II. Precautions: Pitfalls
- Consider referred pain (including Neuropathy or radiculopathy)
- Referred Hip Pain in children (e.g. SCFE, Legg-Calve-Perthes Disease)
- Lumbar Radiculopathy
- Sacroiliitis
- Proximal Musculoskeletal Injury (e.g. non-displaced Hip Fracture may present with Knee Pain)
- Consider malignancy
III. Causes: Fractures and dislocations
IV. Causes: Adult Knee Pain by frequency
- Most common causes of Acute Knee Pain
- Uncommon but important causes of Acute Knee Pain
- See Rheumatologic Conditions affecting the Knee
- Septic Arthritis (most critical to rule-out)
- Rheumatoid Arthritis
- Pseudogout
- Lyme Disease
- Parvovirus B19
V. Causes: Pain by location
- Anterior Knee Pain
- Patellar Subluxation or instability
- Osgood Schlatter or Tibial Apophysitis (adolescents)
- Sinding-Larsen-Johansson Syndrome or Distal Patellar Apophysitis (adolescents)
- Jumper's Knee
- Patellofemoral Syndrome
- Chondromalacia Patellae
- Prepatellar Bursitis
- Patellofemoral Osteoarthritis
- Hoffa Disease
- Infrapatella fat pad tenderness
- Osteochondritis Dissecans
- Patella Stress Fracture
- Posterior Knee Pain
- Baker's Cyst
- Posterior Cruciate Ligament Tear
- Tear of posterior aspect of meniscus
- Medial Knee Pain
- Medial Collateral Ligament Tear
- Medial Meniscus Tear
- Pes Anserine Bursitis
- Plica Syndrome
- Slipped Capital Femoral Epiphysis (referred pain from hip in adolescents)
- Lateral Knee Pain
- Diffuse, atraumatic Knee Pain
- See Monoarthritis or Polyarthritis
- Osteoarthritis (especially over age 50 years old)
- Septic Joint
- Acute Gouty Arthritis
- Rheumatoid Arthritis
VI. Causes: Pain by age
- See Knee Injury Acute History for injury related causes
- Children
- Young Adults
- Older Adults
VII. Evaluation
VIII. Imaging: Xray indications
- See Ottawa Knee Rules
- Evaluate for Fracture or Osteoarthritis
IX. References
- Spangler and Tollefson (2014) in Herbert 14(6): 9-11
- Bunt (2018) Am Fam Physician 98(9): 576-85 [PubMed]
- Calmbach (2003) Am Fam Physician 68(5):917-22 [PubMed]
- Jackson (2003) Ann Intern Med 139:575-88 [PubMed]
Images: Related links to external sites (from Bing)
Related Studies
Concepts | Sign or Symptom (T184) |
ICD10 | M25.569 , M25.56 |
SnomedCT | 390076006, 202488008, 389343009, 156599003, 202474009, 30989003 |
English | Knee(s) Pain, Arthralgias (knees), Arthralgia (knee), Knee arthralgia, localized knee joint pain, localized knee joint pain (symptom), knee joint pain, knee pain, Aching in knees, Knee pain, Pain in knee, Pain knee, Painful knee, Pain in unspecified knee, aching knees, knees aching, aching knee, knee arthralgia, Pain;musculoskeletal;knee, Pain;knee, knee pains, painful knee, gonalgia, pain in knee, arthralgia - knee / patella / tibia / fibula, arthralgia of the knee, arthralgia of the knee (diagnosis), Knee joint pain (finding), Gonalgia, Arthralgia of knee, Knee joint pain, Knee pain (finding), knee; joint pain, knee; pain, joint, musculoskeletal knee pain |
Dutch | pijnlijke knie, gonalgie, pijnlijke knieën, pijn knie, pijn in knie, kniepijn, knie; gewrichtspijn, knie; pijn, gewricht |
French | Douleur du genou, Endolorissement des genoux, Genou douloureux, Douleur dans le genou, Gonalgie |
German | schmerzhaftes Knie, Schmerzen in den Knien, Gonalgie, Knieschmerz, Schmerz im Knie, Schmerz Knie |
Italian | Dolore al ginocchio, Ginocchio dolorante, Gonalgia, Dolore alle ginocchia |
Portuguese | Dor no joelho, Joelho doloroso, Gonalgia, Moinha nos joelhos |
Spanish | Dolor en rodilla, Gonalgia, Dolor de rodilla, Rodillas doloridas, Rodilla dolorosas, dolor de rodillas, gonalgia (hallazgo), gonalgia |
Japanese | 膝痛, 膝関節痛, シツツウ, ヒザカンセツツウ, シッツウ, シツカンセツツウ, ヒザツウ |
Czech | Bolest kolene, Pobolívání v kolenou, Bolestivé koleno, Bolest v koleni, Gonalgie |
Hungarian | Fájdalom a térdben, Gonalgia, Fájdalmas térd, Fájás a térdekben, Térdfájdalom |