How to Treat Knee Joint Pain

Knee joint pain has a variety of causes. It can rear its head after a sports injury, it can be caused by chronic arthritis, or it can happen from simply twisting your knee the wrong way when walking. No matter the cause, the effect is the same: pain. And if you're experiencing pain in your knee joints, chances are, you are unable to move them, either. Thankfully, there are treatments for this pain--treatments that are both effective at relieving the pain, and are simple and inexpensive as well.

Things You'll Need

• Anti-inflammatory medications
• Ice
• Pillows
• Compression bandage

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Instructions

• 1

  Give it a rest. If you are an extremely active person, a couple of days of extreme rest is sometimes all you need to relieve the pain in your knee joint. Simply giving the joints a break once in a while will be enough.

• 2

  Apply ice. Crushing some ice and wrapping it in a towel, then applying it to the joint for 20 minutes, three times a day will help relieve your pain by reducing the swelling.

• 3

  Elevate your leg. When you injure your knee, fluids will begin to accumulate around the cartilage and joints. If you elevate it, gravity can work to drain that fluid, reduce the swelling and relieve your pain.

• 4

  Get a cortisone shot. These are given by a doctor, and are steroid shots injected into the joints. Though they may not be effective for everyone, they do work for most. Generally, you will need to go back for repeated visits; however, you should allow 4 months in between each shot.

• 5

  Take anti-inflammatory drugs. Over-the-counter medications like ibuprofen and Tylenol help relieve your pain while reducing the swelling that causes it.

• 6

  Buy a compression bandage. These are self-adhesive bandages that are flexible enough to wrap around the knee. They should be tight enough to keep the knee stable and prevent fluid buildup, yet loose enough to allow circulation to flow freely.