The human body is unique. All organs and systems in it are interconnected. Ideally, it should function without any difficulty. It can also be compared to a mechanism in which all the work is adjusted. But, as with all mechanisms, failures sometimes occur in the body. Most often it is associated with a disease of some organ. And if the unpleasant symptoms do not stop, the person begins to sound the alarm.
Pain in the knee joint
If a person has a knee pain on the side, from the outside, you should immediately contact a specialist. Of course, this can be a one-time situation that is not associated with diseases. In the case when it becomes difficult to move, discomfort occurs, it is recommended to pay special attention to this. Since pain can indicate many ailments and disorders. Most often, athletes complain about discomfort in the knee.
But knee pain is notonly the prerogative of athletes. Complaints about such an unpleasant symptom more often began to come from both office workers and housewives. This is because an unhe althy lifestyle and malnutrition weakens the body, does not allow minerals and nutrients to be fully supplied.
How can a knee hurt?
Unpleasant sensations in the knee joint may indicate inflammatory processes, injuries and various pathologies. It all depends on the nature of the pain, the condition of the tissues and bones. There may be complaints that the knee hurts from the side, from the outside, internal joint pain, discomfort from the inside, and much more. Also, experts divide pain into acute and chronic. Acute lasts from several minutes to hours, chronic - occurs in periods, from remission to intensification. How can knee discomfort manifest itself:
- Symptoms are local, discomfort occurs in the joint.
- Characteristic of acute, moderate and chronic pain.
- Often there is a non-acute course of the disease. Discomfort occurs gradually, gradually increasing and limiting the leg in motion.
- The knee hurts on the side from the outside, it hurts to unbend after sitting.
- There are periods of remission. Symptoms disappear or occur very rarely.
- Unpleasant sensations intensify in the evening, when the knee joints are at rest.
- Visible external signs of the disease are knee deformities.
- In the morning, the joint does not work, the process becomes more difficultleg flexion and extension.
- In the inflammatory process, the pain is acute.
- External swelling and redness are often observed.
- Severe crunching and pain.
- Instability of the whole organism, fear of damaging the joint even more.
This is only a small part of what can manifest itself in diseases of the knee joints.
Anatomy
In order to find out why the knee hurts from the side, from the outside, it is recommended to understand the structure of this organ. Basically, the cause of all misfortunes is hidden in the knee joint. It is considered one of the most difficult in the whole body. The main function of the joint is flexion and extension. In its structure, it includes many ligaments, articular bags and condyles. It seems to control two huge levers - the bones of the lower extremities. Attached to the knee are two large bones: the femur and tibia. There is also another bone - the patella. One can only imagine what enormous loads the knee joint experiences, it, like a shock absorber in a car, makes the movement of a person smooth and without sudden movements.
You should know that the surface of the bones that connect to each other are not the same. Between them are special plates shaped like a crescent. There are also many ligaments in the cartilage that allow the knee to move. There is a synovial sac in the joint that performs several functions. Firstin turn, a special fluid is formed in it, lubricating the knee. It is in it that inflammatory processes often occur.
Pain on the outside of the knee
When it hurts under the knee from the side, from the outside, there may be several reasons. It all depends on the nature and duration of the pain syndrome. Most common reasons:
- Injury to the ligaments that are located on the outside. Most often occurs with stretching, with swelling observed.
- Inflammatory processes in the tendon. Localization of discomfort occurs under the knee and from the inside. The process of inflammation may be accompanied by clicks.
- It could also be ligament irritation, which is most commonly seen in athletes.
But it is recommended to remember that asking a question about why the knee hurts from the side, from the outside, is best for a specialist. He will be able to correctly diagnose, make a complete diagnosis and prescribe effective treatment.
The knee hurts from the side, from the outside, when bending
If there is a sharp pain, then the person immediately begins to sound the alarm. Since the result of this can be serious consequences and disorders in the body. And if the pain occurs during flexion and extension of the leg, then this, in turn, hampers movement. And then it can lead to dysfunction of the leg. Difficulties in diagnosing the causes of such a symptom is that the knee joint is complex in structure. And withstanding huge physicalloads, can often fail. The reason for this is its anatomical structure, which is considered one of the weakest, prone to deformation.
