with running. JOI can help diagnose knee pain. Watch this VIDEO why knee pain can’t wait for treatment.

If you are interested in scheduling an appointment at JOI Rehab for physical therapy, call . If you need to see a JOI Orthopaedic Knee Specialist, please callschedule online or click below.

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Knee Pain At Night: Causes And Treatments

Joint pain at night can be caused by arthritis, bursitis, and torn cartilage, among other things. Sharp stabbing pain in your knee, which is most commonly caused by torn cartilage, is most likely caused by torn cartilage. It can also be caused by a variety of factors, including overuse, obesity, or a previous knee injury. At night, the most common cause of knee pain is osteoarthritis, the most common form of arthritis. As we age, our cartilage thins, and the bursa in our joints becomes less elastic.

What Are The Symptoms Of Nerve Pain

Nerve pain often feels like a shooting, stabbing or burning sensation. Sometimes it can be as sharp and sudden as an electric shock. People with neuropathic pain are often very sensitive to touch or cold and can experience pain as a result of stimuli that would not normally be painful, such as brushing the skin.

Its often worse at night. It might be mild or it might be severe.

People who have nerve pain often find that it interferes with important parts of life such as sleep, sex, work and exercise.

Some people with nerve pain become angry and frustrated, and may have anxiety and depression.

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Is The Sound That My Knee Makes Bad

As we reviewed in a popular post about the sounds that our knees make, we discussed that the majority of these sounds are not mechanical or dangerous! That means that you are probably not bone on bone or grinding away the insides of your knee when you bend it. Yes, these sounds can be annoying or even embarrassing, but they are rarely dangerous. The most common cause of this grinding sensation or sound is actually due to inflammation of the tissues inside the knee. You do not need cortisone or lubricating injections to treat these sounds or sensations.

Why Do I Have Pain In The Front Of The Knee

The most common cause of anterior knee pain is often felt to come from a muscular imbalance or a particular pattern of weakness. This will be the case for the majority of you reading this. At least thats what we think is the most common cause. We have come a long way in evaluating runners and other people who present with pain in the front of their knees. They often show the same findings when we use high-speed cameras to videotape them while running or walking. Now, this might be a chicken vs. the egg thing. Right? Which came first, the weakness pattern or the pain? We like to think it was the weakness that came first. We are still working on proving that.

If you are a runner or cyclist, etc then your training may influence your anterior knee pain. If you train too hard, too fast, and too often then you are at a higher risk of developing anterior knee pain. Most amateur runners run too fast on their easy days and too slow on their hard days. Proper base building, for strength, endurance and conditioning our joints to adapt to distance is of paramount importance. Zone 2 running programs are extremely important even for elite runners. Try to keep your training at a continuously progressive pace. You should be slowly increasing the load, distance, or speed over time. Try not to increase your load, eg. distance, speed, etc more than 10% per week. Most runners overuse injuries are training errors.

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Find Treatment For Sharp Pain In The Knee That Comes And Goes At Armor Physical Therapy

You dont have to search far for treatment for sharp pain in the knee that comes and goes. Our team at Armor Physical Therapy is ready and willing to assist you. Well start you off with a free screening, which is designed to pinpoint the root cause of your pain. Then, our therapy specialists will build you an individualized therapy plan intended to reduce your pain.

Things keeping you at home? Were currently offering virtual care andat-home therapy to help you get the care you need right from your home. Additionally, you dont need to get a referral from your doctor to use any of our therapy services.

Take the next step to start getting our help with your knee pain. Contact us today for more information about our services or to schedule your initial appointment.

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What Is Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome

Posted April 10, 2015 by Orthopaedic Specialists

Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome is a term that describes pain experienced in the front of the knee known as the patella or kneecap, and in the femur . This aching pain can develop into a sharp stabbing or a burning sensation with increased activity. Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome is particularly common among athletes, teenagers and people doing physical labor.

Most of the time, Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome originates from the softening of cartilage in the knee caused by overuse, injury, excess weight and the improper alignment of the kneecap. This syndrome may also be referred to as retropatellar pain, anterior knee pain, and chondromalacia patellae.

Most patients describe their pain with activities that involve the bending of the knee. Sudden stabbing pain comes with stair climbing and activities where squatting or kneeling is present. The burning sensation frequently follows prolonged sitting that is accompanied with office work or riding for an extended period on an airplane. A pseudo effect of Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome is felt when patients feel like their knee is going to give out. This is most likely to happen when moving down stairs. Oftentimes, these symptoms are associated with the start of a new activity or increasing the intensity level of recurring activities.

