The knee joint is one of the most complex joints. It is subject to heavy stress, so it often causes discomfort. Often knees hurt when squatting. Causes and treatment are presented in the article.
Knee discomfort
Many patients, when contacting a doctor, are interested in why their knees hurt when squatting. The resulting discomfort is often associated with a strong load on the joint. Treatment should be chosen only after the cause is identified, otherwise the pain will still remain.
Incorrectly performed strength exercises can be the main factor of discomfort. The knee hurts when squatting down with old joint injuries. But even in the presence of these factors, one should not exclude degenerative phenomena in them. They can serve as an answer to the question why knees hurt when squatting.
The knee joint is presented as a complex articulation, which is responsible for the functioning of the articulated mechanisms. When moving, he receives the main load. The main work when getting up, running, jumping, walking lies downknee.
Why do knees hurt when squatting? Over time, the joint wears out, first there is a crunch, then a pulling pain. With constant acute pain, you should consult a traumatologist. Severe discomfort is eliminated only by medication. It is difficult for a person to sit down, walk, work. As a result, the joint is destroyed. Disability may occur.
What to look out for?
To prevent disability, you need to be attentive to the body and the symptoms it gives. If your knees hurt, you need to do this:
- Determine when this happens - during squats, after them, while walking or running.
- Set the nature of the syndrome. The pain can be pulling, stabbing, throbbing.
- Reveal duration. The pain appears for a couple of seconds, a minute, or lasts a long time.
If discomfort is due to exercise, check:
- exercise rules;
- foot positioning and load distribution;
- intensity of load on the joint.
If the problem is not in technique, correct position, but in heavy loads, you need to choose a replacement for squats. And when the discomfort is not associated with stress, you should visit a doctor. He will determine why the knees hurt when squatting.
Reasons
The doctor will prescribe therapy after identifying the causes of discomfort. Why do knees hurt when squatting and standing up? This may be related to:
- injuries that went unnoticed;
- pinched nerves;
- inflammation or destructionjoints.
If the discomfort is of a single nature, it can be caused by harmless factors that, if repeated, can lead to serious consequences. If your knee hurts while squatting, the reasons may be:
- hypothermia;
- high heels - more than 6 cm;
- overweight;
- lack of calcium and other valuable components;
- fixing a limb in an awkward position;
- squeezing blood vessels and numbness of the legs;
- fall;
- knee strike.
There may be other factors, if they are present, the site of pain localization should be determined. Why do my legs hurt above the knee after squats? The reason may be in the sprain, deformation and destruction of the cartilaginous tissue of the joint. Why do my legs hurt above the knee after squats? This is associated with inflammation of the knee tendons.
If knees hurt when squatting and standing up, the reasons lie in the sprain or rupture of the ligaments. In the same way, a hernia of the ligamentous-tendon apparatus is manifested. If after squats the pain is sharp and prolonged, then it may be inflammation.
Deformation of the joint with flat feet
Flat feet is a dangerous disease. With it, the foot incorrectly becomes on the supporting surface. This negatively affects the entire skeleton. Flat feet lead to deformation of the big toes, knees, destruction of the hip joints, headache. If the problem is ignored, it destroys the knee cartilage.
Heavy load onthe knee, due to the incorrect position of the foot, “kills” it over time. With a lack of joint-forming components, this process only accelerates. Therefore, a balanced diet is essential.
Flat feet should be treated from childhood, during this period the skeletal system is actively growing and changing. This requires special gymnastics. Teenagers are more difficult to cure the disease. To reduce the negative impact on the joints with flat feet, when squatting with a bar or barbell, you need to use special insoles. In adults, the disease cannot be cured, but the condition of the feet can be improved.
Articular diseases
If knees hurt during squats, then the problem may be in pathological processes. In this case, self-medication is prohibited. Discomfort in the knee joint occurs when:
- Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic ailment in which at the initial stage there is aching pain during joint flexion.
- Gout. In case of illness, s alts in the joint are debugged, which causes sharp pain.