If the knee hurts from the side, from the outside, it hurts to unbend after sitting, this may indicate an injury. And also about the increased loads on the leg. It could also be osteochondropathy. The onset of the disease can occur in adolescence, when not all joints are formed yet. This age is considered transitional and vulnerable due to a hormonal surge. The body begins to rebuild, reaches puberty and all organs are finally formed. The disease is not dangerous if it is cured in time, otherwise it becomes chronic. Subsequently, in adulthood, a person faces such a problem with prolonged and intense loads on the legs.
Pain when walking
If there are no pathological and visible sensations, but a person feels that the knee hurts on the side from the outside when walking, there may be reasons such as:
- Various injuries, accompanied by the destruction of cartilage and ligaments. This also includes bruises, in which there was a fall on the cup, blows against heavy and hard objects. The first symptoms will be acute pain when walking, blood spots and bruises in the area of the knee joint, swelling. It can also be displacements, sprains, fractures and dislocations.
- Osteochondropathy (or as experts call it, Osgood's disease-Schlatter). Appears in adolescence, pain also occurs in the area under the kneecap.
- Stopping the blood supply to a certain area. With such a disease, the area that does not have a blood supply dies off. Dead cells get inside the joint and the inflammatory process begins.
In the case when discomfort occurs after aerobic exercise, this may indicate diseases such as bursitis and tendinitis. It should be remembered that when the knee hurts from the side, from the outside, for a long period of time, you need to urgently contact a specialist.
When knee discomfort occurs at night
Most often in everyday life and bustle, a person does not always pay attention to discomfort in the kneecaps. Heavy employment and many factors that distract attention can simply drown out visible symptoms. And already in the evening, after a hard day's work, a person begins to listen to his body. And just then those symptoms that have been hidden for a long period of time may appear. Causes of pain at night are:
- Gout is a metabolic disease. It mainly occurs due to malnutrition, when s alt metabolism is disturbed. Even with such a disease, the knee hurts on the side from the outside when pressed
- Arthritis - the pain is present throughout the day, intensifies in the evening and is accompanied by an increase in body temperature.
- Thrombosis - occurs due to blockage of the veinsand insufficient blood supply.
This is just a small part of what can cause discomfort at night.
Causes of knee pain
In fact, there are a lot of causes of knee joint disease. It depends not only on external factors, but also on internal ones. So, for example, if the human body does not receive enough nutrients, then disturbances begin to occur in all organs. Accordingly, normal functioning is disrupted and this manifests itself in a number of diseases.
Some of the most common reasons are:
- Injuries.
- Overload, especially if it occurs in old age.
- Inflammation.
- Metabolic disorders.
- Degeneration.
- Congenital genetic changes.
- Hormonal disorders.
- Bad habits.
- Overweight.
- Diseases of the gastrointestinal tract.
- Diabetes mellitus.
- Infectious diseases.
If you lead a he althy lifestyle, eat right and get rid of all bad habits, you can avoid many diseases. It all depends on the person and his attitude to his he alth.
Diagnosis of disease
To conduct a correct diagnosis, when the knee hurts from the side, from the outside, the treatment should be prescribed, you need to contact only a specialist. Diagnosis includes:
- External examination of the problem area.
- Collecting an anamnesis, which can determine the cause of the disease.
- Collecting data aboutpainful sensations and their localization.
- Tests to clarify the diagnostic result.
- X-ray.
- If possible, the patient undergoes an ultrasound.
- Angiography, in which the doctor looks at the veins of the legs.
- If necessary, the patient undergoes a full computer diagnostics.
- Analysis of blood, urine.
- If necessary, puncture.
All the data collected will help provide a complete picture of the cause and nature of the pain, as well as make it possible to prescribe effective treatment.
The knee hurts from the side, from the outside: how to treat?
The causes of the disease can be different, the correct diagnosis will be able to identify them. Only after the causes of pain are known, the specialist will prescribe treatment. There are also general rules for various diseases that you should follow:
- Reduce stress on the knee joint.
- Do not warm up.
- Purchase orthopedic shoes or insoles.
- For severe pain, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are prescribed.
- In case of infection, antibiotics are used.
- Various ointments, gels, compresses are used.
You should also follow all doctor's orders.
Prevention of joint diseases
In order to be he althy and not face serious consequences, you should follow the basic rules, such as:
- He althy eating.
- Weight normalization.
- Rejection of bad habits.
- Activelifestyle.
- Load regulation.
A person should lead a he althy lifestyle and take care of himself, since in many ways his well-being depends on himself.
