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Suggest Treatment For Chronic Pain In Left Knee
Posted on
Fri, 16 Jan 2015
Medically reviewed by
Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team
Fri, 16 Jan 2015
Answered on
Fri, 13 Feb 2015
Last reviewed on
Question : Dear Doctor,
i am a 56 yo woman who used to be active ; now i sit a lot because of my job as a sales manager ; i drive. fly and do a lot of computer work sitting many hours a day
I have had chronic pain in my left knee (external side of the knee and very localized ) for more than 5 years, permanent pain in the butt (performs after a fall in 1995 rollerblading) ; the pain in my left knee comes and go but I feel it every day especially at night when i lie down on my back or on my right side
sometimes the pain is excruciating.It wakes me up. I take NSAIDS almost every day.(Aleve, or advil or vimovo)
I had a MRI in august 2013 but they saw nothing but a slight degenerescence of the internal meniscus. I was surprised that I had no arthritis in there....
my doctor says it is caused by my hip bursitis (trochanter) which i got in 2010 (caused by exercices)
i have been treated with Vimovo for almost a year, had 2 cortisone shots , physio, chiro , nothing works
my physio says the pain in my knee is caused by ITB (illeo tibial band syndrome) (i am a former hiker and runner)
what should I do ; i would like to exercice more (ski hike , run with my child ) and this prevents me to do so
how come this does not go away with all the meds and treatment i had?
thank you for your help
Do you think the knee pain is related to the hip bursitis and why does this one does not heal?
XXXXXXX
i am a 56 yo woman who used to be active ; now i sit a lot because of my job as a sales manager ; i drive. fly and do a lot of computer work sitting many hours a day
I have had chronic pain in my left knee (external side of the knee and very localized ) for more than 5 years, permanent pain in the butt (performs after a fall in 1995 rollerblading) ; the pain in my left knee comes and go but I feel it every day especially at night when i lie down on my back or on my right side
sometimes the pain is excruciating.It wakes me up. I take NSAIDS almost every day.(Aleve, or advil or vimovo)
I had a MRI in august 2013 but they saw nothing but a slight degenerescence of the internal meniscus. I was surprised that I had no arthritis in there....
my doctor says it is caused by my hip bursitis (trochanter) which i got in 2010 (caused by exercices)
i have been treated with Vimovo for almost a year, had 2 cortisone shots , physio, chiro , nothing works
my physio says the pain in my knee is caused by ITB (illeo tibial band syndrome) (i am a former hiker and runner)
what should I do ; i would like to exercice more (ski hike , run with my child ) and this prevents me to do so
how come this does not go away with all the meds and treatment i had?
thank you for your help
Do you think the knee pain is related to the hip bursitis and why does this one does not heal?
XXXXXXX
Brief Answer:
Capsular inflammation or decreased lubricants.
Detailed Answer:
Hello,
Thanks for posting your query.
The pain that you have in the knee is not related to hip bursitis. It can be due to an inflamed bursa in the knee or stress related minor capsular inflammation or a decrease in the joint lubricants.
For symptomatic relief:
1. Give enough rest to your knee- use a knee brace.
2. Take mild pain killers like acetaminophen or ibuprofen.
3. Stronger prescription NSAIDS with muscle relaxants may help if simple analgesics do not help.
4. Hot compresses to your knee will be useful pain relieving measure. You may apply a local analgesic gel on that area.
5. calf and hamstring stretches can be helpful under the guidance of a physiotherapist after the acute pain subsides completely.
If still there is no relief then oral steroids and oral lubricating agents like glucosamine sulfate and chondroitin are given. Injections - intra- articular are the last options to be considered if all the above measures fail.
I hope this answers your query.
In case you have additional questions or doubts, you can forward them to me, and I shall be glad to help you out.
Wishing you good health.
Regards.
Dr. Praveen Tayal.
For future query, you can directly approach me through my profile URL http://bit.ly/Dr-Praveen-Tayal
Capsular inflammation or decreased lubricants.
Detailed Answer:
Hello,
Thanks for posting your query.
The pain that you have in the knee is not related to hip bursitis. It can be due to an inflamed bursa in the knee or stress related minor capsular inflammation or a decrease in the joint lubricants.
For symptomatic relief:
1. Give enough rest to your knee- use a knee brace.
2. Take mild pain killers like acetaminophen or ibuprofen.
3. Stronger prescription NSAIDS with muscle relaxants may help if simple analgesics do not help.
4. Hot compresses to your knee will be useful pain relieving measure. You may apply a local analgesic gel on that area.
5. calf and hamstring stretches can be helpful under the guidance of a physiotherapist after the acute pain subsides completely.
