Hi. I'm a 22 year old female. I've
been having knee problems since I was
about 10 years old. Every time I bend
down, my knees crack - and I don't mean
just a little pop...I mean, loud enough to
be heard across the room! It was getting
better when I was around 17, but then,
when I was 18, I was in a car accident.
In this accident, I did something to my
leg - I don't know what. I somehow, in
the accident, managed to kick myself on
the inside of my left calf. Ever since
then, my left knee has been a lot worse.
The cracking has gotten severe, and it's
painful to walk up stairs when it's damp
outside. The pain is mainly located at
the top of my shin bone, where the tibia
meets the knee cap. Four years ago,
after the accident, my doctor told me that
the pain would go away with time - four
years later and it's worse than ever.
Anyone have any idea what could be wrong?
It feels like the tibia and patella are
out of whack, and that i'm standing on the
wrong part of my leg. Is that even
possible? Any help with this, or why my
knees crack, would be appreciated.
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luna
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 10 Jul 2004 Posts: 1
Re: Bad Knees Posted: 07-10-04 21:40pm
Hey, my acl and mcl were ruptured about 5
months ago and since then I have learned a
great deal about the knee injuries while
browsing the net, or talking with my
physiotherapist. I asked her (physio) one
day about cracking in the knee, her
response was was that if there was no pain
accompanied with the cracking then it was
nothing to be concerned with. Now, your
situation is different since you say that
your experiencing some pain. What you may
have done was damaged your meniscus, the
cracking sounds could be the result of
excess fluid build up or even the
cartidlage locking between the joint.
Because your accident was 4 years ago, you
may have developed the early stages of
osteoarthritis since there is no meniscus
left to 'cushion' your tibia and femur
joint. Do you find that your knee locks
up while your moving?If so then there's a
good chance that you have damaged this
part of the knee. If you feel any
instability in your knee or a significant
amount of swelling then perhaps you have
damaged your ligaments. I suggest you
talk to your doctor about it, but if
he/she feels that your overeacting or
doesnt recommend anything then you should
get another opinion until you can get in
to see an orthopedic surgeon. But all in
all, it sounds like you've torn your
meniscus, but it's not the end of the
world, I would trade my acl/mcl injury
over a meniscus one anyday! Goodluck!
|
imabeantoo
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 22 Feb 2005 Posts: 8
Posted: 02-22-05 19:10pm
I have something similar to your problem.
I was in a car accident several years ago
and hit my right knee on the dash and ever
since then i've been having knee pains.
I went to the sports doctor at our health
clinic (i go to k-state university) and I
had an mri done to rule out a medial
meniscus tear (no tear was found but
apparently I have a cyst on the back of my
knee...Never causes me pain
though...Probably had it my whole life).
He figures now that I have a problem with
the synovium in my knee (i have
synovitis). Sometimes it can get
inflamed and possibly caught in your
joints. I'm treating it with some
anti-inflamitory medication (ibuprofin)
and if that doesnt help then i'll have a
cortizone injection. He told me that
many doctors advise patients who's knees
are not improving like they should to have
some of your synovium removed. My doctor
says that this is typically not a needed
proceedure and that he's talked with
several surgons who say to not get it
done.
Oh and cracking in your knee does not
always mean a torn meniscus. My knees
typically crack/pop whenever I bend them
to squat, etc and even during the exam
there was a pop that normaly signified a
torn meniscus. But I didnt have one.
(by the way an mri is 90% effective in
diagnosing a torn meniscus). But I would
definately talk to your doctor if you are
feeling pain.
