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Bursa tissues are sacs filled with a small amount of fluid that are naturally found around the joints in our body and facilitate joint movements. Inflammation of these vesicles is called bursitis.
The sac just above the kneecap is called the Prepatellar bursa.
Prepatellar bursitis is usually caused by the pressure of constant kneeling. For example, those who do work by kneeling all the time; Workers such as plumbers, roofers, carpet floorers, cleaning workers and gardeners are at risk for prepatellar bursitis.
A direct blow to the front of the knee can also cause prepatellar bursitis. Athletes who participate in sports where direct blows or falls to the knee are common, such as football, wrestling, or basketball, are at risk for this condition.
Others who are more susceptible to this condition are those with rheumatoid arthritis or gout. Prepatellar bursitis can also be caused by a bacterial infection. If a knee injury, such as an insect bite, scrape, or puncture wound, causes a cut in the skin, bacteria can enter the bursa sac and cause infection. This is called infectious bursitis. Infectious bursitis is less common but more serious.
Treatment of Knee Bursitis
As long as the bursa tissue is inflamed and not infected, it is usually treated with non-surgical methods.
Change of activity: When you touch your knee everywhere, the bursa tissue will be affected and continue to swell. The first thing you should do is avoid contact. If you have to work this way, it would be a good idea to put a soft pillow between the bottom of your knee and the hard floor.
The best way to prevent knee bursitis, which we often see in volleyball athletes, is a knee brace that protects the upper part of the kneecap and has a thick pad there. Sometimes I use this knee brace for individuals who have patellar bursitis and are not volleyball athletes.
Ice: Applying ice at regular intervals 3 or 4 times a day for 20 minutes each time significantly reduces swelling.
Cortisol Injection Under Ultrasound
If swelling and pain do not improve with these measures, the patellar bursa is drained under ultrasound and cortisol is injected into the sac.
Infectious Knee Bursitis Treatment
It is a condition that must first be treated with antibiotics. If there is not enough swelling to take a sample from bursitis, antibiotic treatment that is effective against the most common bacterial infection is started.
The main principle of the treatment is to take a sample from the bursitis, send it for culture, and use the antibiotic to which the bacteria growing from this culture are sensitive. If the infection does not respond to antibiotics alone, the bursa is emptied by surgery.
How is Knee Bursitis Surgery Done?
If the bursitis becomes chronic, swells frequently, and is resolved with cortisol injections but then recurs frequently, removal of the bursitis with surgery is on the agenda.