If still there is no relief then oral steroids and oral lubricating agents like glucosamine sulfate and chondroitin are given. Injections - intra- articular are the last options to be considered if all the above measures fail.
I hope this answers your query.
In case you have additional questions or doubts, you can forward them to me, and I shall be glad to help you out.
Wishing you good health.
Regards.
Dr. Praveen Tayal.
For future query, you can directly approach me through my profile URL http://bit.ly/Dr-Praveen-Tayal
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
Dear Dr Tayal
Thank you so much for your answer; i have a few questions
I copied and paste your answer below to make it easier
why does it hurts more when i lie down on my back at night and when there is a storm coming or high humidity in the air
Give enough rest to your knee- use a knee brace. : why the knee brace and where can i buy one
2. Take mild pain killers like acetaminophen or ibuprofen.: ok
3. Stronger prescription NSAIDS with muscle relaxants may help if simple analgesics do not help.: why the muscle relaxant ? it makes me drowsy
4. Hot compresses to your knee will be useful pain relieving measure. You may apply a local analgesic gel on that area.: why hot vs cold if there is inflammation?
5. calf and hamstring stretches can be helpful under the guidance of a physiotherapist after the acute pain subsides completely.
If still there is no relief then oral steroids and oral lubricating agents like glucosamine sulfate and chondroitin are given. Injections - intra- articular are the last options to be considered if all the above measures fail. : I have been told that glucosamine has no scientific proof to back up their usage; however i took some Procosa (from USANA) for 2 months in the past and it helped me
is it true that corticosteroid injections cause osteoporosis
thank you
XXXXXXX
Thank you so much for your answer; i have a few questions
I copied and paste your answer below to make it easier
why does it hurts more when i lie down on my back at night and when there is a storm coming or high humidity in the air
Give enough rest to your knee- use a knee brace. : why the knee brace and where can i buy one
2. Take mild pain killers like acetaminophen or ibuprofen.: ok
3. Stronger prescription NSAIDS with muscle relaxants may help if simple analgesics do not help.: why the muscle relaxant ? it makes me drowsy
4. Hot compresses to your knee will be useful pain relieving measure. You may apply a local analgesic gel on that area.: why hot vs cold if there is inflammation?
5. calf and hamstring stretches can be helpful under the guidance of a physiotherapist after the acute pain subsides completely.
If still there is no relief then oral steroids and oral lubricating agents like glucosamine sulfate and chondroitin are given. Injections - intra- articular are the last options to be considered if all the above measures fail. : I have been told that glucosamine has no scientific proof to back up their usage; however i took some Procosa (from USANA) for 2 months in the past and it helped me
is it true that corticosteroid injections cause osteoporosis
thank you
XXXXXXX
Brief Answer:
Details below.
Detailed Answer:
Hello.
Thanks for writing again.
Increase in pain when it's stormy or rainy-this is because of the change in barometric pressure. Rapid up and down pressure associated with a thunderstorm causes inflammation and pain. Heating pad will help in this .
Increased pain on lying down can be due to sudden relaxation of the stiff muscles.
1. Knee brace will provide support to the knee joint muscles. You can get a proper fitting one at your pharmacy or with your physiotherapist.
3. Muscle relaxant will decrease the muscle stiffness and hence the pain. You can take one at night.'
4. cold compress is helpful in case of injury to decrease the bleeding. Hot compress increases local blood circulation to fight off the inflammation.
5. Glucosamine helps in decreasing the symptoms and prevents further deterioration of the joint lubricants.
It is long term use of oral steroids that causes osteoporosis. Local steroid injection is safe.
Hope my answer is helpful.
Do accept my answer in case there are no further queries.
Regards.
Details below.
Detailed Answer:
Hello.
Thanks for writing again.
Increase in pain when it's stormy or rainy-this is because of the change in barometric pressure. Rapid up and down pressure associated with a thunderstorm causes inflammation and pain. Heating pad will help in this .
Increased pain on lying down can be due to sudden relaxation of the stiff muscles.
1. Knee brace will provide support to the knee joint muscles. You can get a proper fitting one at your pharmacy or with your physiotherapist.
3. Muscle relaxant will decrease the muscle stiffness and hence the pain. You can take one at night.'
4. cold compress is helpful in case of injury to decrease the bleeding. Hot compress increases local blood circulation to fight off the inflammation.
5. Glucosamine helps in decreasing the symptoms and prevents further deterioration of the joint lubricants.
It is long term use of oral steroids that causes osteoporosis. Local steroid injection is safe.
Hope my answer is helpful.
Do accept my answer in case there are no further queries.
Regards.
Note: For further queries, consult a joint and bone specialist, an Orthopaedic surgeon. Book a Call now.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
Answered by
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