- Deforming osteoarthritis. With it, metabolic abnormalities of the joint occur, in which there are severe pains during physical exertion.
- Tendinitis. This is an inflammation that occurs in the ligaments of the knee. Discomfort is observed with heavy loads.
- Bursitis of the knee. This is an inflammation of the periarticular bag. Pain occurs with active movements.
- Ostechondropathy. Discomfort is felt during active sports, and disappears during rest.
- Arthrosis. This is a disease characterized by the destruction of cartilage. Without treatmentdisability occurs. Pain occurs at rest.
If knees hurt when squatting, treatment should only be performed by a doctor. Therapy is prescribed after identifying a disease that causes unpleasant symptoms.
Adolescents
Pain in the knee can be Osgood-Schlatter disease. With it, a painful bump appears under the patella on the tibia. It is usually detected in adolescents aged 11-15 who are actively involved in sports.
Most often there is pain when squatting. During movement, discomfort is explained by the proximity of the bump to the knee. This disease goes away on its own. The lump usually disappears even if left untreated, so usually no therapy is given.
Diagnosis
What to do if your knees hurt when squatting? You should consult a doctor. The profile specialist will examine the patient. The initial appointment consists of:
- patient survey;
- view medical records;
- visual inspection;
- palpation;
- issuing referrals for tests and research.
When diagnosing, it is important for the patient to follow the recommendations of the doctor. With the help of tests and research, the veracity of the diagnosis and the correctness of the tactics of therapy are guaranteed. Diagnosis is made after:
- blood test;
- urinalysis;
- x-ray examination;
- MRI;
- CT;
- ultrasound;
- knee arthroscopyjoint.
The last examination procedure is considered invasive. It is prescribed for the impotence of other methods and suspicions of a serious ailment of the knee joint.
How to relieve pain?
Research and analysis usually take some time. If your knees hurt when squatting, how to treat? This can only be determined by a doctor. And before the appointment of therapy, you should take care of the joint, reduce the load on it. It is best to secure the joint with an elastic bandage. And if possible, provide him with peace.
Medicines and traditional medicines can be used to reduce pain:
- compresses and knee bandages;
- local painkillers;
- warming ointments;
- massages (very carefully);
- relaxing baths with s alts, esters, herbs.
For persons who cannot even give up sports for a while, it is advisable to choose swimming. It does not give a strong load on the joint, but it does involve the muscles.
Treatment
If knees hurt when squatting, how to treat? The method of therapy is prescribed by the doctor after determining the cause. In addition to the main treatment, it is important to adhere to several recommendations:
- When establishing an injury, the knee joint does not need to be strained. Sports and heavy traffic are prohibited. This is required to prevent consequences and complications.
- If arthritis is diagnosed, then non-steroidal drugs are prescribed.
- With gout, you need to adjust the diet, remove foods with a large amount of purine bases from it.
- If notdeformation and degradation of cartilage tissue, neoplasms in the joint, exercise therapy is prescribed.
All of these measures cannot be self-imposed, as some of them may have the opposite effect. After exercise therapy, rest is needed. If any exercise causes pain, it should be abandoned completely.
Best drugs
The list of medicines and the duration of treatment are determined by the disease. Doctors often prescribe the following remedies:
- Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. They eliminate active inflammation, in which other means may be ineffective. In medicine, NSAIDs with acetylsalicylic acid, phenylbutazone, etodolac, indomethacin, diclofenac are used. Although the drugs have a strong anti-inflammatory effect, they should not be used for a long time.
- Corticosteroids. They are used when past drugs have not had the desired effect.
- Non-narcotic and narcotic analgesics. Their main task is to eliminate the main symptom - pain. Non-narcotic drugs ("Paracetamol", "Analgin", "Metindol") do not disrupt respiratory function, do not lead to addiction compared to narcotic analgesics (opiates, codeines). Such drugs have a less pronounced analgesic effect and are sometimes useless for severe pain. Narcotic analgesics also help with severe discomfort, but are rarely used.
