Experts will tell you how to behave if your knees hurt after running – what to do, how to cure it

In this article you will learn why knee pain may occur on the outer side. How do doctors recognize a particular disease accompanied by this symptom? Treatment methods: symptomatic and affecting the cause.

Author of the article: Victoria Stoyanova, category 2 doctor, head of the laboratory at the diagnostic and treatment center (2015–2016).

Article publication date: 06/10/2019

Article updated date: 01/18/2020

Knee pain on the outside develops due to inflammation or damage to the anatomical structures located on the outside of the knee joint.

In this area are:

• lateral collateral ligaments of the knee,
• lateral meniscus,
• fibular collateral ligament.

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If only these structures are affected (in isolation), pain syndrome develops only on the outside of the knee joint. This could be a sprain, rupture, inflammation of the ligaments, or a meniscus fracture.

Discomfort on the outside of the knee most often occurs in people who lead an active lifestyle and perform heavy physical work. In most cases, pain occurs in men, which is associated with professional or sports activities.

Damage to the lateral anatomical structures of the knee joint is usually diagnosed in:

• athletes - football players, rugby players, tennis players, skiers;
• people of manual labor - loaders, builders, laborers, painters.

Pathology often occurs due to violation of sports and work regime.

Damage to the ligaments and menisci is dangerous if proper treatment is not given, which leads to impaired knee function and lameness.

Complete recovery is possible for sprains, ligament ruptures and meniscus fractures with timely medical attention. During conservative or surgical treatment, tissue integrity can be restored. Subsequently, after 1–6 months, the range of motion in the knee is completely restored. If treatment is not started on time (immediately after the onset of symptoms of illness or injury) or is carried out incorrectly, the tissue does not fully recover and the range of motion in the knee decreases.

Knee pain associated with arthritis (inflammation of the knee joint) is not always completely curable. With a chronic process, you can only reduce unpleasant symptoms and reduce the frequency of relapse of the disease, but the disease will inevitably progress and lead to limited mobility of the knee.

If you experience pain in the knee joint, you should consult a traumatologist.

If your knees hurt after running: identifying causes and effective treatment methods

Running is a very popular sport. It is practiced by millions of people around the world, regardless of their professions and interests. Morning or evening jogging is a healthy, fashionable way to keep your body in good shape. But sometimes after running the knee hurts and causes a lot of inconvenience to a person. In order for this sport to be a joy and bring favorable emotions, you should understand why a joint may ache after a race and how to treat it. There is a high risk of injury when playing this sport. One wrong step can cause a sprain, dislocation or fall. Existing diseases and pathologies may also become aggravated or worsened. After all, diarthrosis, which is already under constant load, experiences even greater pressure. It is impossible to treat this “bell” from the body with disdain and it is worth understanding why pain occurs and how to deal with it.

Why do my joints bother me after jogging?

Often people who practice jogging wonder: why do their knees begin to cause discomfort only after exercise? After all, at any other time the joints behave differently - there is no pain and limited movement.

There can be many reasons for the occurrence of painful sensations. The very first of them is unfamiliarity with increased physical activity. When running, jumping and squatting, the joint is loaded much more noticeably than during normal walking. Excruciating discomfort can also appear after the ligaments are torn or stretched. This is accompanied by acute spasms, pain on palpation, local swelling and limited freedom of movement may be observed. Problems with ligaments can appear as a result of a sharp jump in the degree of load on the joint and due to various injuries. The next reason why an uncomfortable feeling appears in the limbs after a race may be a damaged meniscus. This cartilage is connected to other cartilaginous elements by ligaments. Sometimes, with a sudden unsuccessful movement, the fiber of the ligaments can tear and the meniscus is not able to function normally. There will be a sharp spasm, swelling, and the inability to lean on your leg. A common cause of pain is subluxation of the kneecap. The injury is not dangerous, but nevertheless unpleasant, typical specifically for runners. There are no special complications. But with repeated dislocations, the stability of the joint may be lost, and the patella will be injured again and again. And this can lead to the development of the so-called “runner’s knee”, when the tissues of the kneecap are destroyed under the influence of frequent “loosening”, a dull aching pain appears and the joint stops moving normally. With this syndrome, discomfort becomes commonplace. Important: if the blood supply is impaired and diarthrosis does not receive proper nutrition, this may be the cause of pain after jogging. Adolescent children are susceptible to this, when the vascular system does not have time to grow at the same pace as the bones and the blood supply to the bone tissues occurs intermittently. The unpleasant sensations that appear in this case usually do not have a clear location; the knee joint can hurt randomly, and they go away on their own, without taking medications. Or vascular pain can appear in people with a problematic circulatory system, when the patency of blood vessels is impaired and the blood supplies the tissues unstably. We can also talk about the presence of pathological processes: the development of rheumatism, arthritis, bursitis, arthrosis, synovitis and other joint diseases. Inconvenience in the knees during a race can also be a consequence of the incorrect progression of the components of diarthrosis, which occurs when moving on uneven ground, the wrong method of jogging, flat feet, bad shoes or unheated muscles. Important: If a runner moves over uneven terrain, the joints may distribute tension incorrectly, which can result in permanent damage and microtrauma that can develop into inflammation of the knees.

