Meniscus tear vs. Runner's knee...

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suerun11
suerun11 Posts: 136 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Has anyone had either? Can you describe what is felt like to you and how is occured please?

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  • letjog
    letjog Posts: 260 Member
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    They are very different problems! If you have knee pain you should probably get your knee examined by a dr.
  • suerun11
    suerun11 Posts: 136 Member
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    I only have it sometimes and usually after a long run...it is a sharp pain on the outside of my knee, especially when I turn or go downhill... trying to avoid the Dr....
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,096 Member
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    Yeah, see a doctor. Could be either one.
  • acogg
    acogg Posts: 1,870 Member
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    Google "IT band", lots of helpful information on the internet.:flowerforyou:
  • Yogi_Carl
    Yogi_Carl Posts: 1,906 Member
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    I only have it sometimes and usually after a long run...it is a sharp pain on the outside of my knee, especially when I turn or go downhill... trying to avoid the Dr....

    You are describing eaxctly my problem if it comes on suddenly and it is so acute you have to walk for a while before continuing and it is painful to rotate on the knee for hours afterwards.

    I went to the doctor and I have been referred to a physiotherapist.

    I would advise you to go see the dr as it may be a physio you need.
  • suerun11
    suerun11 Posts: 136 Member
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    Thank you, before the Dr referred you out did he have any insight to what he thought it may be?
  • tlheppler
    tlheppler Posts: 52 Member
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    bump
  • summertime_girl
    summertime_girl Posts: 3,945 Member
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    My doctor is pretty sure I have a meniscus tear. MRI this week to confirm. The pain is behind my kneecap, and many things do not aggravate it. I can run, albeit very slowly. Squats, lunges, and things that bend are painful. I do have a bunch of PT exercises to do that are all the same exercises for runner's knee/IT band syndrome. So those would be helpful regardless of your injuries.
  • Factory_Reset
    Factory_Reset Posts: 1,651 Member
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    As someone who worked in a operating room for 10yrs, please go see a doctor. It could really be nothing, but the longer you keep running on it and self diagnosing, the worse you could make the problem. You do not want to end up doing major damage and end up having surgery. You will be out of commission much longer than if you'd gone in when the pain first started.
  • dittmarml
    dittmarml Posts: 351 Member
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    Assuming you've tried all the usual - a regular stretching regime before and after running, icing, elevation and rest for pain and inflammation, backing off and building quad strength then resuming in a slow buildup, massage?

    Even doctors can't diagnose over the internet. If the pain is sharp enough or persistent enough to affect your running/functioning, bite the bullet and see a doc.
  • natalie412
    natalie412 Posts: 1,039 Member
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    That sounds like the IT band to me - look up some stretches online.
  • tutti777
    tutti777 Posts: 72
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    I had arthroscopic surgery on right knee is Nov. and left knee in Dec. I had every sympton of a torn meniscus but the MRI did not show one. When the doctor was doing the surgery, he discovered a bad torn meniscus on both sides of my right knee as well as other issues. It is very painful to go up/down stairs, my pain was always worse at night. It kept me awake many, many nights. I could no longer squat and it basically hurt "all the time." If you are a runner, I would not run anymore until you have this checked out by an orthopedic doctor. You can make things much worse and possibly make it impossible to repair the tear. I love the illeptical machine but it made my knees hurt something terrible and I had to give that up. I am only suppose to walk for exercise now. I truly miss my running but it is very, very hard on your joints. Please do not run anymore until you have this checked out.
  • RissaRoo007
    RissaRoo007 Posts: 42
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    When I had knee pain, it was exactly like you described. It would start hurting around mile 3-4 and made it where I had to walk the rest of my route and couldn't run the next day. My pain was sharp, and got worse the farther I ran. It was just on the outside, and slightly behind the knee as well. When I went to physical therapy, they showed me stretches for my IT band (which is a tendon that runs from the top of the hip all the way down to the ankle), and helped my strengthen the major muscles in my legs. After a couple months of strength training and stretching, I'm back to running with no pain.
  • Yogi_Carl
    Yogi_Carl Posts: 1,906 Member
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    Thank you, before the Dr referred you out did he have any insight to what he thought it may be?

    No - IT band was ruled out as I do yoga every day and the IT band stretch would be included in my practise. X rays would not pick up cartilage damage so the dr referred me to physio before considering more invasive investigation.

    I'll post here with any findings.
  • skylark94
    skylark94 Posts: 2,036 Member
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    I had to give up running entirely due to sharp stabbing pain below and to the outside of my right kneecap. It started when I shifted from all flat terrain to running on the beach and over steep causeway bridges. I'm uninsured, so I haven't been able to get it looked at. Now even a walk of over 2 miles is painful.

    Be careful with your knees!
  • suerun11
    suerun11 Posts: 136 Member
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    Thanks guys! Hope all of you with pain feel better soon!
  • ukgirly01
    ukgirly01 Posts: 523 Member
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    I had runners knee/IT band problems
    I went to a physio who gave me some exercises and recommended a foam roller which helped a lot, but best help was going to a strength and conditioning trainer who wrote a strength program since doing more strength my core and glutes are stronger so my running style is better and I haven't had any problems since thank god
  • bellesouth18
    bellesouth18 Posts: 1,070 Member
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    Two surgeries on my left knee for meniscus tears, almost 3 years apart--May/2008 and Feb/2011. It took a good 15 months after my last surgery for it to quit hurting. It was around May 2012 when the pain finally let up so I could walk sometimes without limping. It has been getting better ever since. That's one of the main reasons I'm losing weight--for my bones and joints. It has been less than a year since I've been able to walk without lots of pain. I had forgotten what walking without hurting felt like.

    I don't know when the original damage occurred. But as a former gymnast/coach, I'm sure that probably had a lot to do with it. I quit coaching in 2007, but the damage was done already. I was attending a class on physical restraint methods in December 2007. That's when I sent it over the edge for sure. The pain was intense.

    My tears were in the back and middle of the maniscus. The pain was on the inside of my left knee and in the back of my knee. If you think of a clock when looking at your left knee, with your kneecap as the center. It is in the 1 o'clock area and really deep. It hurt anytime I put weight on it and often when I didn't. It swelled up a lot, too. As a matter of fact, it's still a little swollen. And I still have some fluid in my left calf on the front side from the cyst. The dr. didn't fix that, thinking it would go away on its own eventually. I think it's still there because that area is still really tender and swollen, too.

    It it's been hurting you a long time, I'd go see someone about it. You may cause more damage if you wait.

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