My knee has been popping and feeling tight and sometimes hurts when it's in the bent position. Any ideas why?

Question

If I straighten out my knee than it feels better but I haven't had the pain part of it for awhile now. It just feels weird when I have that locking sensation. It usually occurs when I'm up and about. I've also noticed that my knee cap on my left leg (where this is happening) is sitting kind of off to the side, tilting towards the inside of my leg. Is that normal? My right one looks fine and it's lined up with my leg.

Sorry, I forgot to mention that I am a 37 yr. old female. I am not athletic, well, not anymore. I have had very clear instructions from my doctor on playing sports because of my ankle. I try and do walking but sometimes that bothers me to.

Answer 1

The Number One Myth of Knee Rehab
Which of the lines below is longer? Top? Bottom?


Perhaps you have seen this illusion before. The answer is that the lines are the same length. No way! Clearly, the bottom figure has a much shorter line! Sorry. They measure the same length.

Sometimes what we believe can be so strong that we refuse to accept the truth; the facts. I likely will be writing and talking about this topic until I retire (and for those of you who know me that will be a very long time). This is the number one myth of knee rehabilitation, causes more frustration and knee pain than practically any other exercise procedure and has been scientifically disproven more than once: isolated strengthening of the vastus medialis oblique (VMO).

The VMO is one of four thigh muscles known as the quadriceps. You can find it just to the inside of your kneecap (patella). It attaches to your knee cap at an angle causing doctors, therapists and trainers to arrive at the misguided belief that this muscle determines the path your knee cap travels. The irrational thought process goes like this:

You have knee pain because your knee cap moves or shifts toward the outside of your knee and it therefore causes excessive pressure. Because the VMO muscle fibers are oriented in the opposite direction of this shift, the motion of your knee cap must come from a weakness of this muscle. So, if you strengthen the VMO, the knee cap will move back toward the center, pressure will be reduced and magically your knee pain vanishes.

".....a mini-squat, will strengthen the VMO (Vastus Medialus Oblique muscle) on the medial aspect of the knee. Once the kneecap (patella) is tracking appropriately and positioned in the center of the knee, generally pain from chondromalacia is greatly reduced and functional use of the knees improves." (source:http://physicaltherapy.about.com/cs/kneepainrehab/a/needy_knees_4.htm)

The VMO is one of four muscles which all share the same nerve: the femoral nerve. Muscles contract when nerves tell them to contract. Since the VMO has the same nerve as the other three thigh muscles, it will contract along with the others. You cannot make the VMO contract by itself.

But, it gets worse. Since flawed thinking often produces flawed actions (and ineffective results), in order to "isolate" the VMO, doctors, therapists and trainers prescribe the following exercise called a short arc quad. This exercise requires you to sit on the floor or bed with your legs out in front of you. You then place a large towel roll, coffee can or some other object to cause your knee to bend about 30 degrees. From this position, you lift your foot off the ground pressing the back of your knee into the towel roll or can straightening your knee. But, if you have any knee joint pain, this exercise will not feel very good because at this angle, the pressure under the knee cap is very high. In fact, exercise of the knee in which the foot moves through space (also known as knee extension) will produce considerable joint reaction forces under the knee cap.

Now that we know there is no anatomical support for the idea you can isolate and strengthen the VMO and that the exercises which supposedly do that are potentially detrimental to your injured joint, why would doctors, therapists and trainers continue to believe to the contrary?

There are a couple of reasons why practitoners hold onto such beliefs. The first is ignorance. When you do not know, you cannot change. Keeping up with the changes in physical rehabilitation is a challenge. Hundreds of new scientific articles emerge each week. To stay at the leading edge, you must read and love to learn or be around people who do. Second, replacing new information with old calls into question everything else you know and were taught. If this information is wrong, what else is wrong? Accepting new information which contradicts your beliefs can be threatening to you if part of your identity is woven into always being right; always having the answer; never saying "I don't know". In this case, you will hold onto a belief even if the facts are obviously to the contrary because changing threatens your sense of self.

For those of you who are not practitioners, you may be wondering what's all the fuss about? Well, this is just one example of several sacred cows of healthcare. Imagine what happens when I suggest that using ice to control swelling is a waste of time? Can you hear the wailing, and knashing of teeth?

Which would you rather have? A comfortable, cozy delusion leading you the wrong way or the truth? I vote for the truth. How about you?

Make today count.

Answer 2

It sounds as if you have cartilage damage in your knee. If you have a dip, the cartilage is disappearing. That will also account for the snapping part of it. In fact, I'm almost positive that that's what it is because mine is the same way. lf you have been athletic, or if you are genetically prone to knee problems, this is likely what's going on. An X-ray could tell for sure. It it is the cartilage, then you have several options:

1. Live with it. If the pain is manageable, this is probably the best thing to do.

2. Have orthroscopic surgery. This will clean out the "floating" cartilage in your knee.

3. Have a cartilage transplant. This results in huge scars on both sides of the knee. Also, they haven't been doing it too terribly long, so it is hard to determine potential success rates.

4. Have a knee replacement. They will not do this unless you are severely injured or at least into middle age. The replacements don't last and you will eventually have to have another one. This surgery also results in huge scars on both sides.

When it hurts, alternate ice and heat, and don't keep it in any one position for too long. Sometimes it helps to wear a knee brace or bandage. Be very careful when you are walking around things. If you are cartilage deficient, it will hurt like hell when you hit your knee on something.

My advice is to live with it. My damage was detected 20 years ago, and they told me that if I quit dancing ballet that day, I might walk on my knees for 5 years. They also said that if I did not quit dancing, I would have 3 years.

I danced well into my 20's and am 35 now. I am walking on my own knees. Yes, they hurt sometimes, but for me, none of the available options was really worth it. I'm waiting until they can do transplants orthroscopically, so the scars will be small. Then I'm in!

Answer 3

Wish you would have said how old you were, what your activities were, running, tennis, golf, soccer, etc, that all helps.
I will say it sounds like early arthritis and, or, a sports injury. With this, I could mean just dancing, twisting, turning, things like this.
A torn or stretched cartilage under the bursa (kneecap) and maybe some build-up from arthritis that has to be scraped.

Ice packs helps sometimes, try very light exercises, if it hurts stop. You should really see your doctor, he'll run X-Rays first, then a trip to the orthopedic surgeon. He may have a arthroscope, they put a needle mounted camera into your knee, your asleep, and look in several places. They'll show you the pictures and what's wrong, they'll show you what has to be done.

You'll be on crutches for six to eight weeks, then a cane for a few weeks.
This is all if they find anything serious wrong. In the meantime, like I said, ice packs, and elevate the leg with a pillow, sleep like this also.

Answer 4

You probably damaged a meniscus or even your ACL. You should get an MRI done. Quite expensive but it's the only way to look inside your knee without surgery.

Answer 5

It may be petollofemoral syndrome, or patellar tendinitis. Try icing it and stretching it. Take some non presciption anti inflammatories. It's probably due to a muscle imbalance, so you can try excersing your quads and hams.

Answer 6

You have a dislocated knee cap.

Answer 7

u may have popped ur knee cap out of place...

Answer 8

cartilage