Knee Pain

Complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) is a chronic, evolving, painful and progressive condition that affects the distal extremities often following a traumatic injury.

Joints are ubiquitous in the human body as they are involved in movement of the spine and extremity. Joints play a crucial role in the kinematics of the human body as they are involved with movement and also help in unloading sheer pressure and weight of the body.

Disc degeneration or acute injury can cause the nucleus to herniate into the spinal canal or the neural foramen.

Osteoarthritis is the most common form and is due to the normal “wear-and-tear” of the joint due to our daily activities. Over time, normal use of our joints causes the cartilage at the end of the bone to wear down (like the wearing down of the tread on your tires). As the cartilage wears away, there is more friction, which leads to inflammation. Eventually, the cartilage can completely wear away, leading to “bone-on-bone” conditions, which can be extremely painful.

Patellar tendonitis or “jumper’s knee” is an injury to the tendon which connects the knee cap (patella) to the shin. This is considered an overuse syndrome of the patellofemoral extensor unit. The most common site of involvement of in the inferior pole of the patella. The patella tendon works with the quadriceps to help extend the knee, jump, kick and run. This is a common injury in athletes involved in sports that require frequent jumping like basketball and volleyball.

Patellofemoral pain syndrome (PFPS) also known as runner’s knees or biker’s knee is the most common cause of anterior knee pain syndrome. This syndrome is due to an overuse injury caused by repeated insults and micro-trauma which leads to softening of the cartilage under the kneecap (patella). The pain tends to worsen when you are active or sit for prolonged periods of time and can affect one or both knees.

Radiculopathy is dysfunction of a spinal nerve root (or roots) that results in pain, numbness, tingling, or weakness in either your arm or leg depending on which nerve root(s) are involved. When radiculopathy is present in the lumbar nerve roots, it produces sciatica; in the cervical nerve roots, it produces pain, numbness, tingling, and weakness in the shoulder, arm, wrist, and hands.

Rheumatoid arthritis is a form of arthritis where the body’s own immune system attacks the capsule around the joint. This results in severe inflammation of the joint, with the joint often becoming swollen, warm, stiff, and painful. Unlike osteoarthritis, gentle movement often improves the pain in mild cases of rheumatoid arthritis.