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Your knees are frequently used and have numerous moving components, which can lead to a variety of complications. Too much of one move without warming up can cause an injury. Different conditions like bursitis can cause pain behind the knee. Doctors can diagnose knee pain and can provide personalized treatments. 

Causes of Pain Behind Knee

Following are the few causes of pain behind the knee: 

Torn Meniscus 

The meniscus, a wedge-shaped piece of cartilage that protects the knee, can tear. Each knee has two menisci. Knee twists and squats can cause meniscus tears. The meniscus weakens and breaks down with age. Therefore, it's more likely to tear when bent.

Tears in the meniscus may cause "popping" sounds. The damage may not hurt initially. Pain behind the knee when walking can cause a severe knee injury. A torn meniscus can also cause knee stiffness, swelling, weakness, discomfort, freezing, or giving way. Rest, ice, elevation, and exercise can repair a damaged meniscus.

Anterior Cruciate Injury

The ACL is located in front of the knee. Your knee stays steady and connects your thigh bone to your shinbone. Most ACL injuries occur when runners stop, turn, or slow. Football players who jump incorrectly or sustain injuries can strain or tear this ligament.  You may feel a "pop" when your knee sustains damage. This might make your knee hurt and swell up. Walking can hurt your knees and make movement difficult. Pain behind the knee when bending the leg indicates tendonitis. 

Treatment for ACL damage depends on its severity. Your treatment may include rest, exercise, or ACL restoration.

Posterior Cruciate Ligament Injury 

PCL and ACL work together. Another tissue band supports your knee between your thigh bone and shinbone. But the PCL breaks less commonly than the ACL. A forceful hit to the front of your knee in a car crash can damage the PCL. Twisting your knee or missing a step can damage you. Overextending a muscle strains it. Put strain on the muscle, and it may break. 

PCL injuries can cause severe pain behind the knee, swelling, stiffness, difficulty walking, and weakness. Rest, ice, and elevation speed PCL healing. If your injured cartilage, ligaments, or knee are unstable, you may need surgery as recommended by your doctor of best pain management in Dallas. 

Broken Bones Dislocations

Your thigh, shin, or kneecap may have shattered or shifted if you fell and seriously wounded your knee. Visit doctors for knee pain immediately. Leg bones break slowly, leaving little fissures. Using your knee more frequently may lead to this condition. 

Joint Damage

Your leg is difficult to bend or stretch. Your knee hurts or stiffens as you move. This indicates a deterioration of your bone-protecting cartilage. People over 65 are more likely to get this arthritis because it takes longer to heal. Younger individuals may experience knee overuse due to joint damage. Tendon pain behind the knee can be caused by overuse or strain.  

Bursitis 

Overusing your knee causes it to swell, feel heated, or be sensitive. People who kneel often develop "housemaid's knee" or "clergyman's knee." Small fluid-filled bursae that support your knee swell and get red. 

Baker's Cyst

The fluid-filled sac at the back of your knee may enlarge or tighten, making it difficult to bend or stretch. A torn knee or ankle pain may be the cause. The ruptured cyst may enlarge and cause pain in the back of your knee and leg. 

Pain Behind the Knee Treatment

Pain behind the knee when straightening indicates the issue of ligament injury. Treatment for pain behind your knee depends on its underlying cause. PRICE (ice, rest, compression, and elevation) is part of the treatment. Ibuprofen and aspirin are over-the-counter pain medications.

Knee braces, exercise, weight loss, and cortisone shots can alleviate pain and inflammation.

Following are the few treatment options for pain behind the knee: 

• Physical Therapy: This therapy targets the knee, its supporting bones, the hip, and the ankle. Premier Pain Centers offers virtual visits with physiotherapists. Physiotherapy is one of the best knee treatments without surgery. 

• Change in action: If your knee discomfort is worsening, avoid lifting and moving. Most people recover better by moving than by sitting. To accelerate the joint's healing process and return to regular job duties as soon as possible,

• Cold & Heat Therapy: Every day, put cold packs on the painful area for 20 minutes to ease the pain. For new cuts, ice is better than heat, but both will do.

• Putting tape down: Research has shown that applying sports tape above and below the knee to form an "X" behind the knee can reduce runners' knee pain when descending. Taping may help with knee pain, according to physical therapist

• Use OTC drugs: Ibuprofen, naproxen, and acetaminophen can alleviate discomfort in the back of the knee. These drugs should be safe for you, given your medical history. 

• Surgery: Broken or torn ACLs may require orthopedic surgery in Dallas. It is important to visit the doctor to avail effective treatment. 

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