Knee overuse injury

Cause and symptoms

Overuse injuries in the knee can occur from prolonged repetitive stress, where the muscles and tendons around the knee joint are exposed to more than they are strong enough to handle.

The typical overuse injuries of the knee are:

Jumper's knee, which is an overuse of the tendon under the kneecap.
Runner's knee, which is an overuse of the tendon on the outside of the knee.

The most common symptoms of overuse injuries of the knee are pain and swelling. You may also experience a feeling of stiffness in and around the knee joint when you move.

The vast majority of people will experience improvement within the first 3 months with relief and exercises.

What you can do yourself

In the first few days after the onset of symptoms, you can try to relieve the pain and swelling by staying still and avoiding the activities that cause pain. You can cool the area around the knee with an ice pack under compression (e.g. with an elastic bandage). It is a good idea to raise the knee above heart level to help the blood return to the heart. Cooling the area should be done for periods of a maximum of 10 minutes.

It is important that you maintain your activity level and your physical fitness, in order to avoid inactivity. However, you should avoid activities that worsen the pain and have a high load on the knee (running, jumping and jumping). Instead, you should find other activities so that you can continue to be physically active - this can be, for example, cycling, rowing or swimming/aqua aerobics.

Exercise

It is important that you stay active and start exercising. Exercise is effective in reducing pain and discomfort, as well as preventing new discomfort in the body.

The following exercises are inspiration for training to relieve pain and regain function. You can do all the exercises every day and on both legs. Make sure to warm up and get your knee moving before you start the exercises. The warm-up can consist of 10 min. walking or cycling.

Pelvic lift with knee pull

Repetitions: 3x10 repetitions

How to do it: Lie on your back with your legs bent, your feet on the floor and your arms down by your side. Now slowly lift your pelvis off the floor until you rest on your shoulder blades. Extend one leg and hold the position for a few seconds. Place your foot on the floor again and slowly lower your pelvis.

Chair Squat

Repetitions: 3x10 repetitions

How to do it: For this exercise you need a chair. Sit on the outer edge of the chair with your feet on the floor and feet hip-width apart. Now stand up with the weight evenly distributed on both legs, and slowly sit down again. Make sure to keep your back straight when you get up and sit on the chair.

Glide front and back

Repetitions: 3x10 repetitions

How to do it: For this exercise, you need a dishcloth. Place the dishcloth on the floor. Stand with a slight distance between your feet and one foot on the dishcloth. Put your body weight on the opposite leg. Now slowly slide the foot with the cloth underneath backwards and then forward again. Be aware that the position of the knee is kept in the direction of your toes. If possible, have a chair by your side that you can lean on if you have difficulty keeping your balance.

Lateral glide

Repetitions: 3x10 repetitions

How to do it: For this exercise, you need a dishcloth. Place the dishcloth on the floor. Stand with a slight distance between your feet and one foot on the dishcloth. Put your body weight on the opposite leg. Now slowly slide the foot with the cloth out to the side and then back in again. Be aware that the position of the knee is kept in the direction of your toes. If possible, have a chair by your side that you can lean on if you have difficulty keeping your balance.