Knee Issues

A contusion is the medical term used for a ‘bruise.’ Contusions can be minor, like the one you get after clumsily hitting your thigh on the edge of the coffee table, to major ones like the contusion you may get across your chest or down your leg after a significant motor vehicle accident. Whatever the size, that red, blue, purple, green or brown rainbow that appears is a sure sign of injury to the tissues below or near the area.

Bipartite patella is a congenital condition (present at birth) that occurs when the patella (kneecap) is made of two bones instead of a single bone. Normally, the two bones would fuse together as the child grows but in bipartite patella, they remain as two separate bones. About one per cent of the population has this condition. Boys are affected much more often than girls. When this condition is discovered in adulthood it is often an “incidental finding” meaning that when your health...

An Osgood-Schlatter lesion involves pain and swelling in the small boney bump on the front of the tibia (shinbone), right below the kneecap. It primarily occurs in children and adolescents. The problem affects the area where bone growth occurs. Too much stress on the growing bone causes the pain and swelling. The pain often worsens with activity and eases with rest. Fortunately, the condition is not serious and it is usually only temporary.Osgood-Schlatter Disease is the most frequent cause of k...

Alignment or overuse problems of the knee structures can lead to strain, irritation, and/or injury of the quadriceps muscle and tendon. This produces pain, weakness, and swelling of the knee joint.These problems can affect people of all ages but the majority of patients with overuse injuries of the knee (and specifically quadriceps tendonitis) are involved in sports such as soccer, volleyball, running activities, or other repetitive jumping activities.This guide will help you understand:

The patella, or kneecap, can be a source of knee pain when it fails to function properly.

Alignment or overuse problems of the knee structures can lead to strain, irritation, and/or injury of the quadriceps muscle and tendon. This produces pain, weakness, and swelling of the knee joint.These problems can affect people of all ages but the majority of patients with overuse injuries of the knee (and specifically quadriceps tendonitis) are involved in soccer, volleyball, or running activities.This guide will help you understand:

The collateral ligaments are commonly injured parts of the knee. An injury to these ligaments usually involves a significant force, such as a fall while skiing or a direct impact to the side of the leg.

Alignment or overuse problems of the knee structures can lead to strain, irritation, and/or injury. This produces pain, weakness, and swelling of the knee joint. Patellar tendonitis (also known as jumper's knee) is a common overuse condition associated with running, repeated jumping and landing, and kicking.

Prepatellar bursitis is the inflammation of a small sac of fluid located in front of the kneecap. This inflammation can cause many problems in the knee.

The posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) is one of the less commonly injured ligaments of the knee. Understanding this injury and developing new treatments for it have lagged behind the other cruciate ligament in the knee, the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), probably because there are far fewer PCL injuries than ACL injuries.

A popliteal cyst, also called a Baker's cyst, is a soft, often painless bump that developson the back of the knee. A cyst is usually nothing more than a bag of fluid. These cysts occur most often when the knee is damaged due to arthritis, gout, injury, or inflammation in the lining of the knee joint. Surgical treatment may be successful when the actual cause of the cyst is addressed. Otherwise, the cyst can come back again.

Plica syndrome is an interesting problem that occurs when an otherwise normal structure in the knee becomes a source of knee pain due to injury or overuse. The diagnosis can sometimes be difficult, but if this is the source of your knee pain, it can be easily treated.

Bursitis of the knee occurs when constant friction on the bursa causes inflammation. The bursa is a small sac that cushions the bone from tendons that rub over the bone. Bursae can also protect other tendons as tissues glide over one another. Bursae can become inflamed and irritated causing pain and tenderness.

The patella, or kneecap, can be a source of knee pain when it fails to function properly. Alignment or overuse problems of the patella can lead to wear and tear of the cartilage behind the patella. This produces pain, weakness, and swelling of the knee joint. Several different problems can affect the patella and the groove it slides through in the knee joint. These problems can affect people of all ages.

Osteochondritis dissecans (OCD) is a problem that affects the knee, mostly at the end of the big bone of the thigh (the femur). A joint surface damaged by OCD doesn't heal naturally. Even with surgery, OCD usually leads to future joint problems, including degenerative arthritis and osteoarthritis.

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a common problem for many people after middle age. OA is sometimes referred to as degenerative, or wear and tear, arthritis. OA commonly affects the knee joint. In fact, knee OA is the most common cause of disability in North America. In the past, people were led to believe that nothing could be done for their problem. Now there are many ways health professionals like Physical Therapists can treat knee OA so patients have less pain, better movement, and enhanced quality of...

The meniscus is a commonly injured structure in the knee. The injury can occur in any age group. In younger people, the meniscus is fairly tough and rubbery, and tears usually occur as a result of a forceful twisting injury. The meniscus grows weaker with age, and meniscal tears can occur in aging adults as the result of fairly minor injuries, even from the up-and-down motion of squatting.

Iliotibial band (ITB) syndrome is an overuse problem that is often seen in bicyclists, runners, and long-distance walkers. It causes pain on the outside of the knee just above the joint. It rarely gets so bad that it requires surgery, but it can be very bothersome. The discomfort may keep athletes and other active people from participating in the activities they enjoy.

When the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in the knee is torn or injured, surgery may be needed to replace it. There are many different ways to do this operation. One is to take a piece of the hamstring tendon from behind the knee and use it in place of the torn ligament. When arranged into three or four strips, the hamstring graft has nearly the same strength as other available grafts used to reconstruct the ACL.

Articular cartilage problems in the knee joint are common. Injured areas, called lesions, often show up as tears or pot holes in the surface of the cartilage. If a tear goes all the way through the cartilage, surgeons call it a full-thickness lesion. When this happens, surgery is usually recommended. However, these operations are challenging. Repair and rehabilitation are difficult. Your surgeon will consider many factors when determining the procedure that's best for you.

The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is probably the most commonly injured ligament of the knee. In most cases, the ligament is injured by people participating in athletic activity. As sports have become an increasingly important part of day-to-day life over the past few decades, the number of ACL injuries has steadily increased. This injury has received a great deal of attention from orthopedic surgeons over the past 15 years, and very successful operations to reconstruct the torn ACL have been...