It seems everyone and their mother has experienced some sort of knee pain at least once in their lifetime, and that’s because it’s pretty much true with 1 in 4 of Americans reporting that they have. While it isn’t quite everyone, more than 100 million Americans suffer from chronic pain, with chronic knee pain being the second most common type. Needless to say, your knees are never safe. In fact, studies found that the prevalence of knee pain has increased by 65% over the past 20 years. This is likely due to the fact that many of our days are spent sitting at a desk from 9 to 5, only to come home after picking up some fast food and sitting on the couch to binge-watch the latest Netflix series. We drive to where we need to go, have horrible posture that affects our joints, and don’t pay any mind to our knees until they start bothering us. It makes total sense why knee pain is at an all-time high. Unfortunately, all of this doesn’t make it any easier to deal with, especially when it’s costing you a fortune in treatments, causing you to miss days at work, and making you feel terrible. There is some good news though because knee pain can be treated and healed naturally and effectively. Whether you’re dealing with a form of arthritis or just daily wear and tear, this article has everything you need to know to understand your knee pain and what can be done to start the healing process.
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The 101 on Knee Pain
It doesn’t take much to define knee pain. After all, it’s pain in the knee. Simple enough, right? Well, you aren’t wrong but knee pain can be much more than just pain and discomfort experienced in the knee area. For example, the pain you feel in your knee may not even be coming from your knee at all. Instead, it may actually be a problem associated with the surrounding joints, ligaments and bones. It can also affect the surrounding areas and extend far beyond the knee area.
Knee pain can also be the result of several things, including injury and medical conditions, and sometimes, what seems like no reason at all. It can be triggered by an activity you love or by making a weird tweak. Perhaps it’s a problem that started last week or maybe it’s the result of years of wear and tear that is only starting to show. That’s also not to forget mentioning that knee pain can affect anyone and everyone, no matter your gender, age, physical activity levels, physique and so on and so forth.
Put all of these together and sure, knee pain can be summed up as pain and discomfort experienced in the knee. But now you know that it can be much more complex than that.
Common Causes Knee Pain
As we just discussed, knee pain can be caused by so many different things; it’d be near impossible to sum them up in one simple article. However, there are some common causes of knee pain that the majority of cases pertain to, such as:
- Aging
- Injury
- Medical condition
- Repeated stress on the knee
- Lifestyle factors
Let’s break those down a bit further:
Knee pain can very well be the result of the natural aging process. This cause can be broken down into a vast array of causes in itself. For example, the articular cartilage can break down causing a loss in cushioning which causes the bones to grind together. The muscles and ligaments tend to get weaker with age as well, and the knees absorb a large amount of pressure, so typical wear and tear can be the culprit too. Perhaps you’re dealing with osteoarthritis or experienced a fall due to age. These are all age-related factors that can cause knee pain.
Another common cause of knee pain is injury, and as you likely already know, this can also be separated into different causes. For example, a knee injury can be caused by something simple, such as a slip or fall or an injury can be brought on by more serious causes, such as a traumatic accident or sport game. Injuries can also range in severity, from a typical bump and bruise to more serious injuries including torn cartilage or a sprained or ruptured ligament. As for the most common types of knee injuries, they’re typically related to an ACL injury, fracture, torn meniscus, knee bursitis or patella tendinitis.
Medical conditions can also bring on knee pain and discomfort and come in a variety of shapes and sizes just like the prior causes mentioned. For example, there are all kinds of medical conditions that can cause knee pain, such as infections, arthritis, gout and osteoarthritis, and auto-inflammatory diseases.
Repeated stress placed on your knee can also cause knee pain, as can various lifestyle factors, such as obesity, a lack of exercise, wearing the wrong shoes, and so on and so forth. As such, it’s crucial to speak with a health practitioner to receive a proper assessment of your pain.
