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Age-Related Knee Problems

Knee problems among people of a "certain age" may be a cruel reminder of that motorcycle accident you had when you were 19 or the beating your knees took when you played high school football. Or it can be simply the result of aging and the regular wear and tear on the knees and joints that comes with living past ... 40. Many people develop osteoarthritis, where bone starts to rub against bone because the protective tissues have tuckered out. It's not uncommon to see baby boomers and their parents hobbling around because of knees that feel as though they're going to splinter. Sometimes they do. Knee replacement surgery has become a common occurrence among a certain age group.

  1. Osteoarthritis

    • According to Dr. Rick Allen, osteoarthritis is a degenerative condition that affects our weight-bearing joints. Some people have a genetic predisposition toward joint degeneration. Trauma to the joints, over the years, as well as possible vascular and neurological problems and even infection, can promote joint degeneration. If your knee has been injured, the cartilage that once cushioned the area between the joints may become damaged and is replaced with scar tissue. This makes the knee weaker. Fluid that is normally inside the joints begins to leak. All of these factors affect the health and agility of our knees.

    Rheumatoid Arthritis

    • Rheumatoid arthritis can wreak havoc on your knees as well as on other parts of your body. It is an autoimmune disease and differs from osteoarthritis in that the synovial membrane (tissue), which is between the joints, increases in size. With osteoarthritis, there is loss of this tissue. With rheumatoid arthritis, the tissue increases in size. The tissue folds and thickens and the joint becomes larger as a result.

    Tendinitis

    • Tendinitis is inflammation of the tendons. Overuse can cause tendinitis, according to Healthsystem.virginia.edu. If you are involved in an activity in which your feet are forcefully and repeatedly hitting the ground, this can result in tendinitis, which is also called jumper's knee. "Old" knees can't take as much wear and tear as young knees.

    Torn Cartilage

    • Cartilage can tear. Sometimes this occurs in connection with a sprain. When cartilage tears, the pads of connective tissue that serve as shock absorbers, and which provide us with stability, can tear. This connective tissue is called menisci. Surgery may be required to fix this injury.

    Osteonecrosis

    • Older females, in particular, may be afflicted with a knee condition called osteonecrosis, according to Lifebridgehealth.org. The word osteonecrosis means bone death. It occurs when a part of a bone loses blood supply and dies. It isn't completely understood why this happens but it is believed that a stress fracture coupled with a trauma or specific activity may alter the blood supply to the bone. Another suggestion is that the increase of fluid within the bone puts too much pressure on the blood vessels and interrupts circulation. If you are suffering from lupus, anemia, are obese, have sickle cell anemia, have received a kidney transplant or are undergoing steroid treatment you are at risk for developing this condition.

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