When the wrong technique is chosen (if a person runs with an emphasis on the heel or twists the feet, or holds the torso incorrectly), the body can also respond with pain. The load increases, and normal depreciation does not occur, but the tissues of the joints are compressed and, as a result, the person feels discomfort. If a runner has flat feet, the foot does not spring well and the knee joint is overloaded.

When shoes are incorrectly or poorly selected or laced, the foot is not fixed in the desired position, the joint does not function correctly and can be injured and painful. And, last but not least, you need a full warm-up before classes. The muscles must be warmed up and prepared for stress, otherwise they develop unevenly and direct the skeleton incorrectly. When pain is caused by incorrect position or movement of bone tissue, this can lead to the onset of inflammation, chronic meniscus injury, ruptures or sprains.

Knee meniscus injury

The knee joint has two crescent-shaped cartilaginous formations - the lateral and medial meniscus. They are located perpendicular to the axis of the limb, between the tibia and lower leg. Injuries to the meniscus are possible with strong flexion loads, with sharp extension of a bent leg, with lateral injuries and impacts.

There are many options for damage to the meniscus: tears, complete tears, displacements, etc. Pain on the inside of the knee joint can appear with lateral injuries to the meniscus. This type of injury can be diagnosed through a careful examination, ultrasound, and MRI of the knee joint.

When is pain after running normal?

After a variety of sports activities, so-called “normal” soreness may appear in the knees. It occurs as a reaction to changes in bone and joint tissues, muscles and tendons. There is no need to worry if:

1. The discomfort is not severe and lasts a short period of time. Usually the muscles of the thighs and ankles are also bothered. This is the same “soreness” that occurs due to the production of lactic acid in the tissues. Such pain goes away in a maximum of 3-4 days or less, depending on the degree of training of the runner: the more athletic he is, the weaker the soreness manifests itself and the faster it goes away.

2. Rapidly passing aching pain without a specific localization. It is felt when pressed, does not have a specific point.

However, this only applies to pain that is not intense and passes quickly, as well as pain in beginners in sports - muscles and diarthrosis, out of habit, always ache after training.

Prevention

It is always easier to prevent pathology than to treat it later. To prevent pain on the outside of the knee, follow these rules:

1. Never start training abruptly. Start with small loads and increase them gradually.
2. During high physical activity (for example, competitions or intense training in powerlifting, long training in football, hockey), wear an elastic bandage on your knees.
3. When running long distances, wear orthopedic shoes.
4. Avoid gaining excess weight, as it creates additional stress on all joints, including the knee.

Determining the cause of a painful spasm by its location

Different diseases cause discomfort in different parts of the leg.

• If after running the knee hurts on the outside
  , this may indicate damage to the meniscus or collateral ligament or incorrect placement of the limb due to lower back disease.
• If your knees hurt on the inside after running
  , this may indicate a pathology, problems with the veins, or a complication in the form of a Baker's cyst.
  Baker's cyst is a serious disease that requires the intervention of an orthopedic doctor
  , in which excess fluid accumulates in the joint capsule. Untimely treatment or rupture of a cyst can result in unpleasant consequences and even purulent processes in the tissues or lateral ligament.
• Why do your legs hurt below the knees after running?
  Discomfort in this part will be felt with inflammation of the tendons, atherosclerosis, thrombosis, arthritis and arthrosis, periostopathy and poliomyelitis. Between the knee and heel is a part called the tibia, consisting of two tibia bones and three muscle groups. Sometimes the lower leg may feel discomfort after a long break from training. Muscles that are unaccustomed to stress respond with aching, painful sensations due to the accumulation of lactic acid. With ruptures and sprains of the ligaments, pain in the lower leg will also be felt. And, naturally, the lower leg will hurt if there is a crack or fracture of the bone.

Associated symptoms

Various pathological conditions are accompanied by various additional symptoms, in addition to pain.

The nature of the pain may also differ.