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Your Knee Is Clicking Or Popping

Whether your knee is clicking, locking, or popping, these are all indications that something is not quite right. In some cases, popping may be an indication of a ligament injury such as an anterior cruciate ligament , posterior cruciate ligament , or medial collateral ligament tear. Knee ligament injuries are common sports injuries, but can also occur from high-energy accidents. In addition to popping or clicking, symptoms often include:

• Sudden, severe pain in the knee
• Pain that persists while walking
• The knee abruptly giving out, causing you to fall and feel unstable while walking
• Swelling within 24 hours after the initial injury

Another reason your knee may be popping is because of a meniscus tear. This can often occur along with a knee ligament injury and occurs when the medial meniscus tears. Similar to ACL, PCL, or MCL tears, a meniscus tear occurs from a single, sudden movement such as sports injuries or twisting suddenly. In addition to popping, other symptoms include:

Knee Pain And Arthritis

Knee pain is commonly seen amongst individuals with knee bursitis, torn cartilage, fracture, arthritis, etc. This joint is not a simple structure, which is why the diagnosis of your sore knee is very important.

It is a common misconception that knee pain while walking is a raging cry of aging. But that is not what healthcare professionals say. Early proper diagnosis can greatly slow down the progression of this issue with pain relief.

Knee pain because of arthritis depends on the degree of degeneration and affects an individuals health, such as weight, mobility, etc. Arthritic knee pain comes with a particular sign which is sharp stabbing pain that comes and goes in the form of episodes.

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Possible Causes Of A Burning Or Stabbing Knee Pain

Some knee pain is due to overstretching or excessive strain put on the ligaments and tendons of the knee, possibly by sporting exercise such as athletics or cycling. The ligaments and tendons can become overstressed, irritated and inflamed causing pain. A very common cause of this type of pain is a tear in the meniscal cartilage or surface cartilage of the knee.

For Tendinitis Runners Knee Gout And Bursitis

The treatment for conditions that cause swelling, redness, and dull, burning pain usually starts with resting the joint. Ice your knee to control swelling. Elevate and stay off your joint to promote healing.

Your doctor may recommend or prescribe NSAIDs like ibuprofen. Lifestyle changes, such as wearing protective kneepads and going to physical therapy, can help you manage pain and experience fewer symptoms.

You may need to make changes to your diet, especially if youre treating gout.

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What Causes Sharp Pain In The Knee That Comes And Goes

Pain in the knee can make it harder to enjoy the simple pleasures of life like walking the dog or playing with the grandkids. Pain that comes and goes at seemingly random intervals can be even harder to deal with than constant pain.

Knee pain is all too common in the U.S. Researchers report that about 25% of Americans have frequent knee pain. People dealing with sharp pain in their knee that comes and goes are likely wondering what is causing their pain. There are several issues that could be responsible. However, there are two conditions that are likely the cause of this type of pain.

What Is Nerve Pain

Nerve pain, also called neuralgia or neuropathic pain, occurs when a health condition affects the nerves that carry sensation to the brain. It is a particular type of pain that feels different from other kinds of pain.

There are different types of nerve pain, including:

• post-herpetic this can happen after you’ve had shingles and affects the same area as the shingles rash
• trigeminal causing pain in the jaw or cheek
• occipital causing pain at the base of your skull that can spread to the back of your head
• pudendal causing pain in the saddle area between the legs

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Where Is Your Pain

The location of your knee pain can tell you a lot about what the underlying causes are. Pain on the sides of the knee can often be associated with damage to your ligaments. Pain on the surface of the knee could be a sign of a fracture in your patella.

Pain from inside the knee could be caused by anything from arthritis to a wearing down of the pads that protect and cushion the knee.

Tight Muscles Causing Sharp Stabbing Pain In Knee Comes And Goes

The knee is the most important organ in your body, and it weighs heavily. So any damage or swelling causes a lot of pain. Acute knee pain is primarily temporary and resolves quickly. However, if the sharp stabbing pain in knee comes and goes over and over again, the disease may be a problem.

We have discussed the link between knee pain and inflammation in this blog post read on to find out more.

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Two Issues That Can Cause Sharp Pain In The Knee That Comes And Goes

Knee pain can take many forms. It can feel like a dull ache, or it can feel like your knee is being stabbed. There are even certain knee issues that can lead to a sharp pain in the knee that comes and goes seemingly at random.

Two issues that can cause such an intense and infrequent pain include:

How Do You Describe Your Pain

I know, its a tough question sometimes, Dr. Burg says. But you probably can tell the difference between a dull, throbbing pain and a sharp, burning sensation.

Thats important. A sharp, burning sensation moreoften indicates an irritated nerve rather than a joint or ligament problem. Onthe other hand, you might describe pain from arthritis as more constant andachy.

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