Hi All. I am a 30 year old active male that has been dealing with chronic pain and weakness in my right knee for much of my adult life. It hasn't been bad enough to see a doctor until the last couple months when I have started working out more frequently at the gym and going on long mountain bike rides. It's starting to cause issues and quite extreme acute pain day-to-day and i'm getting concerned about it.
I have an appointment set up with my doctor, but he can't see me for a few months because he is changing offices. In the mean time, I am hoping maybe someone has some idea what this might be?
I experience little to no pain from stretching my knee either way. I also don't experience pain during most exercises. The issue is when I am putting weight on it while it's slightly bent, like when walking down stairs. If I stand up from a chair and put all my weight on my right leg, I will often get an extreme burst of pain, along with weakness (buckling) that sometimes results in me falling over.
If I sit in a chair, strap some weight (10lbs) to my right leg and extend it out straight, the pain will hit when my leg is about 45 degrees, and continue up until it's straight. It is quite an alarming amount of pain, and goes beyond just soreness. When this happens, like when walking up stairs for example, I will often have to sit down for a moment from the shock of the pain.
I am not experiencing any swelling, and both of the knees look the same visually. The pain is more or less localized behind my kneecap, and is always worst the day after heavy leg exercises, like long bike rides.
Does anyone have any ideas what this might be, or does it ring any bells? I would like to continue working out, but if I am continually damaging myself and making things worse I would like to know about it as soon as possible. I'm going to see if any other doctor can see me sooner.
Thanks very much for any help that can be offered!
Behind the kneecap, especially when walking down stairs, eh? That could be damage to the cartilage on the back of the kneecap. (Chondromalacia) Of course, you'd need an MRI to find out for sure.
In any case, don't do things that cause a lot of pain, because it probably will make things worse. Try to stick to exercises that are not painful. Maybe riding on roads rather than mountain biking? If need be, try walking down stairs backwards, many folks with knee pain find that easier.
And, your doctor can't see you for a few MONTHS because he's moving? Isn't someone else covering for him during this time, for acute problems? You're in pain, after all.