Pathologies and symptoms:

Preventing knee pain when running

To avoid unpleasant pain after your favorite run, you should adhere to a number of rules:

• Run only on level ground
  . You can also run on asphalt, but this is less preferable. But running on paving stones is not recommended at all;
• Choose suitable shoes
  that will tightly “envelop” and carefully fix your foot. Sneakers with a rigid back, shock-absorbing inserts and a flexible toe are suitable. The thickness of the sole should be the same over its entire surface. The shoes are not laced tightly, but the foot should not “walk” in the sneaker;
• Run with proper technique
  . You cannot direct all the tension of the step to the heel; you should place your foot straight or with support on its front part; a smooth roll is made from heel to toe. The supporting leg should be slightly bent at the knee so as not to overload the joint. Your arms should be bent at 90 degrees, with your fists raised above your chest. You should run silently and easily;
• The duration and intensity of the workout
  must be planned so that the difficulty increases gradually. You cannot immediately run continuously for half an hour if the person has not previously exercised at all. This approach will only do harm;
• Before jogging, there must
  be a warm-up for all muscle groups.

Active running loads can lead to knee injury, even if all the rules are followed. In this case, you need to see a doctor who can determine the cause of the pain and prescribe the appropriate course of treatment and supportive procedures.

Traditional medicine against knee pain

Traditional methods of treating knees can be either an independent means of overcoming pain or one of the components of complex treatment. The easiest way to treat a knee is to use all kinds of compresses: 1. Mix chestnut, lilac and dandelion flowers in equal parts and compact tightly into a jar, then pour in vodka and keep in a dark place for 14 days. Soak a gauze cloth with the prepared tincture and wrap it around the disturbing part of the leg overnight. After just two or three times, such a compress will significantly relieve pain. 2. Yellow clay masks have proven themselves well. Yellow clay is mixed with water to a thick paste and applied to the sore spot under a film and a warm bandage. This compress is also kept overnight. The course should be at least 7 procedures, after which it can be done twice a week as a preventive measure. Another popular method of treatment at home is all kinds of ointments prepared with your own hands based on such active ingredients as: mumiyo, honey, celandine, St. John's wort, mustard powder.

When the body responds with unpleasant sensations when playing sports, this is a motivating signal to make changes to your workouts, reduce their intensity or give the body a period of rest. Loads during exercise must be adequate and consistent with the capabilities, health and physical fitness of the person. You need to pay attention to the correct jogging technique and the position of your legs during it. You should only run in comfortable, suitable special shoes. Under no circumstances should you run in sneakers or, especially, in completely non-athletic shoes. The foot in the sneaker should be well fixed, the sneaker should fit “like a glove,” but at the same time the foot should feel natural. If knee pain does not go away within three days after the race, you need to consult a doctor and describe to him the whole picture: when the injury was received, what the nature of the sensations was, what treatment has already been carried out, etc. Perhaps spasms are an indicator of the onset of joint disease. Treatment at its early stage will be much simpler and more effective than in an advanced situation. Self-medication for an injured knee can not only not help, but also cause harm and delay the start of treatment, thereby delaying recovery and reducing a favorable prognosis.

. After completion of treatment and complete restoration of the joint, it is possible to return to training with the permission of your attending physician, starting with minimal loads and gradually carefully increasing them to the desired level.

Treatment methods

Treatment tactics will depend on what kind of disease caused the pain in the outer part of the knee.

The possibility of a complete cure and the prognosis for recovery depend on the specific pathology that provoked the pain:

• If the outer side of the knee hurts due to iliotibial band syndrome, the prognosis is good. Complete relief from pain is possible.
• In case of injuries, it is also conditionally favorable. After complete healing, the pain goes away.
• The only injury that is very difficult to treat is a meniscus tear. Pain may remain even after recovery.
• Ailments such as bursitis and tendovaginitis are also completely curable.
• If the symptom arose against the background of osteoarthritis, the pain will periodically bother the patient during periods of exacerbation. The disease itself is incurable.

Relieving pain symptoms

Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are used for symptomatic treatment. They have an analgesic effect. They are produced in the form of tablets or ointments.

Popular drugs in this group:

• Diclofenac;
• Nise;
• Dolaren.

Ointments without NSAIDs can also be used for pain relief, such as:

• Viprosal - based on viper venom.
• Capsicum with turpentine and camphor.

They have a warming effect that helps relieve pain.

However, they should not be used in the first days after injury. Ointments with a cooling effect - menthol ointment, menovazin, gevkamen - will be good helpers here.

Basic treatment

Treatment of various pathologies accompanied by knee pain:

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