Joint pain is a common symptom that occurs in various diseases. In most cases, arthralgia occurs with movements and great physical exertion. Less commonly, pain disturbs a person at rest, as well as at night. According to the majority, arthralgia develops in old age in almost everyone. This is actually not the case. Often young people complain that their knee is aching. The causes of this symptom may not be associated with age-related changes in bone and articular tissue. It happens the other way around: in some cases, the joints do not bother a person to a very old age.
The knee is a large joint made up of several anatomical structures. These include the heads of the tibia and tibia, as well as the femur. They are interconnected by cartilage and menisci. Also in the composition of the knee there are several ligaments. They are needed for its strength and motor function. These include the anterior and posterior cruciate, as well as the lateral ligaments. The joint covers the joint. So why does aching knee pain occur? The reasons may be associated with the defeat of any of the anatomical formations that make up the joint.
Pain in the knee is an unpleasant symptom that interferes with sports, exercise habitual movements and even sleep. To get rid of it, you need to seek help as soon as there are discomfort. Even minor pain can indicate a serious joint pathology. Complaints of discomfort in the knee should be consulted by a general practitioner. He will prescribe examinations, after which he will determine the cause of the pain and refer to a specialist. Joint pathologies are carried out by rheumatologists, surgeons and orthopedists.
Aching pain in the knee: causes
The causes of such pain can be various ailments. Discomfort during exercise often indicates the presence of any kind of injury. Pain sensations develop with inflammation and destruction of the joint. Also, pathologies that are not associated with damage to the osteoarticular system should be attributed to the reasons. Therefore, the doctor must conduct a qualitative differential diagnosis if the patient has knees that are sore and aching. The causes of this symptom may be the following:
- Inflammatory pathology. These include chases and bursitis. Various bacteria and viruses that penetrate the knee joint through the hematogenous route can cause inflammatory damage. Also, pathogens enter the joint cavity when it is damaged, integrity is violated. Inflammation of the knee joint itself is called gonitis, and the protective bag is called bursitis. Most often, these pathologies lead to the fact that the knee aches at rest. The causes of inflammatory diseases lie in the infection of various microbes and the spread of the latter throughout the body.
- Systemic pathologies of connective tissue. The most common of these ailments is rheumatoid arthritis. It affects almost all joints. This pathology leads to irreversible destruction and curvature of the knee joints. Also, such inflammatory processes include systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatism. With these diseases, patients do not always complain that the knee hurts. The causes of aching pain lie in the temporary inflammation of the joints. Unpleasant sensations are often observed either in one joint or in another. These pathologies rarely lead to joint deformation.
- Ankylosing spondylitis. This is a severe progressive pathology of the osteoarticular system, which can lead to complete immobility of a person. The disease affects the spine to a greater extent, but in the initial stages there is aching pain in the legs below the knee. The reasons for its appearance are not fully understood. It is believed that the disease is inherited or occurs due to genetic changes.
- Gout is an metabolic disorder in which uric acid crystals accumulate in the joint cavity. Most often, it affects the metatarsophalangeal joints of the big toes, but over time, other joints are involved. No exception and the knee joints.
- Traumatic lesions. These include: bruising of the knee joint, rupture of ligaments, meniscus damage, fractures of bones that make up the joints. Sometimes with injuries, hemarthrosis can form - an accumulation of blood. It accumulates in the joint cavity, leading to its compression, impaired function and pain. Inflammatory exudate may also form.
- Connective tissue neoplasms are often the reason that the knee aches. The reasons may lie both in the appearance of benign tumors, and in the occurrence of oncological pathologies. Most often, neoplasms of joints and bones are diagnosed in young and childhood.
Unpleasant sensations that occur above or below the knee are associated with diseases of the muscles and nerves. Also, pain can appear due to excessive physical exertion. Including overweight. In some cases, unpleasant sensations arise due to impaired blood supply.
Night pain in the knee
If the discomfort during the day can be explained by excessive loads, then what about the fact that feet are aching below the knees at night? The reasons for this phenomenon may also be different. In some cases, they are associated with muscle diseases, sometimes with a violation of the blood supply or innervation. Aching pain is often accompanied by cramps or unpleasant twitching of the legs. Naturally, such symptoms interfere with normal sleep. To cope with this problem, you should consult a doctor. In some cases, pain occurs due to a deficiency of trace elements in the body. Among them are calcium and magnesium.
