Symptoms
Usually, an inflammation of the tendon in the knee is noticeable due to newly occurring pain. These can also occur with a certain delay to the actual triggering movement. At the beginning they are usually only weakly present and occur mainly during movement.
A typical characteristic is that they improve a little after warming up, but do not disappear completely.If the tendon inflammation lasts longer, pain in the knee can also occur at rest or even at night. In some cases, redness or even swelling of the joint can also be observed. Pain on the inside of the knee can be caused by inflammation of the tendons running along the inside of the thigh.
The largest ligament running here is the medial collateral ligament, which can also be called the inner ligament. It connects the muscles of the inner side of the thigh (adductor group) with the inner side of the tibia and is partially fused with the inner meniscus. The point of attachment on the inner side of the shin bone is also known as the Pes Anserinus.
The different tendon parts radiate into this in a radiating manner. And it is precisely these tendons that can become inflamed under certain circumstances, which then leads to pain, especially on the inside of the knee. The main task of the inner ligament is to prevent excessive internal flexion in the knee joint.
Sports in which this function is often exhausted are mainly soccer, alpine skiing and tennis. Excessive exercise of these disciplines can often lead to inflammation of this tendon, which can manifest itself in the symptoms mentioned above. During extreme movements, these tendons can also tear, which, depending on the severity of the injury, can result in severe pain with restricted mobility and bruising with swelling.
Pain on the outside of the knee is usually caused by an inflammation of the iliotibial tract. This is a tendon plate that attaches the muscles coming from the hip and running along the outside of the thigh to the thigh bone just above the knee. This ligament tends to become inflamed, especially in runners.
This is also known as runner’s knee or tractus syndrome and is usually caused by a combination of overstrain and excessive friction between tendon and bone. Those affected then complain of pain that is localized on the outside of the knee and occurs mainly during normal sports activities. In more advanced cases, they can also occur at rest.
However, excessive irritation of the lateral collateral ligament (outer ligament) can also lead to pain on the outside of the knee. It connects muscles on the outside of the thigh with the outside of the fibula and has the function of preventing excessive external flexion in the knee. In contrast to the inner ligament, this is not fused with the meniscus.
