Knee bursitis is particularly common in breaststroke swimmers. Knee bursitis is caused by inflammation of a bursa in the knee, which is a fluid-filled sac cushioning between tendons, bones and skins. The bursae help tissues to glide over each other. Having knee bursitis is a very painful experience and will limit you from all sport activities, so you'll want to manage it as well and as quickly as possible.
Instructions
1. Call your doctor if you have symptoms of knee bursitis, including pain when moving the knee, swelling of the knee, tightness of the hamstring, redness in some areas and pain when bending or straightening the leg. Sometimes patients with knee bursitis might experience fever. Your doctor will order an X-ray to rule out other conditions such as fractures and to identify other problems that might contribute to knee bursitis, such as arthritis.
2. Use ice to massage your knee up to 15 to 30 minutes. Repeat three to four times a day until the pain is gone. Use heat if ice massage does not relieve pain. You can either use heating pads, heat lamps or heat ointments.
3. Rest your knee. Prevent weight-bearing by using crutches, if necessary. Do not try to resume activities too early. Start slowly.
4. Take anti-inflammatory medication. Take antibiotics if the bursa is infected. Elevate your knee about your heart. This will reduce swelling. Your doctor can also take some of the fluid out of the infected bursa to reduce swelling.
5. Stretch your hamstring whenever you can everyday. Eat a healthy diet and take vitamins to promote healing.
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