Women more often complain that they bend their legs below the knees at night. The reasons can be hormonal changes. With a lack of estrogens, the level of calcium decreases markedly, resulting in unpleasant sensations in the muscles of the legs. A decrease in the amount of female sex hormones occurs during pregnancy, lactation and during menopause.
Wearing high-heeled shoes throughout the day also causes pain below the knee in the evening and at night. In order not to develop serious circulatory disorders, shoes should be changed. The causes of discomfort below the knee include varicose veins and other vascular pathologies. To identify them, you should do an ultrasound of the arteries and veins of the lower extremities with dopplerography.
Unpleasant sensations on the back of the knee
Despite the fact that the knee joint protrudes forward, pain sometimes occurs on its back surface. They can be associated with various muscle pathologies, as well as with being in the wrong position (prolonged sitting with bent legs). In some cases, the causes of aching pain under the back knee lie in excessive motor loads. Most people note discomfort in this area after intense training, lifting in the mountains, cycling. In such cases, pain under the knee on the back of the leg is not a pathology. It is associated with stretching muscle fibers. Most often, unpleasant sensations disappear on their own in 2-3 days.
Sometimes patients complain that the knee is constantly aching from behind. The reasons in this case often lie in the traumatic lesions of the ligamentous apparatus. Pain under the knee can occur due to damage or rupture of the meniscus. The occurrence of swelling in the popliteal fossa may indicate the presence of a benign neoplasm. In this area, a Becker cyst is often found, which consists of connective tissue and is located in the cavity of the joint capsule. It does not transform into cancer, but it can increase in size and squeeze the surrounding tissue. As a result, pain and impaired motor function occur. Due to excessive loads, meniscus cysts may form. Often they are found in people involved in sports.
Knee injuries
Sometimes patients complain that after an injury the knee periodically aches. Causes of discomfort are associated with improper healing of the lesion or lack of proper treatment. The following injuries can lead to aching pain:
- Bruised knee. It develops as a result of a fall or impact. A bruise is considered one of the mildest traumatic lesions.
- Dislocation of the patella. It occurs due to large loads on the joint. Often the dislocation is associated with the unwinding of the joint.
- Sprain. Occurs as a result of lifting weights, long jumps, sliding on ice. In addition to the ligaments, you can stretch the tendons of the knee joints.
- Meniscus tear. This injury is quite dangerous. Unlike the injuries listed above, a meniscus rupture is accompanied by severe pain and restriction of movement. It is often combined with trauma to the cruciate ligament located inside the joint.
- Cracks in the articular surface of the bones. Occur due to shock.
- Bone fracture in the knee. This injury is accompanied by severe pain when trying to bend the leg. Fractures occur in athletes, as well as in the elderly. More often they are diagnosed among the female population. This is due to osteoporosis, a bone disease that develops due to calcium deficiency.
- Violation of the structure of cartilage.
Any knee injury is accompanied by pain. In some cases, the discomfort increases gradually, some time after the damage. In this case, aching and pulling pains prevail during walking and physical exertion. Not only injuries, but also degenerative pathologies can lead to a violation of the integrity of the anatomical structures that make up the knee joint.
Muscle disease
Unpleasant sensations that occur above or below the knee joint often develop due to damage to muscle tissue. In addition to ordinary overwork or stretching, there are many pathologies of striated muscles. Some diseases belong to the group of genetic lesions and develop gradually, leading to disability at a young age. Others - indicate the presence of systemic pathology. The most “harmless" muscle diseases include myositis - inflammation of the striated muscles. Some patients complain that their legs are aching above the knees. The causes of this symptom are various. These include injuries and inflammatory pathologies of soft tissues, neoplasms, inflammatory diseases of bones, nerves and blood vessels.
