Knee Problem--Any suggestions?

In My Humble Opinion
1

I’ve been having some trouble with my right knee on and off for the last year or so. I had attributed it to just generally getting older–it really only bothered me if I overused it or was extra-cold out, etc. In the last few weeks, it’s become more prevalent, most especially when I’m tackling stairs in any direction, and if I try to sit with my leg under me, or cross-legged–it seems that the bend plus the twist is definitely a no-no. I may not notice it when I’m sitting, but I definitely feel it when I try to stand.

I’ve got an appointment with an orthopedist on Monday to get it checked out, so I’m not just trying to suck it up and walk it off. But does anybody have any suggestions about how to minimize pain and suffering until then? It rarely hurts so much I even have to take anything for it, but I’m starting to get aches in other parts of my leg from what I assume is me compensating and trying not to put too much strain on my knee.

I’ve been paying more attention to how I stand and avoiding “locking” it, I’ve been trying to keep it elevated when sitting at home, and I’ve done some icing on and off when it seemed most painful. Are there any other tips or tricks I should use for the next few days? Would an ace bandage or something of the sort do any good? I figure it probably couldn’t hurt, but why spend the time and the discomfort of the bandage if it’s not going to do anything for me?

2

Your knee pain describes mine exactly.

Annoying pain going up and downstairs, plus pain when the knee is twisted in certain ways (e.g. the way I normally sleep).

I’m a runner and I was quite concerned that I had done something bad to my knee over the past ten years, so I went to an orthopedic specialist, as you are doing.
He took some X-rays and had me get an MRI done. In my case he feels it’s some tendinitis in the knee, but he gave me the green light for running.

He told me to stretch before exercise and ice after runs. I also take ibuprofen as needed. He also told me to avoid stairs wherever it is convenient to do so.

Good luck with your knee. Knees are complicated, so keep your doctor’s appointment and get whatever tests done that they ask.

3

Thanks! It’s not so bad that I’ll be devastated if the doctor simply says “live with it.” Unfortunately, I live in a walkup and my bedroom is up another flight of stairs, so avoiding them is not much of an option. Right now, it’s mostly more of an inconvenience than anything–I can’t sit the way I want, and I’m often surprised by a jolt of pain when stepping up on a curb or something. There’s no actual creaking or popping, so I don’t think it’s actually anything terrible. There is occasional pain when walking, but it’s usually right after I get up and if I take enough steps it goes away.

4

You describe me pretty perfectly as well. In my case, the MRI showed a little fluid on the knee and some cartilage loss, but not the meniscus issue we anticipated. The ortho suggested glucosamine with chondrotin, and a series of physical therapy exercises to strengthen the muscles on either side of the knee. No running, stair steppers, treadmills, skiing, or other impact type sports. I bike a couple times a week, do the PT exercises four times a day, use an elliptical, and take the glucosamine religiously, and my pain has decreased significantly in the past few months.

A friend had a similar problem and started taking the gluscosmine; within a week she was back to her full activity level. A friend’s daughter also had the same symptoms, and opted for the PT- once the muscles were built up, she had no other issues. So it’s hopefully a simple fix!

5

Ice it when you can - either an ice bag, or a little cup of water (say, bathroom cup size), frozen, and applied directly to the skin for a couple of minutes (note: common sense, don’t hold it in one place fora long time, etc.).

Your symptoms sound a lot like mine - which have been off and on. About 3 years ago, for whatever reason, my knee hurt like hell for months, at the same time one of my shoulders went into rotator-cuff hell as well. Naturally, that was the shoulder on the side I’d have used for a cane… :(.

Anti-inflammatories can be helpful. Yeah, you don’t like to take anything, but they can really provide good pain relief. I had my gallbladder out while in the midst of the knee-pain fun, and let me tell you, the 10 days where all I could have was Tylenol… kinda sucked.

Stronger NSAIDs can be good as well. Over-the-counter ibuprofen was better than Tylenol, but when the doc gave me a course of diclofenac (Voltaren, actually in an expensive combo pill called Arthrotec) it was so very, very much better. Hint: if doc offers you Arthrotec, ask about getting generic diclofenac and misoprostol (a.k.a. Cytotec) as separate prescriptions. The combo is one of those “they’re both out of patent, but we can patent the combo and charge a LOT more” money grabs. The separate pills would have cost me half as much total.

Avoid hot tubs. Yes, if the knee is hurting, that heat feels so lovely… but the increase in bloodflow seems to increase the intra-knee swelling (for me anyway, and some physical therapists concurred) and my one visit to a hot tub cost me 3 weeks of pain.

One thing the doc may be able to do: injections of artificial joint fluid. I dreaded this (having had some pretty awful steroid shots into my feet)… but it was honestly no big deal. He numbed the injection spot with a bit of that alcohol stuff that evaporates rapidly and chills the skin, and while it wasn’t fun, it wasn’t too bad either. That was done 3 times over 3 weeks, and I do believe it helped. Admittedly, my knee had started feeling a bit better even beforehand, but it really did improve even more. Supposedly those only last a few months, but my knees have been relatively well behaved since then.

Physical therapy might be suggested as well. I’m not a fan. I spent a year doing PT for bum knees 20+ years ago and spent most of that year in a fair bit of pain. And 3 years ago when the doc prescribed it… yep, worsened the pain. I think they feel like they “have to” prescribe PT before trying anything else. I’m sure it helps some conditions, but not mine (worn meniscus, arthritic changes, long-standing tendinitis etc.).