Factors That May Increase Your Risk for Knee Problems
Perhaps you have no idea where your knee pain stems from or maybe it comes in random spouts with seemingly no trigger or pattern. Whether it’s random knee discomfort or a full-blown knee injury, there are several factors that can increase your risk for knee problems. Some of these factors are:
- Overweight: Being overweight increases the stress placed on your knee joints, which can cause pain and discomfort even when doing simple activities, such as walking or standing. Being overweight can also increase your risk of developing osteoarthritis, which may lead to long-term knee problems.
- Physical strength and flexibility: Strong knee muscles and knee flexibility are key for stabilizing and protecting your joints, and when they are weak, pain can be the result.
- Lack of exercise: To keep your knees strong and healthy, you need to be exercising regularly or at least getting in a sufficient amount of physical activity into the majority of your days. As such a lack of exercise can cause your knees to become weak or stiff, resulting in pain.
- Certain occupations and activities: There are many occupations and activities that make you more likely to experience knee pain due to the stress put on your knees. For example, this includes jobs that require you to be on your knees often or sports and activities that are more prone to falls, jumps and pivots can increase your chances of knee pain.
- Previous knee injuries: If you’ve had a knee injury before, your chances of experiencing pain and even re-injuring your knee are much higher than those without a prior injury.
- Bad posture: Having poor posture is one of the number one causes of most joint pain, including knee pain, as it disrupts the alignment of your joints.
- Wearing the wrong shoes: Your feet need sufficient support to keep your knees healthy. Otherwise, your knees can tire out and become more prone to acute injuries.
Treatment Options for Knee Pain
From physical therapy and mobility devices to alternative medicine, ancient remedies and lifestyle changes, you have plenty of options when it comes to the type of treatment you use for your knee pain. However, it’s important to consider the cause of your knee pain specifically before selecting a treatment plan. Otherwise, you risk not receiving the proper treatment needed to address the specific issue you’re dealing with. For example, if your knee pain is brought on by wearing the wrong shoes, you don’t need to spend a fortune on physical therapy – just switch your shoes! On the other hand, if your knee pain is being caused by an underlying health condition, taking pain relief medications will only mask the discomfort instead of fixing the real cause.
Here’s a quick look at some of the most common treatments used for knee pain:
- Medications can be used to treat all types of knee pain. However, often come with a list of potential side effects and only soothes your symptoms instead of healing the problem.
- Physical Therapy is a great form of treatment that is designed to heal, repair and strengthen the muscles surrounding your knee for thorough treatment.
- Braces and mobility devices can be used to support the knee and shift pressure away from the area causing you pain, so the area can heal.
- Injections are a medical option where the medication or other substances gets injected into your joint for pain relief. Common types of injections for knee pain are corticosteroids, hyaluronic acid, and platelet-rich plasma.
- Surgery can be used to repair or improve your knee condition so it doesn’t bother you as much. There are different types of surgeries for knees depending on the specific cause/problem you’re dealing with, such as arthroscopic surgery, partial knee replacement surgery, total knee replacement surgery and osteotomy.
Natural Remedies for Knee Pain
If you’re looking for a more natural treatment plan, you have plenty of options for that as well, including natural remedies, alternative therapies and much more. Here are some things you can start doing to experience pain relief and healing as early as today:
- Rub magnesium lotion on your knees for natural pain relief
- Use a numbing agent (like Lidocaine) on the affected knee
- Take a break from normal activities and your knee to rest from repetitive strain
- Use hot and cold compresses to effectively soothe pain and reduce inflammation
- Run a warm bath with a sprinkle of Epsom salt to relax muscles
- Apply compression bandages to help prevent fluid build-up and maintain proper knee alignment, balance and stability
- Elevate your knee up to reduce swelling
- Book an acupuncture appointment to relieve knee pain and improve the movement
- Lay on an acupressure mat to promote healing in the affected area
- There are follow-along exercise programs to treat knee pain. Our recommendations are the Feel Good Knees System and Fix My Knee Pain program.
You use your knees for everything – standing, skipping, dancing, sitting, playing – you name it. When they start producing uncomfortable, painful symptoms, the physical, emotional and mental side effects can really start to take their toll. Fortunately, with the information provided in this article, you can have a better understanding of your knee pain so you can start healing it quickly and effectively.