In some cases, discomfort on the anterior surface of the leg above the knee occurs due to necrosis of the femoral head. It develops due to destruction of the joint. The causes of necrosis include coxarthrosis, poliomyelitis, bone tuberculosis , etc. Unpleasant sensations above the knee on the back of the thigh often arise from pathologies of the spine and impaired innervation. The cause may be a hernia of the lumbar. Inflammatory diseases include sciatica - damage to the sciatic nerve. It develops as a result of hypothermia.
Blood supply below the knee
Sometimes pain in the knee is not associated with a violation of the integrity of the joint. Unpleasant sensations can be localized below the joint and indicate pathologies of arteries or veins. The most common of these is varicose veins. It consists of pathological tortuosity and expansion of the veins of the lower extremities. At the same time, constant aching pains below the knee are noted, especially in the shin area. Unpleasant sensations in the initial stages of the development of pathology occur after a long walk. Then they appear at rest. Complications of varicose veins include a disease such as thrombophlebitis.
Atherosclerosis of the lower extremities, diabetes mellitus and Lerish's syndrome lead to arterial damage. These diseases are accompanied by a gradual narrowing of the lumen of the vessels and a violation of the blood supply to the leg. In addition to painful sensations, patients note a cooling of the extremities and a decrease in sensitivity. Gradually, pulsation of the arteries disappears and trophic ulcers develop. If pathologies are diagnosed in a timely manner, serious complications can be avoided.
Causes of aching muscle pain
Patients often say they have aching knees at night. The causes of these unpleasant sensations may be associated with muscle pathologies. The most common of them is considered an inflammatory disease of the muscles - myositis. This ailment develops as a result of hypothermia or the spread of infection by the hematogenous route from other lesions. Pain often occurs in the calf muscles. Due to the fact that the knee joint is located near the lower leg, inflammation can go to the muscles and the ligamentous apparatus of the joint. The pain is more pronounced at night, as during the day a person spends time on his feet and does not notice discomfort. Some bacterial and viral infections are accompanied by myositis. These include influenza, tuberculosis, HIV and other diseases.
Rheumatoid arthritis and systemic lupus erythematosus may be associated with muscle discomfort. With these ailments, systemic inflammation of all connective tissues, including striated muscle, develops. Constant muscle pain is noted with dermatomyositis. Similar diseases are treated by a rheumatologist. It helps stop or slow the progression of a pathology.
Legs below the knees hurt and ache: reasons than to treat
To relieve pain in the knees, various methods of treatment are used. Among them - medication and physiotherapy, surgical intervention. The choice of treatment tactics depends on the nature of the pathology. First of all, the doctor finds out why the legs are aching below the knees (causes). How to treat a pathology should be decided by a specialist! If aching pain has arisen due to myositis, anti-inflammatory drugs and antibiotics are prescribed. With sciatica, the use of warming ointments, physiotherapy treatment is recommended.
If the cause of knee pain is injury, surgical treatment may be required. It is carried out with ruptures of ligaments and menisci, fractures. Joint replacement is indicated in cases where marked tissue destruction is noted. Surgery may be required for vascular disease. With systemic pathologies of the joints, hormonal drugs and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are prescribed.
Drugs for aching pain
What to do if there is a aching knee pain? The causes and treatment of articular pathologies are interrelated. Before conducting therapeutic measures, it is necessary to find out why the pain appeared. The drugs used to treat joints include Artoxan, Melbek, and Diclofenac medicines. If the cause of the disease is systemic inflammation, glucocorticoids are prescribed. These include the drugs "Hydrocortisone" and "Prednisolone." Also, the medicine “Methotrexate” is used to treat rheumatoid arthritis. For unpleasant sensations caused by inflammation of the sciatic nerve, painkillers and B vitamins are prescribed.
Physiotherapy for joint pathologies
What else can you do if your knees ache? Both the causes and treatment of joint diseases with non-drug methods should be consulted with a doctor. To reduce the intensity of discomfort and prevent complications, various exercises are prescribed. These include flexion and extension of the knees, rotation of the joints, squats. It is worth remembering that a large load is contraindicated. Exercises can not be done with bone fractures and in the postoperative period. If the pain is caused by chronic destructive pathologies, physiotherapy in the early stages is very important. It allows you to slow down the pathological process for a long time.