Common knee symptoms

There is a medical saying that 'common things occur commonly'. That is, the problem with you own knee is more likely to be a common disorder than a rare one.

First published in 2013, and reviewed August 2023 by Dr Sheila Strover (Clinical Editor)

 

Common knee symptoms include:

 

Knee pain

It is important to highlight whether or not the symptom started after an injury or incident:

Knee pain coming on after injury -
  • if the knee pain was agonising initially after injury and is continuing - it might be a 'fracture' (bone break). A fall onto the knee may shatter the kneecap patellar fracture). Another important fracture is a 'tibial plateau fracture'.
  • if the knee pain was agonising initially after injury, was associated with a loud 'pop' and marked swelling, but the pain tended to ease later - consider that there might be a 'ligament tear', for example a cruciate ligament
  • if the knee pain was severe initially after injury, with continuing pain in the joint line - consider that you might have torn a meniscus
Knee pain coming on without any injury -
  • persistent pain over the front of knee coming on without any injury - may be due to a problem with the 'kneecap, hip or spine'
  • persistent pain at back of knee coming on without any injury - may be due to a 'Baker's cyst'
  • persistent gnawing pain, worse at night - could be 'arthritis'

 

Knee Noises

Knee noises at time of injury -
Knee noises during ordinary activities -
  • if crunchy noises on bending - it might be related to the 'kneecap'
  • if there is a pop in certain position - think 'normal, or old meniscus tear or discoid meniscus'

 

Knee Swelling

Knee swollen immediately after injury -
  • if extensive, tense, painful - there could be 'blood in the joint (haemarthrosis), with internal damage'
  • if localized, tense, painful - it could be a bursa bleed'
Knee swollen during ordinary activities -
  • if severe, painful - it could be 'rheumatoid condition or infection' (an emergency)
  • if persistent - it could be 'internal damage or arthritis'
  • if recurrent - think 'rheumatoid condition'

 

Knee Instability

Again it is important to remember any injury that preceded the instability -

Instability that followed an injury
  • if immediate, unable to continue activity - it might be a 'ligament tear' (collateral/cruciate)
Instability with no record of injury
  • if there is brief catching - it could be a 'kneecap subluxation' or a 'discoid meniscus'
  • if there is sudden 'giving way' - it could be a 'loose body' or a 'flap tear of the meniscus'

 

Knee Locking

Differentiate between true locking - where professional help is needed to get the knee straight again, and 'pseudolocking' where the person is able to do it themself -

  • if completely locked - it could be a 'bucket handle tear of meniscus, or a big loose body'
  • if intermittent pseudolocking - it could be a small 'loose body, plica, kneecap subluxation'

 

Knee Deformity

This is when the knee looks grossly abnormal, not just swollen -

  • if sudden painful deformity - it could be a 'kneecap dislocation'
  • if gross deformity following a serious injury - a 'total knee dislocation' may have occurred, with disruption of several key ligaments
  • if slow onset - it might be 'arthritis'

 

Author

Dr Sheila Strover

Clinical Editor

Dr Sheila Strover is the founder and Clinical Editor of the KNEEguru website.

Her medical studies were completed at the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa - BSc(...read more

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