knee pain below the knee/around knee cap

[brit12901]

I am a runner, almost 18 years old.I am at a healthy body weight for my  height, eat healthy, and drink plenty of fluids.  I have been running for 4 years now and I have not ran at all in months because if it. The pain comes and goes. It is located around my knee caps and more often then not I feel more pain under my knee cap which is a sharp pain. My knees are both always swollen and hurt. Is there a reason for this? My doc told me to get ankle weights and do leg raises and that hurts even more than walking. Every year I go for my yearly physical when he bends twists and moves my right knee it has a popping sound like when people crack their fingers almost but it hurts. What can I do? I am desperate.

[achilles2]

Here is a good site about petellafemoral pain.
http://www.patellofemoral.org/PatellofemoralPain.html

Also since it is in both knees I recommend that you get checked for rheumatoid arthritis. Also going on a gluten (wheat, barley, rye) free diet may also help because gluten increases inflammation. If you want to know more about a gluten free diet let me know or you can google celiac foundation, celiac.org and celiac central.

I hope you get your answers,
achiles2

[S. Kaul, MD]

Hi there!

I am not sure regarding the expertise of your trainer and would still suggest getting this evaluated by an orthopedician for an accurate diagnosis and appropriate management.  It would be difficult to decide on the further management, aside rest and NSAIDS without having a diagnosis at hand.
Hope this is useful.

Take care!

[brit12901]

I do not think it does tract correctly. When I walk sometimes its seems like it goes more to one side. My knee also tends to almost give out on me. I do not collapse I catch my balance but am weak for a few steps. What is patella femoral chondrosis? It seems like no matter what I do the pain gets worse. My knees have only gotten worse in the past 3 years, and my coach thought I was copying other people with knee injuries until all this happened in the past 2 years and I keep going downhill. I can not afford an MRI or this pain so IDK what to do.

[brit12901]

The trainer said it was tendonitis but that was at first it kept getting worse, and the pain wakes me up in the middle of the night. I randomly get pains when I am just sitting. I have tried OTC meds of all sorts, and they didnt seem to really work.

[S. Kaul, MD]

Hi there!

Well, without an evaluation it would be difficult to identify the cause of knee pain in your case. Possibilities include chondromalacia patellae, tendonitis, bursitis, fractures, patellar dislocation, injuries to the internal knee ligaments/ menisci, infections/ inflammations, arthritis, cyst formation, bone growths/ tumours, nerve injuries etc; just to name a few. I would suggest consulting an orthopedician for an evaluation and appropriate management. Meanwhile you may try resting the knee with some OTC NSAIDS to relieve the pain.
Hope this helps.

Take care!

[achilles2]

Have you seen an orthopedist and has anyone ordered a MRI. I would try that. Your symptoms though sound very close to mine. Does your kneecap tract correctly or does it go off to the side when you bend it? To me this sounds so much like patella femoral chondrosis. I have physical therapy two different times from two different therapist and it did not help in fact some the exercises (especially from the first p.t.) made the pain worse. I hated the exercise you mentioned and after awhile (once I was done with p.t. I quit them).

First if you have not get a MRI to rules damaged soft tissue if you have I would recommend that you find a good chiropractor that knows how to treat knees. That is what I did I started seeing an excellent chiropractor and my knees did not feel this good when I was a kid.

I hope this helps,
achilles2