Knee pain is a very common complaint and yet the causes can come in many different forms. Pain can be caused by mechanical problems, a sudden injury, or by underlying conditions such as arthritis. In addition to pain, one may have swelling, stiffness and a sense of instability of the knee. Knee pain can also be referred from the hip or lower back dysfunctions.

“Surgery is no more effective than physical therapy and medical management for osteoarthritis of the knee.”
New England Journal of Medicine

Knee injury can happen during any sports activity that includes running, cutting and jumping. Injuries to the knee can also occur with sports activities that require squatting with heavy loads, such as weight lifters. Knee injury can affect the ligaments, tendons, cartilage and with severe injury the bone. Some of the common knee injuries include the ACL, PCL, MCL and torn meniscus.

Sometimes when people have hip or foot pain they alter their gait or the way they walk. Changing walking patterns will cause stress to the knee resulting in knee pain. Knee pain can be referred from the hip, lower back and the ankle; therefore, these areas will need to be evaluated along with the knee.

Different types of arthritis can also cause knee pain. Osteoarthritis is the most common cause of knee pain and is a progression of the cartilage wearing out in the knee joint. Osteoarthritis can worsen due to accumulated use and the wearing down of the cartilage as you get older. Rheumatoid arthritis, which is an autoimmune disease, causes the tissue along the joint to become inflamed. Chronic inflammation often results in damage to the cartilage.

Dealing with knee pain can be very debilitating and affect one’s quality of life and mobility. A complete evaluation by your physical therapist will help determine the cause of your knee pain. Because the source of your knee pain can come from multiple causes, this needs to be identified before a specific treatment is established.

At N-Balance Physical Therapy we begin the assessment by looking at mechanical sources of pain and joint pathology.