How Can I Quickly Alleviate Knee Pain at Home?

Reviewed by Garrett Kneese, MD, MPH

Family Medicine

Gentle exercise, stretching, and simple techniques like knee traction and cold therapy can help reduce knee pain at home and improve joint function.

Explanation

You might start with gentle home exercises. Low-impact activities like walking or stationary cycling can ease pain by boosting blood flow and strengthening muscles around your knee. Research shows that exercise not only relieves pain but can also improve your knee’s movement. Stretching and gentle strengthening exercises—like sitting leg raises or wall slides—help build support around your knee, making it more stable. Another approach mentioned in a recent study is a knee traction technique. This technique gently pulls the knee joint apart, which may relieve pressure and reduce pain. At home, you might use a rolled towel or foam roller for a similar effect, but be very careful and gentle. In addition, using cold packs can help lower inflammation and numb the pain quickly. Always wrap the ice or cold pack in a cloth and apply it for about 15‐20 minutes at a time. Remember to start slow, listen to your body, and avoid overdoing any activity. These measures can be combined safely to offer relief while you work on longer term solutions like regular exercise.

(References)

Susko AM, Fitzgerald GK. The pain-relieving qualities of exercise in knee osteoarthritis. Open Access Rheumatol. 2013 Oct 15;5:81-91. doi: 10.2147/OARRR.S53974. PMID: 27790027; PMCID: PMC5074793.
Fransen M, McConnell S, Harmer AR, Van der Esch M, Simic M, Bennell KL. Exercise for osteoarthritis of the knee. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2015 Jan 9;1(1):CD004376. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD004376.pub3. Update in: Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2024 Dec 3;12:CD004376. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD004376.pub4. PMID: 25569281; PMCID: PMC10094004.
Suzuki Y, Iijima H, Tashiro Y, Kajiwara Y, Zeidan H, Shimoura K, Nishida Y, Bito T, Nakai K, Tatsumi M, Yoshimi S, Tsuboyama T, Aoyama T. Home exercise therapy to improve muscle strength and joint flexibility effectively treats pre-radiographic knee OA in community-dwelling elderly: a randomized controlled trial. Clin Rheumatol. 2019 Jan;38(1):133-141. doi: 10.1007/s10067-018-4263-3. Epub 2018 Aug 30. PMID: 30167975; PMCID: PMC6342874.
Tafler L, Ovshaev S, Ayon S, Luu A. A Novel Knee Traction Technique to Treat Chronic Knee Pain. Cureus. 2023 Aug 15;15(8):e43526. doi: 10.7759/cureus.43526. PMID: 37719512; PMCID: PMC10501460.

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