How to Get Rid of Your Knee Pain After Sports - "The Right Way"
Avoid Early Old-Age Arthritis with Proper Knee Treatment

By Dr. Paul Anderson, M.D.
Sports Medicine Expert

If you suffer with knee pain after playing sports, exercising or working,then maybe you have one of the following common knee problems:

• Patellar Femoral Syndrome (PFS) aka Pre-arthritis, Chondromalacia and Runner's Knee
• Knee arthritis ( Osteoarthritis)
• Torn Knee Cartilage

Here are the three common causes -

Pre-Arthritis (PFS)

Previous damage to the cartilage in the back of the knee cap (patella) causes pain and inflammation. Often, over the years, this cartilage damage progresses to full, common knee arthritis or Osteoarthritis.

Signs and Symptoms -Usually mild intermittent swelling with knee cap pain or, more commonly, pain on the inside (medial). Knee pain is worse with activities such as sprinting, running, jumping, squatting and kneeling. You feel better with rest, ice and by not playing any sports at all

Diagnostic Testing - Diagnosis is best done by a qualified medical professional doing a proper history and complete physical exam. If needed, diagnostic testing can be used to confirm the diagnosis. Knee arthroscopy will give accurate confirmation but it is not really needed or recommended. An X-ray will rule out other knee problems. An MRI scan is not needed and will usually read as normal.

Common Causes -Misaligned knee bones with weak inner quad muscle (VMO) and poor joint mechanics - often with functionally flat feet (overpronation) - leads to knee cap (patella) mal-tracking which irritates and eventually wears the kneecap cartilage. Poor sports technique can achieve the same negative results.

Treatment - ice and compression, *natural anti-inflammatories, knee brace, patellar taping (McConnell), knee exercises for joint synovial fluid movement, physical therapy, strengthening weak muscles, foot inserts (orthotics), proper shoes, knee pads, avoiding the seven evil inflammatory foods, strength weight training, cardiovascular fitness training, an anti-inflammatory diet, fish oil and Vitamin D3 supplementation to get back to normal levels

Last Resort and All-Else-Fails Knee Treatment - Anti-inflammatory drugs, cortisone injections, Hyaluronic injections, Knee Arthroscopy Surgery.

Knee Arthritis (Osteoarthritis) -

Damage to the knee cartilage causes pain and inflammation.

Signs and Symptoms - Usually mild intermittent swelling with generalized knee pain that gets worse with activities such as sprinting, running, jumping, squatting and kneeling. You feel better with rest, ice and stopping sports altogether.

Diagnostic Testing - Diagnosis is best achieved by a qualified medical professional doing a proper history and physical exam. If required, diagnostic testing can be used to confirm the diagnosis. Arthroscopy will also confirm the diagnosis, but it is not really needed or recommended. X-rays are the best test and are reasonably accurate. An MRI scan is not usually needed.

Common Causes - poor joint health, major trauma and/or micro-trauma. Weak quads, poor cardiovascular fitness and poor body strength increase the pain.

Treatment - ice and compression, *natural anti-inflammatories, knee brace, knee exercises for joint synovial fluid movement, physical therapy, strengthening weak muscles, foot inserts (orthotics), proper shoes, knee pads, avoiding the seven evil inflammatory foods, strength weight training, cardiovascular fitness training, an anti-inflammatory diet, fish oil and Vitamin D3 supplementation to get back to normal levels

Last Resort and All-Else-Fails Knee Treatment - Anti-inflammatory drugs, cortisone injections, Hyaluronic injections, Arthroscopy and Knee Replacement Surgery

Lateral and Medial Meniscus Tear

Signs and Symptoms - Usually mild intermittent swelling with inside or outside knee pain at the joint line. Pain is worse with activities that trap the torn cartilage - sprinting, running, jumping, squatting and kneeling. Your knee may lock. Often, you feel better with rest, ice and not playing any sports at all.

Diagnostic Testing - Diagnosis is best done by a qualified medical professional taking a proper history and physical exam. If needed, diagnostic testing can confirm the diagnosis. Arthroscopy does confirm diagnosis but is not really needed or recommended. An X-ray will rule out fractures and loose bodies. An MRI scan is 90% accurate in detecting cartilage tears.

Common Causes - major trauma tearing the meniscus.

Treatments - try and avoid surgery by using natural anti-inflammatories or enzymes, take ice treatments with compression and do physical therapy - may take 4- 8 weeks to improve. If your knee pain does not improve or your knee is locked, you may need arthroscopic surgery.

Warning - I have seen doctors recommend either cortisone or Hyaluronic acid injections (Synvisc). Cortisone softens cartilage and increases damage. In my experience, hyaluronic acid injections are ineffective treatment for common Pre-arthritis (aka PFS). Also, micro-fracture surgery has proven to be a big failure (in both studies and clinical experience). The author had one and it was not good. DO NOT GET MICRO-FRACTURE SURGERY.