Hypermobile kneecaps

[Flora]

if you are hypermobile, and your kneecaps dislocate, then the most likely reason is HMS. There are other reasons for dislocating kneecaps, but if you have HMS then unfortunatly it is part of the whole package. Do keep at the GP for a referral, the GP is unlikely to be know much at all about HMS and a rheumy would, so it makes sense for you to see one.
Keep going hun
Flora

[Urbanpuma]

My GP says he is a Rheumatologist too. What do you think - should i pursue it with him?

[Stone]

Unless he's an ex-rheumatologist who turned to general practice (in which case you'd have to question how up to date he is - it varies!) he's most likely one of the new breed of GP-with-a-specialist-interest-in-x. They can be very good but tend not to be expert in all areas of their specialist interest so treat with caution

HMS is still quite a minority sub-speciality compared with say rheumatoid arthritis or ankylosing spondylitis so I'd say your odds weren't great but by all means give it a shot! You may be pleasantly surprised.

Stone

[hannah]

My GP, who is very good, is a 'specialist interest in Rheumatology' one like Stone refers to. She knew about HMS before she met me - and has learnt a lot more since - still been to see various specialists though.
Definitely worth a try.

[everhopeful]

Just found out from an MRI that I have Patella Alta in my left knee cap. No wonder it subluxes so often. It's all making even more sense. Physio also thinks my injury to joint 24 years ago has alot to do with how bad it is. My new fridge sucks right up after I open the door and as I return to replace the milk, the effort to get the door open again, makes my left knee cap move out of place! I also use leukotape at the back of my leg to restrict hyper-extension and can relate to all of you who have mentioned how much you need to concentrate on your movements. It's sooooo tiring. Liz

[Urbanpuma]

Hi all, havent been on in a while....started playing guitar and knees kept swelling up so ive stopped. My back has totally gone and im getting tingling and numb sensations in my feet now (hands occasionally). My back problems ,which im told are a result of my unstable knees, pelvis etc has got me thinking that maybe i have a hypermobile spine also.

How does a doctor check to see if my back is hypermobile?

All help appreciated.

Urbanpuma

[sueiz]

I'd like that answered too - is that the test to see if we can get our hands on the floor? well, I can't now (only just get past my knees! but i do have a slipped disc...) but used to be able to until early 20's after 1st round of back pain, then gradually lessened after each flare-up.

Have been told in the past by a chiropractor that my vertebrae "twist" round and lock out of place, thus trapping the nerve exits and causing the spasms and pain. Is that spine hypemobility - I've had "traditional" Drs tell me that's impossible? Who's right?

Sue

[Stone]

Have been told in the past by a chiropractor that my vertebrae "twist" round and lock out of place, thus trapping the nerve exits and causing the spasms and pain. Is that spine hypemobility - I've had "traditional" Drs tell me that's impossible? Who's right?

Some of us can do things doctors are taught is impossible - they usually deal in probabilities so if 99% of people can't do it they may never have seen someone who can. (the usual one is sacro-iliac joints going funny - very unusual in non-bendies)

I don't know much about spines but it certainly wouldn't be impossible for doctors to be misinformed about how flexible we can be. I usually horrify them with some party tricks and then they listen and engage brain

Stone

[Spireite]

Sueiz, I've got a hypermobile spine and 'shocking' SIJs and neck. I've been fighting it for 10 years. I've had a terrible time. No conventional doctor told me or helped me at all. I had scoliosis, kyphosis etc which I've nearly lost finally. I've recently found out I can still do 'crab' easily at my old age as well as touch my toes hands flat on the floor anytime. How are your feet and ankles? I think a lot of my problems have been helped by stopping the talus bone in the ankle from subluxing and jamming a couple of dozen times a day, which I only realised recently wasn't normal.

A chiropractor, or rare physio of that type, is probably better placed to tell you if your vertebrae are out of alignment and won't stay put. However, I would not advise having them yanked frequently.

[sueiz]

Thanks guys,

I'm going to start a new thread on hypermobile spines, this is supposed 2 be kneecaps (sorry mods )

.....after reading back through, I reckon my kneecaps are hypermobile too...grind, crack, and BIG OOUCHH!! sometimes when climbing stairs or bending them which so far been fortunate enough to catch befor it's gone out completely - my knees have also always collapsed and locked when trying to push up to standing position when bent more than about 90 degrees, and I can hyperextend them so my ankles are about 4" off the floor when sitting down - didn't even realise that wasn't normal til found this website

Also have problems with hips & ankles, & podiatrist reckons my thighbones point outwards. Oh well, who wants to be normal, thats sooo last year lol!!!!

Sue

[gill]

Hi, During childhood my knee would dislocate and relocate on a regular basis with tremendous pain and swelling which lasted for weeks I was always told by doctors that I would grow out of it until the age of 16 when I was referred to an orthopaedic surgeon who I think the term was realigned my patella with surgery since then I have not had any dislocation but I have pain which I have just accepted as part of my life since then but the pain is better than the pain I had when it used to dislocate as that was unbearable pain.

Gill

[goddess]

hi,i just wondered if anyone can tell me how you know if your kneecaps are dislocating or partially dislocating? when i was driving today,i had a massive pain in my left knee,it cracked, and it felt 'out',so i straightened my leg slightly and it cracked again and seemed to go back to normal.Its hard to tell as my knees are so painful and cracky all the time!

[nemonie]

Hiya,

It sounds like a sublux at the very least. People are affected in different ways, but when my knees sublux I'll mostly get a sharp pain and a sensation that the knee-cap is in the wrong place (it feels wrong and bad) and as you said have to straighten or wiggle my leg to get it back into place. Dislocations are generally much more painful and often require a bit of manual jiggery-pokery to push the knee-cap back. If I'm stood up when they dislocate my leg will give way and I usually end up in a heap on the floor.
There is a thread somewhere about dislocations and subluxations - what's the difference and how to tell them apart. It can be quite subtle in some people, but a sublux is just a partial dislocation i.e. the joint in question did not completely separate from it's usual joint position/housing.

[Raedmarh]

Hi, During childhood my knee would dislocate and relocate on a regular basis with tremendous pain and swelling which lasted for weeks I was always told by doctors that I would grow out of it until the age of 16 when I was referred to an orthopaedic surgeon who I think the term was realigned my patella with surgery since then I have not had any dislocation but I have pain which I have just accepted as part of my life since then but the pain is better than the pain I had when it used to dislocate as that was unbearable pain.

Gill

I had exactly the same problem. I had dislocated my left knee at least a hundred times and sometimes when walking, I'd fall on the joint and smash things up there too. When I was 20 I had a patella realignment from "Dr Knee", the best in New Zealand at the time. I'm now 40 and have never dislocated that knee again.it took me 4 years of PT and hard work to regain the lost muscle from over the years. My quads are still smaller on the left but thankfully nothing like dislocating my patella. About 7 years ago I dislocated my right knee for the first time and that was screaming agony. 6 weeks recovery.

I'm personally really pleased to have had the surgery to realign my patella even though I have a 25cm scar and some painful healing.

[cracker]

my knee caps wobble & i can lift them off my knee and make them wobble. my physio tells me off for doing it incase they dislocate tho