Why Do My Knees Pop When I Bend Them

The cartilage which lines your joints is called meniscus.

Why do my knees pop when i bend them. When there is a tear in it the meniscus can get caught on your knee and cause it to pop as it moves. The meniscus is a rubbery c shaped disc that cushions your knee and acts as a shock absorber. There are times when swelling of tendons that surround the knee can cause the tendons to catch on the knee as the knee bends. It occurs when the iliotibial band becomes swollen and irritated and then catches of the end of the thigh bone as the knee bends back and forth.

It usually develops from overuse and most frequently affects runners. When popping and cracking joint noises occur on a regular basis and are accompanied by knee pain it may be due to one of the following reasons. Clicking or popping in the knees when we are bending or straightening them is quite a common occurrence. Medically this clicking of the knees is known as knee crepitus which means a noisy joint.

Tears to the meniscus are often. Lack of flexibility or strength can also be contributing factors. The most common type is called iliotibial it band tendonitis. You may hear occasional pops snaps and crackles when you bend or straighten your knees or when you walk or go up or down stairs.

It also helps spread weight evenly so your bones don t rub together. The skin around your kneecap can puff up noticeably especially when you compare the affected knee to the normal one. Doctors call this crackling sound crepitus krep ih dus. Runner s knee can also be caused by weak thigh muscles flat feet syndrome or having a direct hit to the kneecap.

Some of the common causes of knee clicking when you bend or straighten them include stress or injury to the knee joint or the leg gas bubbles acl or mcl injury arthritis chondromalacia patella runners knee etc. Sending bending knee pain from itbs tends to be on the outer side of the knee and there may be a popping grinding sensation as you bend the knee. If you push pull or otherwise manipulate your body in a way that puts force on your joints that pressure can become bubbles of gas like carbon dioxide or nitrogen that might pop and let out a.