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Heard Popping Sound In Back Of Leg While Bending. Getting Pain And Numbness. Any Ideas?
Question: i bent over to pick something up the other day and felt a pop at the back of my right leg above the knee - just a little numbness afterwards but no side affects - Also over the past 3 months my right leg from my hip to my calf ache - sometimes while i am in bed i can feel it - any ideas?
Hi XXXXXXX,
Thank you for posting on XXXXXXX
From your presentation and your age, we could think of a good number of possibilities. The pop sound is known as crepitus which is a crunching sensation of the knee as it is bent back and forth. It can have a cause as well as no cause. Other possible origins of the noise or pop sound at the level of the knee are snapping of tendons or scar tissue over a prominence (or cavitation). The popping/cracking noises maybe due to escape of gas ( from the synovial spaces), arthritic joints, movements of joints, tendons, ligaments etc. If arthritic joints, then you must have been experiencing a previous knee joint pain. You need not worry about the crepitus.
The ache/pain you are experiencing from your hip to your calf might be due to a nerve pain ( not necessarily injured). If you feel too worried, then an orthopedic surgeon or a neurosurgeon can evaluate you and give you appropriate antineuralgic medications to alleviate your symptoms. To an extend, they might request an MRI of your spine to rule out spinal injury.
Hope this was helpful and please do feel free to write back for follow up.
Dr Nsah
Thank you for posting on XXXXXXX
From your presentation and your age, we could think of a good number of possibilities. The pop sound is known as crepitus which is a crunching sensation of the knee as it is bent back and forth. It can have a cause as well as no cause. Other possible origins of the noise or pop sound at the level of the knee are snapping of tendons or scar tissue over a prominence (or cavitation). The popping/cracking noises maybe due to escape of gas ( from the synovial spaces), arthritic joints, movements of joints, tendons, ligaments etc. If arthritic joints, then you must have been experiencing a previous knee joint pain. You need not worry about the crepitus.
The ache/pain you are experiencing from your hip to your calf might be due to a nerve pain ( not necessarily injured). If you feel too worried, then an orthopedic surgeon or a neurosurgeon can evaluate you and give you appropriate antineuralgic medications to alleviate your symptoms. To an extend, they might request an MRI of your spine to rule out spinal injury.
Hope this was helpful and please do feel free to write back for follow up.
Dr Nsah
Note: For further queries, consult a joint and bone specialist, an Orthopaedic surgeon. Book a Call now.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
Answered by
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