Knee Pain

Knee pain refers to pain that occurs in and around your knee joint. Knee pain can be caused by problems with the knee joint itself, or it can be caused by conditions affecting the soft tissues — ligaments, tendons or bursae — that surround the knee.

The severity of knee pain can vary widely. Some people may feel only a slight twinge, while others may experience debilitating knee pain that interferes with their day-to-day activities.

The knee is a complex joint that relies heavily on ligaments and muscles for stability. When pain is perceived as coming from the knee, all the anatomical components need to be examined, and in addition to the knee joint, the low back, pelvis, hip, ankle and foot need to be examined due to the direct influence they have on the knee, and vice versa.

Common Causes Of Knee Pain

  • Arthritis

    Arthritis most often causes problems with the knee joint, but can affect other structures like muscles, tendons and ligaments. Osteoarthritis, the most common form of arthritis in the knee, is caused by the gradual degradation of the cartilage in the joint. Rheumatoid arthritis causes the joint to become inflammed and can often cause destruction of the surrounding cartilage. A deformity often leads to arthritis in the knee, but more often, obesity or excess weight, or repetitive stress injuries from sports are the culprits. Symptoms include pain, swelling, stiffness or locking joints.

  • Cartilage Injuries

    Chondromalacia patella, a softening of the knee cap cartilage, occurs most often in runners, skiers, cyclists and soccer players.

  • Ligament Injuries

    The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) can become sprained and cause a great deal of pain. Injury to the these ligaments is sometimes referred to as a “sprain.” The ACL can become stretched or torn by a sudden or direct impact, such as in an auto accident or football tackle. Injuries to the medial collateral ligaments are often caused by a blow to the outer side of the knee that stretches and tears the ligament on the inner side of the knee. Football and hockey players often incur these kinds of injuries. The injury is often accompanied by a “pop” sound, followed by a buckling of the knee sideways.

  • Iliotibial Band Syndrome

    Inflammation of a tendon and its subsequent rubbing over the outer knee bone is most often caused by stress of long-term overuse, such as sports training. Symptoms include aches or burning sensations at the side of the knee, sometimes the pain can radiate up the side of the thigh.

  • Meniscus Injuries

    Quick twists or rotations of the upper leg or repetitive rotations of the knee while bearing weight can tear the meniscus.

  • Tendon Injuries

    Tendon injuries in the knee can be caused by anything from tendonitis to a ruptured or torn tendon. Overuse can cause the tendon to stretch like a rubber band, later becoming inflamed.

  • Osgood-Schlatter Disease

    This condition is caused by repetitive stress or tension on the upper tibia. The patellar tendon and surrounding soft tissues at the point where the tendon attaches to the tibia can become inflamed. Pre-adolescent boys involved in sports that include frequent running or jumping are particularly prone to this.

  • Referred Pain

    Referred pain can result from low back facet joints, sacroiliac joints, hip joints, and muscles surrounding the knee, nerve compression in the low back, pelvis and thigh, or biomechanical dysfunction of surrounding joints in the feet, hips and pelvis.

How Chiropractic Care Can Help

The knee is a complex joint that relies heavily on ligaments and muscles for stability. When pain is perceived as coming from the knee, all the anatomical components need to be examined, and in addition to the knee joint, the low back, pelvis, hip, ankle and foot need to be examined due to the direct influence they have on the knee, and vice versa.

Pain can often be referred from other structures in the low back, pelvis and hip into the knee.

If other joints in the lower limbs are not working correctly they can put increased stress on the knee joint, resulting in injury over time. Therefore to resolve the knee pain, we may also treat other areas, to maximize long-term improvement.

We utuilize specific chiropractic manipulation techniques to areas of restricted movement in the knee and surrounding joints, to increase movement, improve the function and reduce pain.