Knee Pain

Stairs down hurt more than stairs up. The first minutes of a run negotiate with you. Knees are honest joints caught between two levers — the hip and the foot — and a knee exam that ignores its neighbors misses the cause more often than not.

What’s actually going on

Common non-traumatic patterns: patellofemoral pain (kneecap tracking), ITB friction at the outer knee, tendon irritations (patellar, pes anserine), meniscus wear, and osteoarthritis. Traumatic patterns — ligament tears, acute meniscus injuries — need proper triage first. The knee's story is usually written by the hip's control and the foot's mechanics.

Common causes we see

• Patellofemoral tracking — the downhill-and-stairs special
• ITB syndrome in runners and cyclists
• Meniscus wear — catching, clicking, joint-line ache
• Osteoarthritis — morning stiffness that eases with motion
• Hip weakness and foot mechanics quietly loading the knee wrong

How we evaluate it

Ligament and meniscus testing, patellar tracking assessment, joint-line examination — plus the neighbors: hip strength and control, foot posture, and gait. Swelling history and mechanism decide whether imaging comes first.

How chiropractic care may help

Mechanical knee care combines joint mobilization (knee, and the hip/ankle contributors), soft-tissue work, modalities for irritable tissue, and — the core — targeted strengthening, because knees calm when hips and quads take their share back. Arthritis gets the honest version: meaningful comfort and function gains are common; cartilage regrowth is not on the menu, and replacement-range joints get told the truth.

What to expect

Expect homework and expect us to look above and below the knee — that's not upselling, that's how knees work.

Rehabilitation context: hip-strengthening consistently features in patellofemoral care guidelines.