Swollen Joints 😫
Have you ever had a joint swell up for no reason?
I’ve seen a few people recently with a swollen ankle or knee, for seemingly no reason. These are healthy, active people who wake up one day with a swollen and painful joint. The pain can be very mild to quite severe, with the swelling being easily noticeable, and the whole thing very confusing!
To understand why this happens and what to do, we need to understand how our joints work. In some cases, this is a healthy joint that is doing too much, in other cases it’s the result of a joint disease like arthritis.
Your joint consists of the bone, a hard cartilage (hyaline cartilage) and a soft cartilage (fibrocartilage). Picture a chicken drumstick (once you’ve finished eating it!):
the bone, which is greyish and porous, has great blood supply, as a result heals very well;
the hard cartilage, which is the white, glossy, and smooth hard surface covering the end of the bone;
and the soft cartilage, the white, soft and flexible bits, which are similar to your labrum, meniscus, ligaments.
Neither type of cartilage have much blood supply, instead their nourishment comes through the synovial fluid, brought in by the pressure changes in joint loading. The inside of the joint cartilage is lined with a membrane called a synovium, which releases a lubricating and nourishing joint fluid called synovial fluid. What does this mean? When you use your joint, the pressure temporarily forces out synovial fluid, and when you unload your joint, the drop in pressure draws fluid back in. This flow of synovial fluid (which is mostly water) is crucial to your joint health. Essentially, moving and loading your joint is vital for your joint to receive nourishment and maintain optimal health.
So why does your joint swell?
In the absence of arthritis, it is often the result of an increase in activity over a period of weeks. When you increase your activity too rapidly and place the joint under stress, your synovial fluid can trigger an inflammatory response in an effort to restore a healthy joint (physically and chemically). This inflammatory response is apparent to you through pain and swelling.
There are different types of arthritis, but they all involve excessive joint inflammation, leading to a breakdown in joint cartilage. Joints may swell for several serious reasons. If you experience any of the following additional symptoms—such as inability to bear weight, unexplained rash, unexplained weight loss or gain, difficulty sleeping due to night pain, or fever—these could indicate underlying systemic conditions and should be evaluated by your doctor.
So, what do you need to do?
Firstly:
Make sure you exclude any traumatic injuries that could have caused the swelling. If you’ve injured something, it may require specific management.
See you GP if you have any other issues like the ones listed above.
Otherwise:
Listen to your body - your joint is telling you it has been doing too much so it is forcing a break in activity, don’t push through this.
Remember that joint movement is crucial for joint health, so keep moving.
Manage the pain and swelling with gentle movement and elevation first.
Ice is useful for pain relief, however I advise not to use ice for swelling alone. Read why here: https://www.swellphysiopilates.com.au/blog/acute-injury
Unfortunately, these joint swellings often last 4-6 weeks. While it’s frustrating missing out on important matches or events, pushing through this will only increase the likelihood of creating an ongoing issue.
Managed well, your joint will reduce swelling and pain (our inflammatory response has chemical markers that end inflammation!) after a few weeks and you will be free to return to your usual activity.
If you’re having an issue with joint pain and swelling, let us know. We’re here to help! 🙂