- Muscle relaxants. These are drugs that relax the muscles aroundknee joint. It often happens that muscle spasm is considered an additional cause of pain. Of the muscle relaxants, the best are Myokain, Sibazon, Mydocalm.
- Chondroprotectors. The drugs feed the joint with glucosamine and chondroitin. These components are important for the structural integrity and he alth of the joint. They are found in articular tissue and intra-articular fluid. They take such funds for a long time - from 1 month to 3 years.
Physiotherapy
Such procedures restore the exchange in the joint, which regulates regeneration and restores the articulation. With pathologies of the joint, the sessions help the patient:
- massage and osteopathy;
- bath;
- laser therapy, ultrasound, UVT, electrophoresis, heating;
- ozone.
Physiotherapy is often supplemented with other methods. But it should be borne in mind that only a doctor can refer to procedures. In some diseases, heating and laser therapy are contraindicated.
Classes
Can I do squats if my knees hurt? It is better to consult a doctor about this issue. Sometimes specialists allow you to practice, but it is important to follow a few simple rules:
- It is important to establish when pain occurs when squatting. If the incomplete squat does not cause discomfort, then it can be done.
- The leg press is also performed.
- Knees should be fixed with elastic bandages. It should not be wrapped too tightly. It's important that it doesn't deliverinconvenience.
- You need to warm up well, preferably on an exercise bike. It provides maximum safe warming up of the joints.
- Warming ointments are suitable. But if the skin is sensitive, then the product will only harm.
- Weights should be increased gradually and slowly.
- Must take chondroitin and glucosamine, vitamins, unsaturated fatty acids.
You need to be careful about your he alth. With acute pain and discomfort in the knee, you can not exercise with weight. It is advisable to postpone training until you consult a doctor.
exercise therapy
Therapeutic exercise can go into treatment or prevention. Joint he alth requires moderate exercise. Physical exercises strengthen the muscles, disperse the blood. As a result, the frame that supports the joint acquires tone. The articulation is perfectly saturated with oxygen and valuable components.
Effective moderate exercise for the elderly. The list of exercises and the number of approaches depends on the violation. But there are activities that are useful for almost everyone:
- "Scissors".
- "Bicycle".
- Raising the legs in a supine position on the side or back.
- Kneel extension in seated position.
Yoga, swimming are effective for joints. These sports provide moderate exercise and do not overburden them. If your knees hurt, you need to be careful about running, exercising on simulators, powerlifting. These activities put a lot of stress on the joints, which can only exacerbate the pathology.
Food
Bnutrition is of great importance in the treatment of the joint. In case of discomfort, you should pay attention to products that restore the joint, saturate it with valuable components. To strengthen it, you need to eat foods with:
- Vitamin D. It is found in mushrooms, herbs, fish, chicken eggs, dairy products.
- Vitamin A. They are rich in vegetable oils, such as sea buckthorn, as well as carrots and pumpkin.
Calcium is a valuable component for joints. It is found in drinking water, meat, dairy products, green vegetables, nuts. With joint problems in the diet should be foods rich in hyaluronic acid. It is present in soy, cold, rich broths.
It is important to remember about the drinking regime. With a lack of fluid, metabolic processes are inhibited. All people need to drink at least 2 liters of water per day to replenish the water balance.
Prevention
To prevent damage to the joints, to reduce the likelihood of inflammation, you need to take preventive measures. It is important to observe them when playing sports. If the pain is periodic, then the following recommendations will help:
- Before exercising, you need a warm-up.
- After them rest is needed.
- Squat technique must be perfect.
- When pain occurs, reduce the intensity of the exercise to protect against injury and joint deformity.
- Harmful hypothermia of the joints.
- Timely treatment of all diseases is required.
- Food should bebalanced.
Such measures will prevent painful sensations in the joints. And if, nevertheless, discomfort appears, you should not ignore the problem, it is important to immediately consult a doctor.
