Arrrgh Knee pain

Rosycheeks

Hey everyone

I have PA and have been having pain in my knees for about 8 months. At first it was nothing major, just an ache on the inner part of both knees. About 4 months ago the pain and swelling stepped up a gear :???:
And then several weeks ago the pain became awful in the back of my left knee. The rheumy nurse gave me a steroid jab in my rump which just about got rid of the pain in most of my joints and my right knee But my darn left knee is just getting worse. I can no longer squat down as the pain is excruciating. And at times its almost unbearable lifting that leg to walk up the stairs. And I can feel a kind of crunching/grinding funny feeling when I bend that knee. It hurts to be too straight and it hurts to be too bent

Soooo does this sound familiar to anyone? I have been lucky so far in that my arthritis has not caused any damage to my joints apart from one finger. Im wondering if its something other than the PA? Or if its damage
I see the physio in 2 weeks and will see what she thinks. But in the meantime does this kind of pain sound like arthritis to you guys?

xxx

dreamdaisy

Oh absolutely. I've had similar pain for fourteen years in the left knee but only eight in the right. My ankles feel the same too. The knees are now complicated by OA which I am sure has crept in (in my case) due to the PA damage - that is a very different pain, hotter and sharper. I don't know if your pain is down to damage or just the arthritis. My knees have never swelled at the back though, always at the front and above the kneecap. When I am standing in the shower I tend to adopt the Jonny Wilkinson semi-crouch position, that eases the strain: I remember my first physio telling me to never stand with my legs straight, that they should always slightly bent. DD

stickywicket

I agree with DD, Rosycheeks. What you describe is all too familiar.

For the staris, don't even try to bend the bad knee. Go up one step at a time with the better knee then bring the bad one up to it. Reverse this coming down. It does help.

frogmorton

Hi Rosy

sounds familiar to me when l am having a flare. When are you due to see the rheumatologist??? Or the doc???

If l were you l would be trying to 'see' someone asap lass :sad:

Love

Toni xx

traluvie

Sounds familar to me too.

I do the stairs as sticky described, have even slid down the stairs on my bum a few times(not the safest of methods )

A knee support helps me, but when it is really swelling i got no chance putting a support on so apply ice to reduce swelling..

Hope you feel bit better soon.x

lalla

Sounds familiar, it would be advisable to ask Gpfor referal /or Rheumy to check if OA is problem, when you get proper diagnosis --good treatment . Ice pack can be useful in the interim. Have you tried walking downstairs backwards(bad knee first) it takes a lot of pressure off the joints (((()))) Take care Linda

bubbadog

Hi Roseycheeks, Unfortunately that does sound familiar for both my knees! They crunch and grind all the time sometimes I can hardly walk and just can't get out of bed and sometimes it hurts to keep straight or bend. So I feel your pain yes your not alone on that one! I hope you find some peace knowing that and that you get help from your GP for pain relief or any help from others on here! If you ever want to rant or just talk to someone who knows what your going through you are welcome to PM (private message) me whenever you want. bubbadog/Amanda.

Rosycheeks

Thank you all so much for telling me about your knees

I guess I was confused because its not following the same pattern as my other knee/joints. And also because the steroid jab helped my other knee etc but not my left knee. I have not felt the grinding before in any of my other joints, they are just hot and swollen and ache when they become inflammed. Both of my knees started like that with an ache around the inner part of my knee but I dont know why the left one is just getting worse and worse even though its not even hot anymore, just swollen still.
I think I was hoping that maybe I had hurt it :???: as opposed to it being the pa because this pain is in a whole different and very persistant league. If I have done alot of walking the pain is horrendous at night. It wakes me up constantly.
Whilst before when my knees were both the same and just inflammed I could crouch down with pain, I can no longer do that because its shear agony.

Stupid PA and stupid knees :oops:

dreamdaisy

Kneeling and crouching are highly over-rated activities, I have managed life perfectly well without performing either maneouvre for the last twelve years! If a steroid was injected into a particular joint then it will aid that joint but not necessarily any others. A depo into your backside can have a general improving effect for all areas, but again it all depends on how one reacts to these things. It's a complicated business, this arthritis malarkey. :roll:

kittymedaughter

this is exactly what i am suffering at the moment..I am waiting for a MRI to find out the cause. I have suffered from Fibromyaliga for 9 years and NEVER felt pain like this before. My GP thinks it is OA and a torn cartilige...Please post again if you get any answers..some of the people on here have told me the swelling at the back of the knee is a bakers cyst..it is very painful and the pain shoots up my thigh at times

I have had to sleep with a pillow between my legs and i move around in bed using the leg that isn't as hurting as much to get in a comfy position. make sure your night clothes are not dragging as you move, this happened to me the other night and i felt my damaged knee pull again, the pain was awful and i couldn't sleep at all.

I have used stickywickets suggestion for the stairs and it has made me feel so much safer coming down and going up and the pain isnt as bad doing it the way that she/he suggested..sorry sticky not sure if you are male or female yet not been on the board long enough


Hope the pain eases for you soon.

Rosycheeks

Hi foggyjano

I had the swelling at the back of my knee confirmed as a Bakers cyst by the rheumy nurse. And yes I got pains going down my calf and sometimes slightly up my thigh too. Whilst that seems to of resolved after my steroid jab the sharper grinding pain and trouble bending and straightening without alot of pain has not gone.

I hope you get some answers, and likewise if you find anything out let me know