Knee bursitis pain, tenderness, and swelling can be hard to manage. How do you find the best treatment?
It depends on what’s causing your problems. Each of your knees has a bursa sac that’s filled with fluid. Sometimes, they get inflamed or infected.
What Is Knee Bursitis?
Your knees have several bursae — small, fluid-filled sacs that help the tendons and muscles of the knee glide smoothly. Knee bursitis is a painful condition that happens when the bursae around your knee joint become swollen as a result of overuse or trauma, such as falling on your kneecap. When this happens, the bursa fills with extra fluid, causing it to swell and put pressure on other parts of your knee joint. If you have knee bursitis, you’ll find it hard to move your knee, and it will hurt.
Most of the time, knee bursitis is a onetime event that goes away on its own with self-care and home treatments.
Common Types of Knee Bursitis
There are different types of knee bursitis. Two of the most common are prepatellar bursitis and suprapatellar bursitis.
Prepatellar bursitis
This happens when the bursa on the front of your kneecap becomes swollen. It’s the second most common type of knee bursitis and is known by other names such as housemaid’s knee, carpenter’s knee, or carpet layer’s knee.
There are two types of prepatellar bursitis:
- Acute prepatellar bursitis, which is caused by an infection or trauma to the knee
- Chronic prepatellar bursitis, which is caused by overuse or constant pressure on your knee, such as kneeling
Suprapatellar bursitis
This happens when the bursa above your kneecap swells.
How Is Knee Bursitis Treated?
Most of the time, rest and TLC will help you heal in a few days or weeks. If you’re dealing with this condition, you can try several home remedies and over-the-counter medicines to help you feel better.
Home remedies for knee bursitis
Try these simple home remedies to ease swelling and ease your pain:
- Rest your knee.
- Raise your knee with a pillow.
- Take over-the-counter pain relievers.
- Ice your knee for up to 20 minutes at a time.
- Wrap your knee with a knee sleeve or Ace bandage.
Over-the-counter and prescription medications
If you’re looking to lessen your pain, you can try over-the-counter nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as aspirin, ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin IB), and naproxen sodium (Aleve). Be sure to take them as directed and not for longer than 10 days.
If you have an infection, your doctor will prescribe antibiotics to fight it. If you have severe pain, they may order corticosteroid shots to ease swelling.
Physical therapy for knee bursitis
If lifestyle remedies and over-the-counter medicines don’t work, your doctor may recommend physical therapy. A physical therapist can teach you exercises to strengthen the muscles around your leg and knee so you can lower your risk of knee bursitis in the future.
Prepatellar Bursitis: Specific Treatment Options
As this type of bursitis happens on the front of your knee, rest, ice, and over-the-counter medicines alone may not ease your pain. Your doctor might opt for more targeted treatments.
Targeted treatment for prepatellar knee swelling
If you have an infection or swelling and pain that won’t go away, your doctor may suggest the following treatments for prepatellar knee swelling:
Bursa injections. These are steroids that lower pain and swelling.
Antibiotics. Your doctor will prescribe these in case of an infection.
Surgical drainage. Your doctor will drain your bursa if antibiotics don’t heal your infection.
Bursectomy. If nothing else works, your doctor will do surgery to remove the bursa on the front of your knee.
Suprapatellar Bursitis: Management and Recovery
You manage pain for this type of knee bursitis in much the same way as you manage other forms of the condition. Rest, ice, compression, and raising your leg will help ease swelling and offer relief. Over-the-counter nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medicines will ease pain.
How suprapatellar bursitis differs from other types
Suprapatellar bursitis is swelling of the bursa right above the knee. Like other forms of knee bursitis, it’s caused by injury to the knee or by repetitive movements such as kneeling or jumping. Sometimes, it can be linked to gout or osteoarthritis.
Effective therapies for suprapatellar inflammation
Treatment for suprapatellar swelling is similar to that for other forms of knee bursitis. Rest, ice, and over-the-counter pain medicines can reduce achiness and swelling. In some cases, your doctor may recommend aspiration, where they’ll remove some of the fluid from your bursa with a fine needle. If over-the-counter meds don’t work, they may also suggest the following:
- Corticosteroid shots
- Physical therapy
- Surgery, as a last resort
When a Lump on the Kneecap Requires Medical Attention
Although knee bursitis is a common condition, you’ll want to pay close attention to any changes in your knee, as these changes could be a sign that something’s wrong.
Warning signs that need a doctor’s diagnosis
See a doctor right away if you have any of the following:
- Fever
- Chills
- Pain that gets in the way of daily activities
- Soreness that doesn’t get better in a few days
- Bursitis that comes back
Alan Beyer, MD, sports medicine orthopedic surgeon and executive medical director of Hoag Orthopedic Institute in California, says increased pain and swelling and redness are also a sign that something’s wrong. “If it gets worse over a few days, then see someone right away in case the bursa is infected. If it’s warm to the touch and that warmth gets warmer over time, that’s another sign to see someone. Our knee will usually tell us if it’s getting worse.”
How to Prevent Bursitis
Knee bursitis is caused by injury to the knee or overuse. Fortunately, there are things you can do to lower your risk for this condition.
Lifestyle tips to avoid knee bursitis
“Stretch and use ice if you have bursitis after you engage in activity,” Beyer says. “Do a gentle warm-up or use warm therapy before you engage in activity. Use common sense and listen to your knee joints.”
Other things you can do to lower your risk of knee bursitis include:
- Wear knee pads if you play sports or kneel a lot
- Take breaks to stretch and rest your knees
- Maintain a healthy weight to ease the pressure on your knee joints
Takeaways
Knee bursitis is a condition where the small, fluid-filled sacs (bursae) around your knee swell and become painful. It’s often caused by an injury, such as a hard fall, or from putting too much stress on the knee, such as by kneeling. In most cases, knee bursitis goes away on its own in one or two weeks with proper rest, ice, and over-the-counter medicines. Sometimes, the bursae get infected and need antibiotics or more targeted treatment such as aspiration, where the doctor removes fluid from the bursae with a fine needle.
Knee Bursitis Treatment FAQs
How long does it take to cure bursitis in the knee?
With rest and at-home treatment, you’ll likely heal your knee bursitis in a few days or weeks.
Can a lump on the kneecap go away on its own?
Yes, in many cases, they go away on their own. In other cases, especially in cases of infection, you will need to see your doctor for treatment.
What triggers bursitis in the knee?
Most of the time, an injury to or overuse of the knee causes the small, fluid-filled sacs (bursae) around your knee to fill with fluid and swell.
What is the fastest way to heal bursitis of the knee?
In most cases, rest, ice, and over-the-counter medicines will heal this condition in a few days or weeks.
Can I exercise with bursitis?
Yes, you can, but choose low-impact exercises, such as cycling, that don’t require bending or jumping.
