Painful Crepitus

I've had painful cracking and popping of joints for many years. Now selected joints like my hip are locking up require a lot of force and painful cracking to move. I can feel just about all my joints grinding and have a lot of stiffness. I had to switch from eliptical to treadmill for exercise because of the painful grinding. There doesn't seem to be any joint swelling, and ibuprofen isn't relieving the symptoms. I'm not fatigued and don't really have any other symptoms other than the pain and grinding. Thanks.

[Dr_Veena]

Hi,
     How are you? Stiffness and grinding are most often symptoms of arthritis. Arthritis leads to wearing away of the normal smooth cartilage within the joint. As the cartilage thins, bone can grind against bone. Bone spurs may form around the joint leading to limitations in normal motion.

Joint pain and progressive stiffness without noticeable swelling, chills, or fever during normal activities probably indicate the gradual onset symptoms of osteoarthritis. There are a lot of factors which contribute to this condition like obesity, age, menopause, heredity, sedentary life style, medical conditions like rheumatism, peripheral neuropathy etc.

Treatment involves activity modification, reducing weight, rest, adequate sleep, stretching exercises, balanced diet, NSAID’s, cortisone injections if required.
I would suggest that you visit a orthopaedician for physical examination and diagnosis of the condition with the help of x-rays.
Best.

[onconurse]

Have you ever heard of OA in a young teen (I was 12 when these symptoms began) but it has gotten progressively worse and I never had the locking til now. Thanks.

[MissComunikation]

I've had chronic pain for more than 5 years now. I fell asleep wrong in the car, woke up with a crick in my neck, and have been on a downward spiral since then.  I'm only 24 and appear to be in good health otherwise. I've seen 3 orthopaedic doctors, 2 chiropractors, 3 physical therapists, 1 neurologist, 1 pain specialist, and 2 internal medicine doctors. I've had x-rays and an MRI. I've tried ultram, vicodin, excedrin, tylenol, muscle relaxer, and herbs/vitamins. I am allergic to advil, so I can't try that. I have been tested for Rheumatoid Arthritis, Lupus, and rotator cuff injury...all negative. All of the doctors agree that I am EXCEPTIONALLY hypermobile. Besides that though, they throw up their hands and say they have no idea what's wrong with me.

My shoulders, shoulder blades, upper back, and neck joints constantly grind and slip out of place. I can crack them back, but they will slip again 5 seconds later. I have an undeniable compulsion 24/7 to twist and stretch and wiggle myself back into alignment.  I got worse after seeing the chiropractors. I think, since I'm so hypermobile and have such lax joints, that made the joint even LESS stable. It's like my ligaments are too loose to hold my joints together. I feel like I'm literally falling apart...

I'm in constant pain, stabbing, burning, grinding. Sometimes it feels like someone stuck a knife in between my joints and won't take it out. At this very moment, I feel like I want to rip my head off and set it back on the way it’s supposed to be!  I'm worse when I'm sitting for long periods of time (though nothing makes it better...there are only a few things that keep me sane, i.e. a heating pad and deep tissue massages). On the pain scale (0-10 with 10 being the worst), I'm never below a 5 and can hit a 9 on an exceptionally bad day.

I have yet to meet anyone else with these symptoms. I'm tired of trying to motivate my doctors to FIX ME! Not to mention, I don't know where else to go! I’m researching EDS, but I don’t feel like that is what I have (according to the list of symptoms).  I don't have the skin problems like most EDS patients.

I don't know what to do.  No one seems to understand.

[onconurse]

In some ways you do sound like me. I agree with the need to move frequently to be comfortable and that leads to pain (which sometimes decreases quickly, or if I've apparently injured myself, lasts long hours to days).

I saw a rheumatologist. She thinks there's inflammation and ran some more tests even though my ANA, RA, LDH, ESR were normal. She said my elbows were hypermobile, but everything else has really stiffened.

Do you exercise? That was the first and only help the docs gave me years ago. However, weight lifting usually injures a joint causing more prolonged painful crepitus. I've had to switch from eliptical to treadmill because even that was too high impact for my joints.

[MissComunikation]

Hmmm...sounds like we're not the same.  My pain is there...and SO i move.  Not the other way around.

Mine is constant pain, GRINDING joints that partially or sometimes fully dislocate for no reason...not because I injured myself or for any other reason.  I do exercise.  It makes me feel better momentarily, but not permanently and there have not been long-term benefits from consistent exercise for this pain.  I've done everything: treadmill, running outside, elliptical, weights, pilates, yoga....Nothing brings relief.  I've been told almost all of me is hypermobile (shoulders, shoulder blades, ribs, wrists, fingers, hips, knees, and especially the neck).  The neck and shoulders hurt the worst out of all of them though.

FOR YOU:

Do you have hypermobile skin...like sagging, loose, leathery?  If so, look into EDS - Ehler Danlos Syndrome.  From your description though, does sound a lot like some kind of arthritis.

Also, deep tissue masages seem to bring a short period of relief.  Give it try.  Hopefully that will give you the relief you need to continue pursuing your condition.

My prayers are with you!

[onconurse]

I was diagnosed with hypermobility and to see a geneticist. The doctor said that because of all the mis-articulations that occur, chronic joint pain develops. I hurt when I'm at rest, but the worst and most damaging pain comes when I move quickly. However, the more I'm still, the worst it is when I do move about. What a frustrating paradox!