When bending and unbending, a crunch in the knee occurs most often in people who are over 50 years old. Such complaints are also found among young people, however, they are much less common, and, as a rule, they are associated only with injuries in sports. Long exhausting workouts can also lead to similar problems. In medical terms, the crunch is officially called crepitus. It occurs due to the fact that air bubbles burst in the joint. This manifestation is also associated with a sedentary lifestyle.
This condition is considered non-serious as it passes easily. If such a pathology occurs, then, as a rule, the mechanism is due to the fact that, due to the lack of air, the joints rub against each other. Crepitus is sometimes considered an independent symptom, in some cases it may be accompanied by pain, swelling.
If we talk about the reasons that provoke such a problem, we can single out injuries. Also, crunching often occurs due to obesity, because excess weight has a strong effect on the joints. Wrong shoes can also be the cause. Especially when it comes to flat soles or high heels. As a result of wearingshoe models, the cartilage is deformed.
Causes of occurrence
Most often, the causes of crunching in the knees lie in any problems or such a symptom is associated with lifestyle. It should be noted that there are also the main factors that affect the condition of the knee joint.
The main ones should be called fractures, dislocations, obesity, bursitis, arthritis, gonarthrosis, as well as damage to ligaments and tendons. Let's take a closer look at some of the reasons below. Often in teenagers, a crunch in the knees occurs due to sports.
Gonarthrosis
Gonarthrosis is a disease that is associated with a violation of the supply of nutrients to the tissues of any joint. In this regard, the cartilage quickly wears out and deforms. This disease, if left untreated, in any case leads to disability, so the consequences should be feared. This disease is more common in women than in the opposite sex. The older the person, the greater the risk of occurrence.
Types of gonarthrosis
There are several types of gonarthrosis. There are primary and secondary. The latter occurs if a person has disorders inside the joint. External lesions are also taken into account. These include injuries, fractures, operations, and so on. Dislocations also provoke the occurrence of this pathology. Often with such a disease, there is a crunch and pain in the knee when walking.
Primary gonarthrosis occurs when a person has problems with hormones,genetics or even metabolism. As the disease progresses, the symptoms become pronounced, which ultimately affects the person's well-being.
The disease begins to develop from the first stage. It is characterized by cartilage damage. Cells begin to break down, so they cannot regenerate cartilage if injured.
For a long time the disease progresses to the fifth stage. This is the last and most serious. This stage indicates that the cartilage is already quite damaged in a person, and it is almost impossible to get rid of such a problem.
One of the symptoms that indicate the presence of such a problem is pain in the knee. When walking, as well as during other active actions, it will be greatly aggravated, especially when it comes to hypothermia in cold and wet weather. Most often, such a disease at the primary stage worries only in the morning, and practically does not manifest itself during the day. Over time, swelling develops, it will be quite difficult to straighten the leg, and in the last stages it will be very difficult for a person to walk.
Meniscus problems
Due to this disease, a crunch in the knees appears constantly during flexion and extension. This problem is widespread, occurs in almost 90% of cases of knee problems. Menisci can be damaged either by any direct factors, or by indirect action. Most often, the actions that lead to this pathology are jumping, sudden movements, turns, and so on. When lifting, a crunch in the knee often occurs due to problems withmenisci.
If we talk about the symptoms of such a disease, it is necessary to note the presence of blockade of the joint, pain, clicks that occur during movement, fluid accumulation, and hemarthrosis. It is much easier to heal the damage that occurred in the red zone. The fact is that it is she who is well supplied with blood. If there is damage in the white, then the only way to solve the problems is an operation.
Rheumatoid arthritis
This disease is autoimmune. Because of it, the joints become inflamed, as well as the synovial membrane. This disease can occur at any age, most often occurs in women.
The causes of this disease have not been identified. Allocate that provoking factors can be injuries, hypothermia, overvoltage, and so on. In the first stages of this disease, it will be quite easy to perform elementary exercises, but after the development of the disease (in the last stages), it will be difficult to even perform minimal loads. The main symptoms, in addition to a crunch in the knees, should also be noted pain, swelling, stiffness, deformation of the joint itself, as well as muscle atrophy.
Arthritis of the gouty type
Such diseases are connected with the fact that the exchange of uric acid is disturbed in a person's body. Because of this, s alts accumulate and cause a crunch in the joints. This disease affects, as a rule, men who are aged 40-50 years. However, it should be noted that arthritis of this type inknee joint is quite rare.
There are several clinical forms. There are acute and chronic forms of the disease. As a rule, the disease is manifested by severe paroxysmal pain in the joints at night, which cannot be eliminated with painkillers. When a person tries to make a movement in the knee, a crunch appears. There may also be swelling, redness, and fever at the site of the lesion.
Hypermobility
This disease is due to the fact that a person has an excessively mobile and flexible knee joint. As a rule, such a disease passes on a genetic basis. Sometimes these manifestations are the result of any inflammation or a violation of the neurological and hormonal levels. With this disease, cartilage wears out quickly in a person, sprains and bruises constantly occur. A constant crunch in the knees accompanies a person under any load. It is he who is the first symptom and a call to the fact that you need to see a doctor. Often, pain comes with it. However, it is not constant, but occurs during exercise.
