Squishy Knee syndrom?

“My left knee is squishy and kinda swollen, right above the patella. Has anyone ever had anything like this happen to their knee?

Someone at Birch's work told me it's water on the knee. Doesn't hurt much but man, is it freakishly squishy and large.

I have a Dr's apt for tomorrow afternoon. Will he really suck all the fluid out w/ a syringe or is Birch trying to scare me?

What would cause something like this? I can't recall any speciffic injury.
last edited: 8/04/05 10:42:39 PM”

“I have had fluid taken from my knee before. It felt like they were pulling every thing out of my body”

“Thank you very much Ewker. That's actually what childbirth feels like too. Now you know what it's like to have a baby.”

“LOL @ Sass!”

“Yep, sounds like knee gravy to me. I have had both knees extracted twice.

Check with a knee doctor. It is a simple procedure and in some cases, the doctor cane do it in his/her office.”

“I never ordered any gravy! What makes it happen WK?”

“old age Sass ;)”

“old age is one factor. Active lifestyle.

Mine was because I played tennis from 10 years up thru college competitively and bad knees runs in my family. The only family member that has not had to have surgery is my brother. Mom, dad and sis all had it.”

“Old age my tookus!

I think it's irritation from Sarge's posts. =D”

“Yikes, sass I am sure it wont be as bad as ewker says...


(man I aam NEVER gonna get old!)”

“Good luck w/ that SC, lol.”

“Yep, Sass...sounds like water on the knee. I have had my knees drained several times, the first time being in the 7th grade. What causes it I am not sure. Running, and not wearing the right shoes will cause it to flare up. Sucks, too cause ya can't bend it normal. The draining part? The needle is sort of like a tube. It's pretty big but the fluid is viscous. Good luck! It's no big deal. At least when its over, you will be able to bend your knee. And, too, they don't always drain it...it will go away on its own with rest if it's just a small amount.
last edited: 8/05/05 6:19:41 AM”

“water on the knee is due to an exaggerated inflammatory response - were you pushing yourself recently? I think a lot of runners get it, but also the impact of a steep downhill grade with backpack weight could trigger it. The joints have synovial fluid to help absorb shock - if your shocks are wearing, your body compensates. You may want to ace wrap the knee(s) and take an anti-inflamm for future protection.

that's a bummer though - I hope your knee feels better!”

“good luck today Sass, the sucking sound will be your life flowing out of your knee”

“I have had knee problems for years, all self inflicted from running, exactly as AmyG said. In my case it stemmed from poor alignment of the kneecap relative to the groove the kneecap rides in over the joint. I do so much running that I only develop the set of muscles for running and not the opposite set (which would be used for cycling, for example). This pulls the kneecap to one side and hence out of alignment. Now I cycle and lift weights to build the opposite side of my leg and the pain and swelling have now vanished. As is often the case, moderation and balance turned out to be key.

I agree you should see a joint specialist as I did. I ain't never heard of "knee gravy", I laughed out loud when I read that. I do wish you luck and I bet this is something that a doctor can treat and have you on your way with a bit of patience and focused attention as was the case with my problem.”

“Thanks for the info! Fortunately it's only been about two weeks and it really doesn't hurt. It was puting a bit of presure on my joint yesterday which was what led me to the DR's apt and curiousity about it.”

“I developed a mild case of it in high school. The doctor just put me on Feldene and that took care of it. The condition cleared itself up after a while. I used to do a lot of dayhiking around tree farms and my general area of Michigan in pretty crappy Reebok hightops. Hey, it was the late 80s. Reeboks were cool. Once.”

“yikes! hope you don't need the needle, as fun as that feeling of them pulling everything out of your body sounds.
last edited: 8/05/05 9:22:04 AM”

“My knees feel much better now that I have a Handicapped Parking permit. Would you like me to send you my slightly used crutches, Sassafras?”

“Nope but I'll gladly take your scooter. I want to be a "little rascal"* too.











*remember the comercials, "I'm a little rascal on my little rascal!"”

“Squishy

LOL Love that technical term!”

“That's how it feels. I could go crazy w/ the latin and greek medical terminology for you if you want. Lord knows I stayed awake through the classes!”

“Hey Pitts, try this excersize out for your knee. I have exactly the same problem. Buy a beach ball or kick ball that is about the size of a basketball. Put your back against the wall and slide down it until your thighs are paralell to the floor. It takes awhile to be able to get to there so work up to it. Put the ball between your knees and to 3 reps of 8, squeezing the ball with your knees. Toward the end of the excersize use your hands to push the legs in if you need to. Do this 3 to five nights a week. In less than a month your kneecap will realign. I have to do this about once a year to keep everything lined up but it works like a charm.”

“squirrelbait: That is very interesting. I will for sure give it a shot. I get lazy about the cycling and weight training (because I don't really enjoy them) and I tend to "drift back". My running never stops! So this might be a real useful exercise for me. Thanks!”

“This is exactly my problem as described by the orthopaedic surgeon I visited yesterday. I go back to physical therapy this afternoon. I have five different exercises I have to do involving the VMO muscle on my left leg. This muscle is on the inner thigh and attaches to the knee. Mine is very weak for some reason and has caused the cartilege behind the kneecap to move out of the groove and cause wear(?) on it. I've been limping for six weeks now and it really sucks. I will be so glad if I can get back to normal.
last edited: 8/05/05 3:37:30 PM”

“solitary hiker: Good luck! I know in my case I saw rapid improvement once I started doing the exercises. It's only when I get lazy that I slide back, and it takes months for that to happen.”

“Prepatelar bursitis.

