This is my first post in this forum. I have osteoarthritis in various joints although it usually does not cause big problems. about five years ago I had a flare-up in my left knee that forced me to use crutches for about two weeks before I was back to normal. Yesterday my knee flared up again and I'm back on crutches. It hurts quite a bit. I don't know what I did to cause this (the first time I abused my knee and that was the cause). I was on vacation about ten days ago and did fair amount of hiking, but I was careful and experienced no problems at the time. My question is this -- could hiking ten days ago be responsible for a arthritis flare-up now? I would have thought that if hiking would cause a problem, the problem would have manifested itself more quickly. But I can't think of anything else that would be responsible.
Post Edited (fiddlecanoe) : 5/31/2018 1:28:50 PM (GMT-6)
I would not discount the hike at all. OA can rear its ugly head at any time. I have a lengthy history of knee problems, from 5 scopes to Supartz injections. Last stop will be new knees which I am not interested in at the moment. One of the best things I have found that helps me more than anything is exercises in a pool. You are weightless so you do not have to worry about injuring the knees. Believe me, I have had more PT than you can imagine & water has helped more than anything. It is now being recommended more & more by specialist for people with knee issues, including to prevent surgery for tears of the meniscus.
Another product that is by script only is a gel called Voltaren. It is available in pill form, NSAID. I can't have NSAID's because of crohns disease. Have you tried any of the OTC analgescis that have lidocaine? Lots of folks get relief with those.
I hope you can find something to help, pain is just no fun. Take care.Susie Moderator in Chronic Pain & Psoriasis Forums
So it turns out that my problem was not arthritis after all, but a torn meniscus, as revealed by an MRI. I just had arthroscopic surgery last week. Hope it works.
Fiddlecanoe, since learning you had a meniscus tear & had your knee scoped, how are you doing now? I hope this took care of the issues you were having. I have learned over the years with knee problems that it can take some time for any lingering issues to go away. Maintaining good quad muscles will go a long way too. One of my biggest problems today is walking on uneven surfaces.
Take care.Susie Moderator in Chronic Pain & Psoriasis Forums