Knee Injuries and Disorders—Joint Disorders

A joint is where two or more bones come together, like the knee, hip, elbow, or shoulder. Joints can be damaged by many types of injuries or diseases, including

• Arthritis – inflammation of a joint. It causes pain, stiffness, and swelling. Over time, the joint can become severely damaged.
• Bursitis – inflammation of a fluid-filled sac that cushions the joint
• Dislocations – injuries that force the ends of the bones out of position

Treatment of joint problems depends on the cause. If you have a sports injury, treatment often begins with the RICE (Rest, Ice, Compression, and Elevation) method to relieve pain, reduce swelling, and speed healing. Other possible treatments include pain relievers, keeping the injured area from moving, rehabilitation, and sometimes surgery. For arthritis, injuries, or other diseases, you may need joint replacement surgery to remove the damaged joint and put in a new one.

NIH: National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases

• Hypermobile joints (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Joint pain (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Joint swelling (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Joint x-ray (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Limited range of motion (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Steroid injections – tendon, bursa, joint (Medical Encyclopedia)

Your knee joint is made up of bone, cartilage, ligaments and fluid. Muscles and tendons help the knee joint move. When any of these structures is hurt or diseased, you have knee problems. Knee problems can cause pain and difficulty walking.

Knee problems are very common, and they occur in people of all ages. Knee problems can interfere with many things, from participation in sports to simply getting up from a chair and walking. This can have a big impact on your life.

The most common disease affecting the knee is osteoarthritis. The cartilage in the knee gradually wears away, causing pain and swelling.

Injuries to ligaments and tendons also cause knee problems. A common injury is to the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL). You usually injure your ACL by a sudden twisting motion. ACL and other knee injuries are common sports injuries.

Treatment of knee problems depends on the cause. In some cases your doctor may recommend knee replacement.

NIH: National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases

• ACL reconstruction (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Anterior crucate ligament (ACL) injury (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury — aftercare (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Anterior knee pain (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Baker cyst (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Broken kneecap – aftercare (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Collateral ligament (CL) injury — aftercare (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Getting your home ready – knee or hip surgery (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Knee arthroscopy (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Knee MRI scan (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Knee pain (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Meniscus tears — aftercare (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Osgood-Schlatter disease (Medical Encyclopedia)