Aint nothin to it. I still get to do anything I want, no meds or suction required (I couldve had some anti-inflamatories or a cortisone shot if I wanted). If it's not better in 6 weeks I go back. Nothing a few oatmeal raisen cookies and a glass of milk can't make feel better.”

“Sass: Great news! Good luck. I'll admit, Prepatelar Bursitis sounds bad ... like something you would cough up.”

“Funny thing....the Dr walks in and asks what's up. I tell him I have a squishy knee. He says "Squishy Knee Syndrom?"!! I hope he doesn't read this stuff, lmao.”

“that's great news, Sassafras. Sure glad it was nothing serious.”

“Thanks NS.”

“Hey Sass - would "jiggly" be an appropriate way to describe it, at all? When running today and one day last week, my left knee felt jiggly. Like the knee cap was jiggling around inside. It didn't hurt. Just felt weird. And, it was a knee that hasn't had any trouble before... Strange.”

“Nope, it just feels like there's pressure on the patela; like it's being pressed down.

When I first started running again after my tendonitis my knees were sloppy. My Dr, who also runs alot, said that the ligaments and tendons in your joints get loose and will tighten up as you use them more.”

“ARG, returned to the doctors yesterday. My knee keeps getting bigger and has become painful. I now ice twice a day and have to wear a compression bandage for a month.
The sports doctor said the only time he recommends drawing the liquid off is post mortem, lol.
After icing it felt much better. Can't say that I mind the compression bandage as long as it's cool out. I foresee sweaty knee syndrom if it heats up again!”

“I know how hard an injury like this was. A year ago I broke a metatarsal (sp?) bone in my foot. I ignored it at first, thought it was a sprain, but it was agony after the first day. It healed quickly but for me it was more than that. I had just run my first sub-20 5K not two weeks earlier and was really feeling high (that's not bad for a dude pushing 40). At least I could swim ... nope, they put me in a cast and that totally shut me down. It was debilitating to say the least, both physically and mentally. My times are nowhere near where they were and I don’t run nearly as much as I used to, even after my foot has fully healed. It was really a huge blow. I know I should have risen to the challenge and fought to get back to where I was, but for some reason I can’t figure out I was unable to do this. Oh well, there is always next year.

Hiking has sort of proved to be a salvation. I can take advantage of all the training, especially the aerobic conditioning, and not fret about the weight I have gained this last year. It’s been good for my soul.

So I wish you well Sassafrasm both physically and mentally! I am sure you will be just fine with patience and discipline.”

“I feel ya Pitts. Last December I had a chunk of my toe removed because I hadn't taken care of a break properly. I also was off my feet for four months prior while tendonitis in my peronius longus healed. It felt like I had a broken foot for the majority of that time. Thanks for the well-wishes. =)
Thankfully I don't have to stop excercising, etc with this knee issue. I just have to give it an extra icing after the gym and I've switched to the eliptical instead of running for the time being. I just got home from a nice 4.5 mile session on it. =)”

“Get it drained, IMHO. I had both knees drained and it was fine. The only prob was that I kept on playing rugby and had both operated on (not at the same time) and still kept playing rugby.

I now have a pinched nerve in my neck and my pulse stops when I raise an arm and I can black out if I look to the right the wrong way (sorry).

I played till I was 55.

No regrets, BTW.”

“Maybe if I'd had a definate injury I'd go for it but I can't remember anything. I did have what I thought was a mosquito bite on my knee when it first swelled. It's possible it was an ant or spider bite and the swelling is a result.
It's gone down considerably after compression and icing for two days.”

“Well, it just kept getting bigger. I was up to five times a day icing and wore out one compression bandage. After the twenty miles Birch and I hiked last thursday and friday it was gigantic. I went to the Dr today and he sucked out the knee gravy. It was a lovely shade of yellow, didn't hurt a bit (some of you are big sissys!) and even if it had I wouldn't have flinched because my 4 yr old was watching intently and that needle/syringe was HUGE. Got a shot of cortizone in it. I hope that it stays small.
I'm about tired of the compression bandage all day everyday.”

“ewww, just thinking about that needle makes me want to pass out! how much are you selling the knee gravy for?”

“Ick. That knee gravy sounds nasty! Hope it feels better, Sass!”

“Yummy”

“ugh, hope that takes care of it for you Sass...
what happened to the "post mortem" recommendation, LOL...

I know what you mean about taking your kid to the Dr with you - my son was 6 and I had to have the flap over a knuckle sewn back on after a glass I was washing broke. I never said a thing, but after watching the cleaning and sewing, my son decided he no longer wanted to be a doctor since he almost got sick, LOL...”

“Ouch!
Take care of your knee Sass...

I had problems last year (bike accident)--luckily, it was fluid, but never swelled up to where I needed any needle aspirations...

You don't want to mess around with a bad knee...”

“The knee gravy went to be biopsied. If I had it I'd let you and the monkeys have it for free Lyra.

I'm not sure exactly what happened w/the post mortem bit. I guess he decided it'd be worth a try. I'm just happy my knee is back to it's normal size for the moment.”

“I ain't post mortem yet!”

“I hope your knee gets better soon, Sass.”

“ACK! It's back!!! One day and the thing is huge again. And the biopsy says it's not prepatellar bursitis but pseudogout. And the treatment sounds awful. And alcohol agravates it. =( Oh the horror....”

“I sometimes suffer from squishy head syndrom. And it too is sometimes aggrivated by alcohol. LOL!
last edited: 10/06/05 10:10:16 AM”

“dang pseudogout looks like it really sucks : link”