What are the Common Knee Pain Sports Injuries?

Physical activities and sports are excellent for long-term health and wellness. But when you engage in sports and physical activities without proper care or attention, you also increase the risk of knee pain and sports injuries. Overexertion, physical trauma, and other factors can lead to an increased risk of knee injuries, such as patellofemoral pain syndrome, injury to the ACL, knee tendinitis, and knee fractures. You must find highly-skilled, board-certified knee pain doctors who identify and treat the root cause of knee pain and sports injuries.

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Below, we describe the most common types of knee injuries.

Patellofemoral pain syndrome, also known as a runner’s knee, is one of the most common types of knee injuries amongst runners. Patellofemoral pain syndrome usually leads to knee pain in the front of the knee — this is an overuse injury caused by excessive running without proper warmups and sufficient breaks.

Knee tendinitis is a medical condition that leads to inflammation or swelling of the tendons around the knees. The patellar tendinitis condition affects the patellar tendon that runs from the knee cap (patella) to the shinbone (tibia). If you have pain at the front of the knee for which you don’t seek treatment, you may eventually suffer from tendinitis.

A knee fracture is a condition wherein the knee joint is damaged or injured because of collisions, impacts, falls, or other sudden injuries. If you can’t bear weight on your knees and your knee pain symptoms don’t improve over several days, you must contact your knee pain doctor. Knee fractures can happen when you collide with people or fall down during sports.

Knee injuries can happen during numerous types of sports. The risk of knee injuries and knee pain is highest amongst athletes who must stop and start running quickly, change directions rapidly, or those who have a high risk of collision, falls, or impact. You also have a higher risk of knee pain if your sport includes landing from a high spot. The following sports lead to the highest rate of knee injuries: basketball, soccer, competitive cheerleading, running, football, and gymnastics.

Mild knee injuries usually heal on their own with rest. If you notice any of the signs or symptoms of knee injuries or pain, you must stop using your knees. If you continue playing sports despite the pain, you may worsen the underlying condition and need even more downtime later. As such, it’s better to take a short rest when knee pain first occurs rather than allowing the condition to worsen. You must rest the injured parts of your knees and elevate your knees to improve blood circulation and immobilize the area.

RICE is the most effective means of treating knee injuries:

• Rest: Avoid sports and activities that necessitate using your knees, such as running or soccer. Instead, you can try swimming or other activities that involve minimal usage of the knees. Over time, you can ease yourself back into your preferred sports.
• Ice: You must apply ice packs to the injured regions for around 30 minutes every 2 to 4 hours. Ice reduces knee pain and swelling and improves overall recovery.
• Compression: You must wrap your knees in a compression bandage or garment to reduce swelling and improve your recovery time.
• Elevation: Place a pillow under your knee to keep it elevated above the heart’s level. This will improve blood circulation and reduce knee pain.

If RICE doesn’t work and knee pain persists for several days or weeks, you will have to contact a knee pain doctor. Your knee pain doctor will perform numerous imaging tests to diagnose the root cause of knee pain and curate a personalized treatment plan. Depending on your condition, your knee pain treatment may include physical therapy, functional knee braces, exercises, stretching, epidural injections, nerve blocks, or radiofrequency ablation. Our knee pain doctors reserve surgical intervention as a last resort if all other minimally invasive solutions fail.

There are no definitive means of preventing knee injuries, especially if you engage in sports. But you can take steps to minimize the risk of knee injuries:

• Wear the correct shoes for your sports
• Play according to your skill sets rather than overexerting yourself
• Inspect your playing field to ensure there are no unwanted obstacles
• Use the correct posture and warm-ups before and after your activities