Knee pain

samthepanda
samthepanda Posts: 569 Member
edited October 2019 in Fitness and Exercise
I ran a 10k in August. It was really slow as I ran with my son who has learning disabilities but that evening my knee locked up. I went upstairs to put my daughter to bed and 30 minutes later when I came down I couldn't bend it. It was still painful in the morning and difficult to bend, but after an hour (ice and ibuprofen) settled so I could move more normally. However it has not really been right since. It feels very unstable. There is pain on the top sort of inside my kneecap if that makes sense. It swells up on the inside of my leg, below where the pain is If I do a lot of exercise, and this includes a very slow 16 mile bike ride at the weekend (it was the 7 year olds first ride longer than 3 miles to give you an idea how slow).At 48 I am at that age of like where there are a lot of aches and pains but I need to work with it. Any suggestions?

Replies

  • Jthanmyfitnesspal
    Jthanmyfitnesspal Posts: 3,514 Member
    Sad news! Gotta go see the doc and get an x-ray, if indicated, to see if there's an injury.

    If it's "runners knee" then the approach will be strengthening exercises. If there's an injury, the good news is that they've gotten incredibly good at quick fix operations that get you back on your feet almost immediately.

    Best of luck!
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 31,717 Member
    Yes, get diagnosed. Some knee problems resolve on their own, some will be worsened by ignoring them. Without imaging, you don't know which it is.

    For many diagnoses, physical therapy is a help, if only to have them assess how you walk/run and help you resolve any imbalances of strength or flexibility that are aggravating the condition. Ask your doctor for a physical therapy referral.

    Best wishes!
  • samthepanda
    samthepanda Posts: 569 Member
    Will do -if I can ever get a gp appointment! Currently no appointments for next 4 weeks!
  • Jthanmyfitnesspal
    Jthanmyfitnesspal Posts: 3,514 Member
    Skip the GP and get a referral to an orthopedist.
  • apullum
    apullum Posts: 4,838 Member
    Skip the GP and get a referral to an orthopedist.

    Second this. It could be patellar tendonitis, but could also be other injuries. We can't give advice on what to do without a diagnosis, and the ortho is probably your best bet.
  • aokoye
    aokoye Posts: 3,495 Member
    I agree with others, you need to go to an orthopedist, not a GP (unless you need the GP for a referral). Know too that you might end up needing an MRI to aid in diagnosing what's going on.
  • Azdak
    Azdak Posts: 8,281 Member
    An orthopedist who specializes in sports medicine knee injuries. You gotta drill down on these things. I looked for months to find an expert in non surgical treatment of Achilles tendinosis—he was excellent. Went back to the same guy for a different foot injury-pretty useless.

  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,811 Member
    Locking is often a sign of a meniscus injury. However, part of the location you describe could be something completely different (such as fat pad impingement). But can't stress enough if rest doesn't resolve the issue then it all starts with getting an accurate diagnosis.

    I'm fortunate in knowing an excellent sports physio who has been invaluable in diagnosing and suggesting courses of action for my many and varied knee injuries. Some injuries have felt like my long ago prognosis of a TKR is imminent but turned out to be short lived and fairly trivial and vice versa - fairly mild symptoms indicating a serious and long term injury.

    As I'm assuming you are in the UK so keep in mind crossing the private medicine / NHS barrier can be an issue so beware. Personally I would invest in seeing a specialist sports oriented physio and also talking to your GP. A direct private referral to an orthopaedic consultant may bar you from the NHS carrying out what could be an expensive operation for example.

    PS - talking of the difficulty in getting appointments if your GP practise allows online appointment bookings it's far easier to get an appointment (via internet or phone app) rather than joining a massive queue of people in a telephone queue.
  • LyndaBSS
    LyndaBSS Posts: 6,970 Member
    Skip the GP and get a referral to an orthopedist.

    This ^^^^
  • marisol0630
    marisol0630 Posts: 1 Member
    My knee hurts a lot and I get the same pain you are describing. I went to the doctor and got xrays and they told me I have osteoarthritis. Pretty much cannot do any jumping and things that will aggravate it. Not sure that is your case but I recommend you see a doctor.
  • Gisel2015
    Gisel2015 Posts: 4,131 Member
    edited October 2019
    Will do -if I can ever get a gp appointment! Currently no appointments for next 4 weeks!

    Take a rest (no running or jumping) until you get an appointment to see a doctor. Do not aggravate an already painful and swollen knee. Ice and rest, and ibuprofen with food, if needed and as you have been doing will help you. I don't know what kind of health insurance you have, but you may need to see your GP first, get an X Ray and then request a referral to see an orthopedic doctor based on the results of the test. Hope for the best and good luck.

    Edited to add: does your GP practice have an Immediate/Urgent Care facility where you can be seen without an appointment?
  • samthepanda
    samthepanda Posts: 569 Member
    Yes we do have an urgent care facility at the GP but I am waving as to if I should use it. This is not life threatening, I can move about, but it’s not right.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,811 Member
    Skip the GP and get a referral to an orthopedist.

    I know this advice is given in good faith but.....
    That might be a good idea in some countries but can be a really bad move in the UK.

    You can end up instead of the NHS paying for scans, physiotherapy, consultations, surgery, hospitalisation etc. funding it yourself and the costs can escalate to huge amounts.

    My particular NHS area has instigated a sort of triage service for musculoskeletal injuries or conditions where an expert Physio is able to stream patients to the correct consultant and/or prescribe suitable drugs/therapy.
    Well worth visiting your GP clinic in a quiet time to talk to the Receptionist to understand how best to work within their particular system.

    You could also call the NHS non-emergency helpline (111) to get their advice. They were very helpful following my non-emergency but serious knee and shoulder injuries this year and accelerated the process of getting treatment.

    (Although there was a comedy moment of limping into A&E for them to confirm the diagnosis of a knee ligament tear and coming out with my arm in a sling....)
  • Jthanmyfitnesspal
    Jthanmyfitnesspal Posts: 3,514 Member
    @sijomial: That is a really interesting description of the GB NHS system. In the US, if you have a referral, you are usually good to go.

    Some GPs will want to see you first, others will just refer you. Mine refers such problems to an orthopedic nurse practitioner that has been really helpful to me for a number of problems. One problem with big-time orthopedists is that they specialize in doing operations. Non-operable knee problems (although they can be debilitating) don't always interest them all that much.

    It is really annoying when a doc just looks blandly at you and says "maybe you should take 6 months off exercise." Arg.
  • apullum
    apullum Posts: 4,838 Member
    Yes we do have an urgent care facility at the GP but I am waving as to if I should use it. This is not life threatening, I can move about, but it’s not right.

    It depends on how “urgent care” is defined in your area. Here (central California) it is a walk-in clinic for when you need a doctor sooner than you can get an appointment with your GP. It isn’t where you go for life threatening conditions—that’s the emergency room.