Acute Injuries

Sudden knee injuries are common in sports, falls, and accidents. These can damage ligaments, cartilage, or the kneecap and often cause immediate pain and swelling.

• • ACL tears: The anterior cruciate ligament stabilizes the knee. Sudden pivoting, landing, or twisting can tear the ACL and cause pain, swelling, and the feeling that the knee is giving way.
• • MCL and PCL injuries: The medial collateral ligament and posterior cruciate ligament can be injured by direct blows or twisting, leading to pain, swelling, and instability.
• • Meniscal tears: The menisci are shock-absorbing cartilage pads. Tears may follow twisting movements or occur in degenerated cartilage and cause pain, swelling, catching, or locking.
• • Patellar dislocation: The kneecap can move out of its normal position, typically causing intense pain, swelling, and an obvious feeling of instability.

Overuse Injuries

Repetitive stress on the knee can cause irritation and inflammation without a single major injury.

• • Patellar tendinitis: Sometimes called jumper's knee, it causes pain at the front of the knee where the tendon connects the kneecap to the shin.
• • Iliotibial band syndrome: Tightness of the tissue on the outer thigh can cause pain on the outer side of the knee, often in runners and cyclists.
• • Anterior knee pain syndrome: Also called runner's knee, this causes aching around the front of the knee related to muscle imbalance, alignment, or training errors.

Degenerative Conditions

• • Knee osteoarthritis: Wear of the joint cartilage leads to pain, stiffness, and reduced mobility. Risk increases with age, prior injury, and excess body weight.
• • Cartilage damage: Focal cartilage injuries or generalized thinning can cause pain, swelling, and gradual joint deterioration.

Inflammatory Conditions

• • Bursitis: Inflammation of fluid-filled sacs around the knee can cause local pain and swelling.
• • Rheumatoid arthritis: This autoimmune disease affects multiple joints, including the knees, causing inflammation and damage that sometimes require orthopedic intervention.

Clinical Examination

The consultation begins with questions about pain onset, location, severity, and activities that worsen or relieve symptoms. Examination includes inspection for swelling or deformity, palpation for tenderness, assessment of motion, strength testing, and special stability tests for ligaments and menisci.

Imaging Studies

Imaging helps confirm the diagnosis and define the extent of injury.

• • X-rays to assess bone alignment, fractures, and arthritis
• • MRI to visualize ligaments, menisci, cartilage, and other soft tissues
• • CT scans for complex fractures and surgical planning
• • Ultrasound for tendon problems, fluid collections, and guided injections

Additional Testing

In selected cases, blood tests or analysis of fluid from the knee joint may be recommended to look for infection, inflammation, or crystal-related disease such as gout.

Conservative (Non-Surgical) Treatment

Many knee problems improve without surgery when managed properly.

• • Rest and activity modification to reduce stress on the knee
• • Ice, compression, and elevation to decrease pain and swelling
• • Anti-inflammatory medicines to reduce pain and inflammation when appropriate
• • Knee braces or supports to protect and stabilize the joint during healing

Physical Therapy

Physiotherapy is central to most knee treatment plans. Exercises improve flexibility, strengthen supporting muscles, enhance balance, and restore functional movement. Therapists at Jigyasa Hospital guide you through each phase of rehabilitation.

Injections

In selected patients, injections can provide relief:

• • Corticosteroid injections to reduce inflammation and pain in arthritic or inflamed joints
• • Hyaluronic acid injections to improve lubrication and cushioning in osteoarthritic knees

Surgical Treatment

When conservative treatment fails or structural damage requires repair, Dr. Ahmad offers surgical options, often using minimally invasive arthroscopic techniques.

• • Arthroscopic ACL reconstruction for ligament tears in active individuals
• • Arthroscopic meniscal repair or partial meniscectomy for meniscal tears
• • Cartilage procedures such as microfracture for focal cartilage damage
• • Knee replacement for advanced osteoarthritis with severe pain and deformity
• • Fracture fixation for complex or unstable knee fractures