Pes Anserine Bursitis - Chronic Knee Pain You Don't Need

The human frame is a really amazing instrument and the bursae are just one example of this. Bursae are small, tissue-lined structures that help different items such as tendons or bones slide across one another. However, when bursae become irritated, damaged, or infected, the resulting pain and discomfort gives us bursitis.

The "pes anserine" is a medical term for the leg. The knee joint has a bursa which provides a buffer or lubricant for movement that occurs between three main tendons and the medial collateral ligament which adjoins the bone.

Pes anserine bursitis common in people, particularly athletes, with chronic knee pain. This condition is usually found in people who have tight hamstrings, although it also can be induced by injury (eg, a direct blow). When a person has tight hamstrings or receives an injury to this region, the synovial cells in the lining of the bursa may secrete more fluid and the bursa gets inflamed and painful. In the majority of people, pes anserine bursitis is a self-limiting condition that responds to a program of hamstring stretches and strengthening of the muscles of the front thigh and an appropriate oral anti-inflammatory.

The chief complaint of sufferers from pes anserine bursitis, is pain along the centre of the knee. Although the pain sometimes seems to come from an area directly over the pes anserine bursa, it may also be felt over a rather diffuse region around the centre of the knee. This diffuse pain may be felt because you may also have tearing of the meniscal cartilage, one of the most commonly injured sections of the knee, or even from arthritis.

At its worst, pain from pes anserine bursitis is only mild to moderate. Intense pain could mean a stress fracture.

The primary cause behind pes anserine bursitis is underlying tight hamstrings, which are thought to place extra pressure on the bursa, causing bursal irritation. In addition, you may have bursal irritation due to a direct blow to the area.

Anyone with osteoarthritis of the knee is also at increased risk for this condition. Alignment of the lower extremity can be a risk factor for some individuals. The condition commonly known as "knock knees", or a flatfoot position can lead to pes anserine bursitis.