Runner's Knee?

[Seamus McBundy]

I've tried to maintain a running schedule for the past few months that include running 3 miles M-F with no issues. Last night I ran 5.5 miles and this morning one knee is swollen and appears to have some fluid in it. Its not painful, but am hoping to find out what I need to do to treat this..

 

[Brak]

Well if it doesn't hurt I wouldn't worry about it too much. Put some ice on it for 20 minutes, twice a day. Take a few days off and see if the swelling goes down. If it does resume running but be prepared to quit if you have any pain. Doubling your miles is probably the cause but if you had a good base of miles you should have been ok.

If the swelling doesn't go down or you have pain you should probably see a doctor.

Did you change the surface that you are running on? How about your shoes? Are they new? If they aren't new how many miles do you have on them? Makeu sure you are running in good quality running shoes, not something you picked up at Academy because they were on sale.

BTW, I'm not a doctor, just a long time runner.

 

[Stuck_At_Work]

Not sure if this is what you are experiencing, but the most common running injury deals with the IT band. I think there are simple stretches to do to prevent further injury. I'm not sure though...

 

[Seamus McBundy]

The shoes I bought were not cheap ones you might find at academy. Ive had them for about 2 months now. This must be because of the increase in distance. I figure I'll wait till Thursday or Friday and run on the tread. And go back to norm routine on Monday if I dont see any problems with the knee.

Hope it doesnt continue cause Im trying to get to a point where Im running 4-5 miles daily.

 

[NBMisha]

Unwise to resume running without either waiting 2-3 weeks and or seeing an MD. Seriously reconsider resuming so quickly.

 

[AUinAustin]

Here's a few thoughts from someone who had full open knee surgery from overuse from running and karate. You need to find a good ortho who knows kness and get it looked at. There are so many different things that could be causing the pain - I had the IT band shortening and it hurt like hell but no swelling. I also had damage to the linig from the kneecap similar to a car wreck from over running (marathon) and bone spurs growing.. Several ortho doctors had no idea but I had one of Auburns team doctors take a look and he knew everything that had been going on for months. Experience matters. It could be your shoes and your running style don't match - the cost of shoes is not relvevant if they aren't correct for your foot. A lot of running shoes correct pronation (foot rolls in) I am one of the few who supinate (rolls out) Even the most expensive shoes for pronatiion would be dangerous for me. Honestly I don't think going from 3 to 5.5 miles would cause that drastic of a reaction but I also remember that all of my symptoms showed up a month after the marathon that caused the issue

 

[Seamus McBundy]

Dont have any pain in the knee. Just have fluid in it, which I havent ever had before. I asked my brother in law what he thought (he's a dr.) and said it doesnt sound serious and to lay off for a while. I also asked a friend who's a nurse and said the same thing. I'll get some rehab time and take it easy on the leg. And after a while get back into running slowly.

 

[CanaTigers]

I have had fluid many times. Usually goes away in a day or two with ice, elevation, 3 aspirins 3 times a day. If not and it inhibits motion get it drained if you need to use it. My knees hurt every day but thus far have avoided having it laid open. I am no doctor either and following my advice will probably result in living in pain as you get older. But feel free to join the club.