Phosphorus-calcium metabolism
If a person has problems with the quantitative composition of calcium or phosphorus, then the bones and the skeleton itself suffer first of all. Of the main manifestations, a crunch in the knee should be noted, as well as clicks, the joint begins to gradually deform. There is pain and limitation in the movement of the knee.
Sometimes these problems can be related to somecongenital anomalies. It happens that the disease occurs due to an unbalanced diet.
Overweight problems
When a certain amount of body fat accumulates in the body, the joints also suffer, because the load on them increases. Over time, the cartilage in the joints begins to deform, and the crunch becomes a common symptom. If you get rid of excess weight in time, then you can avoid problems of this nature. You can also use ointment for crunchy knees.
Obesity can result from a sedentary lifestyle, poor diet, genetic factors, or hormone problems. There are currently four stages in the development of diseases. The first speaks of exceeding the norm by 20-30%. The latter is 100% or more. It should be noted that the more the problem associated with excess weight is started, the joint will wear out faster. Accordingly, a crunch will appear.
Clinical examination
The doctor must not only listen to the patient, but also take the correct history. It is important to conduct an examination of the physical type, as well as to understand how limited the movement in the joint is. The patient may complain of pain, difficulty exercising, and stiffness. Be sure to pay attention to the injuries in the diagnosis. The specialist must definitely find out under what circumstances a crunch occurs in the knee. It is important to pay attention to human activity, especially if it is related to sports or similar activities.spheres. Sometimes hereditary factors are the cause of symptoms. An external examination can reveal the presence of deformation, swelling, asymmetry, hematomas, skin problems. Sometimes it happens that there is a crunch in the knee when squatting without pain.
Crunching can occur even with normal palpation. This is also a serious manifestation. With the help of palpation, you can detect the presence of fluid in the joint. This way you can check for dislocations and other injuries.
Auscultation is carried out without a phonendoscope. The patient just needs to do some exercises to hear the crunch. Movements can be either passive or active. The first is performed by the doctor, and the second by the patient himself. A goniometer is used to gauge how stiff a joint is.
Diet for the Sick
In the presence of such problems, it should be understood that the diet should not only be low-calorie, but also as balanced as possible. You should stop eating s alty, sweet and spicy foods. Thanks to this, the patient can not only get rid of excess weight, but also from s alts in the joints. If you give up tasty and savory dishes, then after a while you will get relief, and the crunch will stop. Especially when it comes to young people who have such a problem due to malnutrition.
Treatment
Before you choose therapy, you should deal with the causes of trouble. If we are talking about symptoms, such as a crunch in the knee, then it is important to identifyprovoking factor. If you carry out therapy at home, then you can achieve a deterioration in the condition, which will lead to disability.
If you are worried not only about crunching, but also clicking, then we can talk about the coincidence of two joints. This can only be cured by a traumatologist. It should be understood that arthrosis and arthritis are first manifested by a crunch. If you start treatment on time, then you can achieve recovery in conservative ways.
If a person has found such manifestations in himself, then he should first of all stop active loads. Next, you need to immediately consult a doctor. He will prescribe therapy after examination and diagnosis. Localization, depth and also the causes of such a symptom will be taken into account.
A common cause of crunching is being overweight. It is he who strongly affects the condition of the joints and ligaments. Their configuration begins to collapse, which provokes unusual sounds.
Surgery
In addition to conservative treatment, surgical intervention is also available. The therapist will determine which doctor to go to with a crunch in the knee. If the treatment does not help, then they are already referred to the surgeon.
To get rid of the contents of the joint, an arthrotomy is performed. It will remove unnatural accumulations, as well as foreign bodies. Such a procedure is considered especially dangerous and traumatic. However, it is carried out easily due to the absence of muscles covering the knee. You can get to it parapatellar, front and back. The first option is the best.
Treatment of crunchy knees withtenorrhaphy is performed in order to stitch the tendons. Such an operation is assigned if they are torn or damaged. During the procedure, special sutures are applied, and the limb is immobilized. This helps prevent other injuries and rapid healing. The treatment period after surgery lasts up to six weeks. In order for the treatment of crunching in the knees to be successful, correct and reliable sutures should be applied. They should not interfere with the blood supply. Also, the surface of the tendons should be smooth.
There are also other types of operations. When problems with the functionality of the joint are considered to be the cause of the crunch in the knees, then arthroplasty is used. It allows you to restore the structure of the diseased organ. Most often prescribed for severe inflammation. Especially if contracture occurs in parallel.
If the synovial membrane became the cause of the crunch in the knees, then it is removed using the procedure - synovectomy. Often, this is prescribed only in the case of rheumatoid arthritis, if drug treatment does not work. The removed layer of the shell is replaced with an artificial one made of synthetics. The operation is prescribed if the shell is already very inflamed and growing. Especially if the pathological process develops rapidly.
