Bursae are small, jelly-like sacs that are located throughout the body, including around the shoulder, elbow, hip, knee, and heel. They contain a small amount of fluid, and are positioned between bones and soft tissues, acting as cushions to help reduce friction.
Prepatellar bursitis is an inflammation of the bursa in the front of the kneecap (patella).
It occurs when the bursa becomes irritated and produces too much fluid, which causes it to swell and put pressure on the adjacent parts of the knee.
The diagnosis of bursitis is usually made on physical examination, but computerised tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans may be ordered to check for other soft tissue injury.
The knee is a complex structure consisting of bone, cartilage, muscle, tendon, ligament, synovial fluid and nerves.
Knee pain could be the result of a problem with any one of these components, or a combination of several.
The knee can take time to heal due to generally there is poor blood supply in that area, X-rays will show some obvious conditions, tendons and ligament damage is difficult to diagnose on x rays, further investigation i.e. a MRI scan maybe required.
Each condition have different healing times, a specialist in that healthcare field will monitor your healing time and should guide you to obtain optimum healing time as this can can from individual to individual.
Treatment time
The swelling and pain normally settle within 2- 8 weeks, which often includes: Avoidance of aggravating activities and postures including weight-bearing directly on the knee. Providing an area of padding (knee pad) over the kneecap to reduce pressure on the bursa.
One must practice proper stretching, strengthening, and exercise for a speedy recovery from this condition.
One can use paracetamol (if suitable), if in pain, talk further to your healthcare professional after this point.
Ice: Wrap frozen peas/vegetables packet in a towel and apply for a duration of 15 mins every two to three hours for first 48-72 hrs (2-3 days) or one can use a cold compress (those sensitive to temperature change should not use it) or cold medicinal product (freeze spray or patch) if suitable.
If condition is very hot , inflamed and swollen consider Septic bursitis.
If condition not healing or longer than two weeks , please see your medical doctor.
Baker’s Cyst – a collection of knee-joint fluid that pools in the back of the knee, most commonly as a result of arthritis. If a Baker’s cyst ruptures, the fluid may leak down into the calf region causing an aching pain in the calf, along with swelling.
This tends to affect active adolescents. It is an inflammation of a growth plate under the attachment of the patella tendon to the kneecap.
The symptoms include pain near the bottom of the kneecap accompanied by swelling and tenderness around the kneecap.
Lateral Patellar Facet overload syndrome
A dull aching pain underneath, around the sides or below kneecap.
It is caused by increased pressure on the lateral facet of the patella. The reason for this is improper tracking, poor alignment or dislocation of the kneecap.
The condition is often apparent during repetitive exercise such as climbing stairs.
Popliteus muscle injury
A thin triangular muscle located in the depression at the back of the knee joint, called the popliteal fossa.
Exercise or trauma may cause injury to the popliteus muscle.
If the muscle is injured you may feel tenderness when rotating your leg inwards.
Quadriceps tendonitis – Irritation, strain or injury to the quadricep tendon (tendons just above the knee cap).
Plica syndrome- inflammation of the plica is the fold in the thin synovial membrane that lines the knee joint.
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Please talk to your healthcare professional (i.e. Medical Doctor/Pharmacist) for further advice
Detailed Information
Please copy and paste any key words from the title: Bursitis of the Knee in the following respective 'Medtick References and/or Sources' to find out more about the disease (this also may include diagnosis tests and generic medical treatments).
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