Out of nowhere, it might seem, your knee hurts. In fact, it hurts so badly that you can't bend it or straighten it out. You get a cane. You wonder what is happening.
It could be a Baker's cyst, or popliteal cyst, which can cause knee pain, swelling in your leg and behind your knee and stiffness, which causes pain when the knee is bent. It can even prevent you from bending your knee altogether.
These cysts are created when the fluid that lubricates the knee joint builds up and the fluid moves to the back of the knee. This can happen from arthritis, injury or gout.
While some Baker's cysts go away on their own, others linger, causing pain and discomfort.
There are treatments for these cysts. Steroids can help decrease inflammation. A doctor can also drain the cyst. But if the cyst is causing severe pain, surgery to remove the cyst is usually recommended.
See a doctor immediately if the leg turns red or darker and starts to swell. Cysts can burst, leaking fluid into the leg.
Rick Good spent ten years in the newspaper business, including with The News & Observer (Raleigh, NC) and The Greenville News (Greenville, SC). He co-wrote, with Melinda Coleman, Rutledge to Riley: Governors of South Carolina, 1776–Present (Published by The Greenville News), and is the author of Mind Games Trivia #1 (Amazon). He has recently spent 15 years creating original trivia content through Sounds Good Mobile Entertainment and continues that with his new company, SGME Software. He edits The Smart Reader’s money, real estate, and business coverage.