Inner Knee Pain: Common Causes, Treatment, And Prevention
Inner knee pain, also known as medial knee pain, is a common disease among Americans. It may be a symptom of many knee conditions or injuries for most people who are suffering due to inner knee pain. This condition may prevent you from normal walking or running.
Many people do not give much importance to their inner knee pain and do not take proper treatment either. Though medial knee pain is not a severe condition, it may lead you to several health problems. A few years ago, it was quite normal among adults. But, recently many studies reported that both children and adults are having issues related to inner knee pain.
So, this article will give you an idea of inner knee pain including the common cause, treatment, prevention, and more. If you are a person who has a high risk of inner knee pain or if you are a person who is suffering due to medial knee pain, this article will help you to get the perfect way to get rid of the situation. So, without any ado, let’s begin!
What Is Inner Knee Pain?
Inner Knee pain or Medial Knee pain is a situation in which you feel pain on the side of your knee near the middle of your body and next to your other knees. You feel a sharp pain in the medial side of your knee joint and there is a chance for pain beneath your kneecap too. Many people have swelling in the knee at the time of this condition. Gradually you may feel difficulties while running, climbing stairs, walking, or at the time of rising from a seated position. However, the pain will happen at any moment when you stress on the knee joint.
Common Causes
There are many causes for having inner knee pain and the common cause and risk factors are listed below:
- Overuse: Overuse of the knee is the most common cause of medial knee pain for many people. Your body has a maximum capacity to do work and when you overuse the body parts like the knee, it will slow down its work. Continuous running, repeated bending and kneeling, and other continuous actions will cause inner knee pain.
Aging is an important factor when talking about the overuse of the knee. When you get older, the fibrous tissues between your bones get thinner and it causes bone-on-bone contact that leads you to severe pain.
- Weakness in muscles: Weakness in your muscles also causes inner knee pain. Because the muscles in the front and back of your thighs are supporting your knees to stay stable and flexible. So, when the muscles are weakening, it will affect the balance and flexibility of the knee. Muscle tightness also causes knee pain. That is stretching is important for the proper functioning of the knee.
- Bursitis: Bursae is a fluid-filled sac that cushions your knee bones and eases the functioning of the knee. Overuse and aging may cause the inflammation of the bursae and it leads to the condition called bursitis.
- Medial meniscus tear: Medial meniscus is rubbery cartilage that helps to stabilize the knee. A tear of the medial meniscus causes sharp pain on the knee even when you move your knee. Osteoarthritis also causes this type of pain in most people.
- Plica syndrome: Plica syndrome also causes inner knee pain in many people. The plica is a fold that presents in the membrane of your knee. The plica situated in the middle of your knee becomes irritated and it is called plica syndrome. It gradually leads to medial knee pain too.
- Misalignment of kneecap: Misalignment of the kneecap is another common cause of inner knee pain. In this condition, your kneecap pushes down to one side of the trochlear groove while you are bending. It extremely irritates the area and causes severe pain.
Treatment For The Inner Knee Pain
There are different types of treatment for inner knee pain starting from home remedies to high-tech medical procedures. You can choose the treatment according to your wish and expect complete relief from the inner knee pain.
A few home remedies are given below:
- Applying ice pack: Applying an ice pack to your knee will help you to reduce the pain in an instant. It will also help you to decrease inflammation by reducing blood flow to the injured tissues. You can use the ice pack for 15 to 20 minutes and continue the usage several times a day.
- Applying heat: Mildly applying the heat to your knee will improve the blood flow and support the mobility of the tissues. You can apply the heat for 5 to 10 minutes and stick to this habit even after the reduction of pain will help you to feel better knee movement.
- Proper exercise: Muscle weakening is the main cause of inner knee pain. So, proper exercise can strengthen the muscle and it also supports knee mechanism. Slow exercise is better to get rid of knee pain. You can do exercises like straight leg lifts, leg presses, mini squats, and more.
Other Treatments
If you did not get rid of the inner knee pain, you can consult an orthopedic surgeon and they will give proper treatment for you. Anti-inflammatory drugs, injection of cortisone, viscosupplementation, or knee surgery can help you to get a permanent solution for your inner knee pain. An assistive device and physical therapy also help you to smoothen the knee movements.
How To Prevent Inner Knee Pain?
A few tips that help you to prevent inner knee pain are listed below:
- Control your body weight
- Minimize the knee movements
- Maintain proper exercise
- Eat nutritious food, especially food rich in omega-3s ( salmon, tuna, sardines, etc. )
- Avoid the activities that cause knee pain
- Seek medical help as soon as possible
Conclusion
Inner knee pain can happen suddenly or gradually, with or without any reason. So, it is a common condition all over the world. It is necessary to know the prevention method and treatments to stay against severe conditions.
I hope this article will help you to get the information about inner knee pain and hope you will try the remedies mentioned in this article. Try those remedies and prevent the situations that cause inner knee pain. And wish you healthy knee movements!
PainPathways Magazine
PainPathways is the first, only and ultimate pain magazine. First published in spring 2008, PainPathways is the culmination of the vision of Richard L. Rauck, MD, to provide a shared resource for people living with and caring for others in pain. This quarterly resource not only provides in-depth information on current treatments, therapies and research studies but also connects people who live with pain, both personally and professionally.
View All By PainPathways