Anterior Knee Pain (AKP)
Anterior knee pain (AKP) occurs due to one of the two causes. The first group of causes involves the occurrence of focal lesions which we describe as distinct and the identification of these focal lesions can either be radiological or clinical. The first group also includes dysplasia, iatrogenic lesions, trauma related lesions, overuse syndromes, and tumors. While the second group is identifiable as obscure and involves types of knee pain which are difficult to describe or are dynamic. The signs and symptoms might vary broadly among individuals with the same clinical reports. AKP includes reflex sympathetic dystrophy, chondromalacia, psychogenic pain, idiopathic pain, and patellar maltracking.
The tibiofemoral joint holds the weight carrying surfaces of the tibia and femur. The lateral and medial menisci play an efficient role in load distribution and are present arbitrarily present between femur and tibia. The posterior and anterior cruciate ligaments work in association with the lateral and medial collateral ligaments help in providing stability along with the parts of the postero-lateral site of the knee. However, the anterior portion of the knee consists of patella that acts to increase the extensor mechanism of the lever arm in the knee. The quadriceps fit into the patellar ligament and proximal pole thus linking the lower pole with the tibia. Trauma to the bone, soft tissues, or articular surface cases acute episodes of knee pain but also results in minor injuries or localized inflammation due to the overuse.
While the chronic episodes of knee pain often include degenerative alterations to the articular surfaces. After the occurrence of trauma, idiopathic arthritis appears and the inflammatory arthritis on the other hand includes gout, septic arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, and reactive arthritis. There is no evident consensus on the categorization of osteoarthritis of the knee as the radiological findings might not link to the symptoms. Anterior knee pain (AKP) is a constant type of pain and is not a activity related pain or sharp pain. The constant AKP might be neurological whether the pain arising from the autonomic nerves or sensory nerves. Sharp medial pain links to the presence of unstable or loose bodies within the knee. The activity related pain usually arises due to the degenerative alterations in the chondral surface and overload of either articular tissue or soft tissue.