Warning!Are You Making Any of These 3 Common Deadly Knee Treatment Mistakes?
"How to Get Rid of Your Knee Pain Once and For All - The Right Way!
Here are Your Best "Swollen Knee Treatment" Options
By Dr. Paul Anderson, M.D.
Sports Medicine Expert
Before treatment please have our knee examined and diagnosed by a professional. Knee swelling in the joint can be the result of either extra joint fluid or blood - or both! Blood in the joint is a serious problem that usually comes from a damaged blood-vessel-rich structure - a torn joint covering (the synovial membrane); a fractured bone; or, a torn anterior or posterior cruciate ligament.
Extra joint fluid is usually the result of inflammation.
Knee injury swelling outside the joint is less common and is usually from bursitis; or, blocked venous or lymph return.
Acute Knee Swelling - Mild
Acute mild swelling is usually the result of extra joint fluid, typically caused by inflammation (not blood) from a torn medical meniscus cartilage, bursitis with posterior knee pain and, less commonly, a lateral meniscus cartilage.
Most of the time, acute mild knee swelling does NOT REQUIRE KNEE SURGERY but, instead, can be managed more conservatively with a swollen knee treatment like anti-inflammatories (preferably natural ones), ice treatments and physical therapy.
Chronic Knee Swelling - Mild
Chronic mild swelling is usually the result of old knee injuries or long-time knee problems such as:
Osteoarthritis (common knee arthritis) from degenerative joint disease
Pre-arthritis also called Patellar Femoral Syndrome (PFS) and
Chondromalacia
damaged cartilage like medial or lateral meniscus tears
old medial, or lateral, collateral ligament tears
old cruciate ligament injury with tear (either ACL or PCL )
patellar tendon tendonitis (Osgood-Schlatter disease in teenagers and kids)
quadriceps tendonitis
Swollen Knee Treatment ( Also called water on the knee treatment)-
Ice treatments with compression (like a tensor bandage) for 15 minutes, 4 to 6 times a day
Rest - if possible. Try a small pillow under your swollen knee to see if that eases your pain
Elevation - make sure your foot is above the level of your heart when you are lying down (because this increases the venous blood flow back to the heart).
Drainage - sometimes a large swelling needs to be drained with a needle and syringe because, on its own, the knee joint will rid itself of the extra fluid (especially blood) quite slowly.
Natural Anti-Inflammatories
Words of Caution
If at all possible, avoid a cortisone shot - cortisone softens and weakens your cartilage, thereby accelerating arthritis.
A swollen knee needs a proper, quick accurate diagnosis for proper treatment.
Doctors today depend too heavily on MRIs for basic diagnosis. The problem there is that clinical studies show (and real-world experience confirms) that MRI scans are, at best, only 90% accurate.
