What to do about Knee Pain?

Knee pain is incredibly common. It’s estimated that 25% of adults will experience pain in one or both knees during their lives. But children and teenagers can also suffer from knee pain. Sometimes an illness such as gout is the cause. Often, damage to the soft tissues around the joint causes pain. Many patients find it extra frustrating when they can’t identify the cause — when there was no incident or fall, just a niggling pain that keeps getting worse. Your osteopath can help identify the cause of your pain and provide treatment and advice so that you can get back to moving well.

Let’s understand the knee…

The knee is a synovial hinge joint. Why do we call it a hinge? It’s pretty much meant to move in just two directions, like a door on a hinge, not laterally (side to side, but more on this later.) Synovial refers to the fluid that lubricates the joint.

The tibia (shinbone), femur (thighbone) and patella (kneecap) intersect at the knee.

The four ligaments: the medial collateral ligament, the lateral collateral ligament (try saying that four times quickly), the anterior cruciate ligament and the posterior cruciate ligament stabilise the joint, keeping the tibia from sliding out from under the femur. Cartilage is an important component of the knee, as it is for all synovial joints.

The ends of the Tibia and Femur are both covered in cartilage where they would otherwise rub together. Shock absorption for the knee is provided by c-shaped, tough, rubbery cartilaginous tissues known as the meniscus.

There are also many tendons in the knee. Some of the most prone to injury include the quadricep/patellar tendon, which connects the quadriceps to the patella and onto the front of the tibia. Patella tendinopathy, also sometimes known as jumper’s knee, is an overuse injury common among athletes.

And there are bursae (fluid-filled sacs) that can sometimes become inflamed. With all that complexity, with all the muscles that interact to move this joint, and the load we put on it day in and day out, is there any wonder that knee pain is so common?

Why not move it laterally?

The knee allows for some lateral movement. (The femur and lateral meniscus flow over the tibia during rotation.) But for stability, the cruciate ligame