Knee pain, especially when you want to sleep and rest after a painful day at work, can be very frustrating and annoying.
In the following our doctors will introduce you to the causes of knee pain when lying down.
Because when you go to bed, you are free from work and activity, all your focus will be on the pain, so the discomfort caused by the knee pain is more annoying when lying down, when you are busy with something during the day, you will feel less pain.
Knee pain can even wake you up, you may wake up from severe knee pain during the deep sleep phase.
Here are the factors that may cause knee pain when lying down:
The quality of sleep is very effective in the strength and power of your immune system and your general health, if you cannot sleep properly due to knee pain, the quality of your activities during the day will decrease.
what you will read next :
Causes of knee pain when lying down
- knee arthritis
Knee cartilage abrasion or osteoarthritis is the most common cause of pain in your knees while lying down and sleeping.
When the knee is overused, the cartilage of the joint becomes thinner and disappears. Older people are more prone to osteoarthritis of the knee, as the cartilage of the knee becomes thinner, the bones on both sides of the knee wear away, Bone appendages form in the bones adjacent to the damaged cartilage.
When you do a lot of physical activity during the day, you will experience aching pain in your knees at night and at bedtime.
Osteoarthritis starts at a young age and progresses to advanced osteoarthritis in the elderly.
- Rheumatoid arthritis
If you have rheumatoid arthritis, which is an autoimmune disorder, your knee joint becomes hot, swollen, and painful, Arthritis is usually more severe at the beginning of the day, and a person with rheumatoid arthritis experiences more than an hour of pain, dryness, and discomfort in the knee joint when they wake up.
- Gout
Gout attacks are associated with increased accumulation of uric acid crystals. In gout, knee joint is one of the most commonly involved joints.
Knee inflammation is associated with redness, swelling, and pain.
It is very common for a person with gout to wake up once due to severe pain in the knee or other joints of the body.
- Inflammation of the tissues around the knee joint
Knee bursitis:
The bursae are small, fluid-filled sacs that surround the joints and facilitate joint movements. When you are too active during the day, the bursae become annoyed and inflamed, Inflammation of the bursae is called bursitis.
Tendons around the joint may also be stretched due to excessive movement. Inflammation of the knee tendons or Tendinitis of the knee can also be the cause of knee pain when you lie down.
- Blackening of the bone or osteonecrosis of the knee
After osteoarthritis of the knee, blackening of the bone or osteonecrosis is the most common cause of knee pain when lying down and sleeping.
When blood flow to the bones is disrupted, the bone becomes necrotic and dies, At night, lying down and reducing blood and oxygen to the knee can cause the knee pain to feel excruciating.
Causes of knee pain in adolescents
The causes of knee pain are different in adolescents:
- Osgood Schlatter:
In children and adolescents aged eight to thirteen, especially boys, inflammation of the bones, cartilage and tendons of the tibia can cause swelling and pain in the knee. Gymnastics, volleyball, basketball, increase the risk of inflammation and knee pain during sleep.
- Jumpers’ Knee Syndrome(Patellar Tendonitis)
Children and adolescents who are very active and jump up and down develop inflammation of the tendons that connect the patella to the tibia.
In adolescent athletes and children with clubfoot, this injury will cause knee pain during sleep.
Ways to relieve knee pain while lying down and sleeping
- Take a warm shower before going to bed and lying down:
Heat will be very effective in reducing inflammation and swelling of the knee, the water should be lukewarm, hot water will irritate the skin.
- Improve your sleep patterns:
Lie on your side and place a small pillow between your knees.
If you sleep on your back, be sure to put a small pillow under your knees.
To make blood circulation easier.
- Place your feet above the level of your body
Placing your feet on the pillow reduces swelling in your knees and ankles.
- Massage your knees:
Massage improves blood flow and speeds up the cleansing of the knee from toxins.
- Take painkillers before going to bed:
Take acetaminophen half an hour before going to bed.
Avoid taking excessive painkillers.
When should we see a doctor?
Be sure to see your doctor if your knee pain when lying down is accompanied by the following symptoms:
- If sudden pain occurs
- If there is swelling and heat and severe redness of the joint
- If the pain intensity is progressing in the next few days
- If you cannot do your daily activities
- If you have a locked knee joint
- If your lower knee becomes empty
There are relief treatments for common knee pain today, remember that doing exercises to strengthen the muscles around the knee plays an important role in reducing knee pain and knee stability.