How is Osgood-Schlatter Disease treated?
Your doctor may want your child to do some physiotherapy that help keep the leg muscles that support the knee flexible and strong.
How is Osgood-Schlatter disease diagnosed?
Your doctor will ask questions about your child’s past health and do a physical exam to find out if your child’s pain is caused by Osgood-Schlatter disease or some other problem, such as an injury.
The doctor will feel and move your child’s knee as part of the physical exam. The doctor will look at the knee and check for tenderness,Ā range of motion, and how stable the knee is. The doctor may check both knees even if only one hurts.
X-rays usually done to rule out other causes of knee pain.
What are the symptoms of Osgood-Schlatter disease?
Osgood-Schlatter disease usually affects only one knee, but it can sometimes affect both knees. The pain may come and go.
When your child has Osgood-Schlatter disease, he or she may have:
- Pain and tenderness in front of the knee.
- Mild swelling or a bump below the kneecap at the top of the shin.
- Pain that gets worse with exercise or activity.
What causes Osgood-Schlatter disease?
Osgood-Schlatter disease is caused by too much stress on the muscles and tendons that support the knee. Repeated stress can cause the patellar tendon to pull away from the shinbone. This can make your child’s knee hurt and swell. This kind of stress is more likely to happen during a growth spurt, when your child’s leg bones are getting longer.
Osgood-Schlatter disease
Osgood-Schlatter disease is a knee problem that causes pain and swelling in the shinbone (tibia) just below the kneecap (patella). This is the spot where the patellar tendon attaches to a bony mound in the knee called theĀ tibial tubercleĀ .
Older children and teenagers often get Osgood-Schlatter disease during a growth spurt. Certain young athletes, such as runners, gymnasts, and those who play soccer, football, or basketball, are more likely to have this type of knee pain.
This problem can come back while your child is still growing, but it should stop when your child’s growth spurt ends. Osgood-Schlatter disease may leave a painless bump on the bone that remains after the problem has gone away.
