What is wrong with my knee

[Anonymous]

Age 44
Fitness level moderate/high
Health issues—EDS, but this is different from my normal unstable/sublex feelings

Regularly, but not always, I feel a strong pain inside my knee. If I do something like lateral jumps, it’ll sometimes happen and feel like a stab. If I’m doing. A slow weighted squat I’ll get to a certain point then feel like it’s going to explode.


MRI scheduled for June but what does it sound like? Should I be icing or using the TENS machine?

[Anonymous]

Sounds like osteoarthritis.

[Anonymous]

Op here. Just read through all of this (and posted above). Ugh. Aging! I was once upon a time a ballet dancer so I do have quite a collection of injuries. And yes, EDS-hyper mobile.

Super helpful. Somehow in 44 years my knees have been the one joint that didn’t trouble me. Ah well. I’ll ice and read more about the knee.

[Anonymous]

Hello OP.
I could have written this topic. My problem is so similar it’s creepy!

I am 44
I have had inner or medial knee pain for the last year and a half
I am told I have hyper mobile joints
I was a ballet dancer and danced very seriously through high school
I have a collection of injuries
For exercise I lift 3 times a week. Cardio once a week. Try to get 10,000 steps daily

I first went to an Ortho shortly before Covid. I had an X-ray. No signs of arthritis. Told possible medial meniscus tear and follow up if pain is not gone in 8 weeks for MRI. By the time eight weeks passed everything was closed.

It has come and gone since then. Seems to be brought on by jumping. Had some serious pain a couple weeks ago and ended up at a different doctor. Had another X-ray. Again no arthritis, but have some wear on the back of my knee. Told to get an MRI.

Let me know what happens!

[Anonymous]

PP here

Did you dance in the DC area?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hello OP.
I could have written this topic. My problem is so similar it’s creepy!

I am 44
I have had inner or medial knee pain for the last year and a half
I am told I have hyper mobile joints
I was a ballet dancer and danced very seriously through high school
I have a collection of injuries
For exercise I lift 3 times a week. Cardio once a week. Try to get 10,000 steps daily

I first went to an Ortho shortly before Covid. I had an X-ray. No signs of arthritis. Told possible medial meniscus tear and follow up if pain is not gone in 8 weeks for MRI. By the time eight weeks passed everything was closed.

It has come and gone since then. Seems to be brought on by jumping. Had some serious pain a couple weeks ago and ended up at a different doctor. Had another X-ray. Again no arthritis, but have some wear on the back of my knee. Told to get an MRI.

Let me know what happens!

Interesting! Yes very similar, comes and goes. I was wondering about a meniscus tear.

And not here, out west. PNB and BalletWest.

-OP

[Anonymous]

This could be a lot of things. So you’ll want to get an MRI.

However a lot of people at your age will have some arthritis — degradation of the cartilage inside the knee joint. That can be the meniscus or the articular cartilage on the bone surfaces.

It is possible to rebuild cartilage in some people, but it takes a long long time- months to years. Loading the joint through the full range of motion seems to be the way to go.
So, IF it is a cartilage thing, I’d encourage you to do squats daily, with whatever weight you need to get all the way through them. (Negative if needed.) then, over months, add weight.

[Anonymous]

If the joint is inflamed it may well have excess fluid in it and that will create a “feels like it is going to burst” sensation when the total pressure in the knee capsule is high enough.

Don’t listen to the person telling you that you cannot jump at 40. Good lord.

[Anonymous]

PP.
Does the pain always happen in the same joint position? Or are you saying that slow squats cause pain but fast squats with the same RoM do not?

[Anonymous]

Also don’t listen to the “flat tire” poster. People can remain athletic in their 40s and later. It’s not like all 40 year olds have to drop running / hiking / jumping and move to swimming only. Athletes who know how to train properly and manage injuries can very much rehab knee injuries late in life.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:PP.
Does the pain always happen in the same joint position? Or are you saying that slow squats cause pain but fast squats with the same RoM do not?

Ok update after texting with my trainer. Sorry I had the wrong terms.

The my-knee-might-blow pain was doing “bent-knee deadlifts” and he said my alignment was perfect. (No lecture needed. I stopped immediately when it happened. Rested. Tried not more and it happened again so we didn’t do any more).

Squats, with the slight external rotation and more flexion at the ankle was fine.

And yes it’s an exact moment in the exercise. TMI but it also happens the split second before sitting on the toilet.

Doing a fast jump-squat type thing doesn’t aggravate this knee thing (but I don’t usually do those bc too risky for me).

Continuing our research: did a few grande plies in 1st and 2nd and no pain.

So external rotation seems to eliminate the pain some.

Appreciate everyone’s advice.

[Anonymous]

Both knees?

Or just 1 knee?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Both knees?

Or just 1 knee?

One knee. Same side has had 2 hip surgeries and a foot surgery so not calling it my bad side, but it’s the more troubled side 😂

[Anonymous]

I had patellar tendinitis last year and it came and went for a while and then came and stayed. It happens if your leg muscles are tight and put too much strain on the patroller tendons. Really good stretching, icing, and resting it resolved the issue, but it took time.

[Anonymous]

I have it too. In your two situations, and also sometimes stairs. I have EDS as well, but I think this is more related to my family history of bad knees. My mother had a knee replacement and I'm afraid I'm in for one in the future.