A Knee Pain Doctor Can Help Your Recovery

🕓 Reading time: 5 minutes

Painful knees can stop you in your tracks. If you’re struggling to train, compete, or get through your daily routine, seeing a knee pain doctor could be the best first step toward recovery.

Whether you’re chasing a Sherrin on the weekend, training for your next fun run, or riding to work every day (yes, that’s me in the picture above), a sore knee can quickly sideline you.

I know this firsthand, regularly suffering niggles in my knees from cycling.

ON THIS PAGE

• Quick knee facts
• Runner’s knee
• Ligamentous injuries (including ACL strains)
• Meniscal tears
• Patella fractures
• Dos and don’ts when your knee hurts
• When to visit your GP
• About Dr Michael Macpherson

The good news? The right assessment and treatment plan can get you moving again, sooner and more safely.

In Melbourne, where footy, netball, soccer, cycling, and running are part of everyday life, treating knee pain is something we GPs do quite often.

Weekend warriors and seasoned athletes alike walk through my door with the same goal: to get back in the game.

And that’s exactly what any good doctor experienced in musculoskeletal injuries aims to help you do.

Our goal is to accurately diagnose your condition and create a personalised treatment plan to assist with swift and successful recovery.

Quick Knee Facts

• Around 40% of sports-related injuries involve the knee
• The knee is one of the most complex joints in the body
• Babies are born without kneecaps — they form between ages 2 and 6
• More than 10 muscles work together to stabilise your knee
• You can technically walk without kneecaps
• “Smart” knee replacements are becoming increasingly advanced

Four Common Sport-Related Knee Injuries

Below are some of the most common knee complaints people seek help with.

Let’s look at the symptoms, treatments, recovery time of each, and the sports most affected.

1. Runner’s Knee (Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome)

Runner’s knee is an overuse injury causing pain around or behind your kneecap (patella).

The condition typically develops when your kneecap doesn’t track smoothly within its groove, often due to increased training load, muscle weakness, or biomechanical imbalances.

I recommend seeking treatment and taking it easy at the first sign of pain. This can significantly reduce your recovery time.

Symptoms:

• Occasional swelling
• Dull, aching pain at the front of the knee
• Pain climbing stairs or ‘loading’ your knees
• Discomfort after prolonged sitting

Your doctor can often diagnose the problem through a physical examination. In some cases, an X-ray or MRI may guide the diagnosis.

You’ll know your runner’s knee is serious if the pain quickly worsens or excess swelling occurs.

Treatments:

• Home exercise program
• Reducing or modifying aggravating activities
• Strengthening surrounding muscles
• Physiotherapy

Recovery time

Often, a few weeks with early treatment and load management.

Sports commonly affected:

• Cycling
• Football (AFL and soccer)
• Netball and basketball
• Tennis
• Running

2. Ligamentous Injuries

As the name suggests, this group of knee injuries involves damaging ligaments. They include:

• ACL Injuries (Anterior Cruciate Ligament)
• PCL Injuries (Posterior Cruciate Ligament)
• Lateral and Medial Collateral Ligament Injuries

Acting like strong rubber bands inside your knee, your ACL and PCL help stabilise the joint and stop your shin from sliding too far forward or backward.

These ligaments can stretch or tear during sudden pivots, stops, or quick changes in direction. Practising in Melbourne, I see such injuries quite often.

Even mild ACL strains—while less severe than full tears—still need immediate treatment to heal properly.

The collateral ligaments, located on either side of your knee, prevent your shin from moving too far sideways relative to your thigh, helping your leg stay aligned.

Injuries to these ligaments usually happen when force pushes the lower leg sideways, bending the knee in ways it isn’t designed to bend.

Symptoms:

• Difficulty with weight-bearing movement, such as using stairs
• A “pop” at the time of injury
• Rapid swelling
• Instability or giving way, either side to side or forwards/backwards

ACL and PCL injuries often need imaging for accurate diagnosis, such as an MRI or X-ray.

Treatments:

• Physiotherapy is the mainstay
• Bracing (for some strains)
• Surgery (for complete tears, depending on your age, goals and activity level)

Recovery time:

• Tears: Typically, 6–12 months if surgery is needed
• Strains: Weeks to months

Sports commonly affected:

• Soccer
• Football
• Netball
• Basketball

3. Meniscal Tears

Your meniscus cartilage sits between your shin and thigh bone and cushions your knee. It can tear during twisting or squatting movements.

People with moderate meniscal tears sometimes feel no pain at first.

Common symptoms:

• Swelling and stiffness
• Locking or catching
• Pain with weight-bearing

An MRI is usually needed for a complete diagnosis and prognosis.

Treatments:

• Rest and physiotherapy for smaller tears
• Anti-inflammatories
• Arthroscopic surgery in more severe cases

Recovery time:

• Minor tears: Manageable with rehab. Most people happily live with minor tears and treat flare-ups as they occur
• Post-arthroscopy: 1–6 weeks, depending on age and severity of injury, followed by physiotherapy to return to your desired level of activity

Sports commonly affected:

• Soccer
• Football
• Rugby
• Hockey

4. Patella (Kneecap) Fractures

A direct impact on a hard surface is typically associated with patella fractures. We’re talking falls, collisions during contact sports, or car accidents.

Common symptoms:

• Severe pain
• Swelling and bruising
• Inability to straighten the leg
• Difficulty walking

Treatments:

• X-ray or CT scan
• Immobilisation for stable fractures
• Surgery for displaced fractures

Recovery time:
Typically 3–6 months, longer if surgery is required.

Sports commonly affected:

• Volleyball
• Basketball and netball
• Cycling and motor sports
• Skiing

Dos And Don’ts When Your Knee Hurts

Pain is one of the best communicators. Please don’t ignore it.

Do:

• See your GP for an accurate diagnosis
• Use R.I.C.E. (rest, ice, compress, and elevate) in the early stages
• Modify your training load
• Stay active in ways that don’t aggravate pain
• Follow a structured rehabilitation plan

Don’t:

• Push through sharp or worsening pain
• Ignore swelling or instability
• Return to sport too quickly
• Preventing long-term damage is always easier than fixing it later.

When to Visit Your GP

Visiting a GP with a background in sports medicine is a great place to start if your knee is in significant pain.

Because the knee is such a complicated joint, an experienced doctor can help determine the source of your pain, enabling an accurate diagnosis and guiding an effective treatment plan.

Some signs that your knee requires medical attention include:

• You’ve had a recent injury or trauma
• You can’t put weight through your knee
• Pain persists despite rest
• There’s swelling, warmth or fever
• Your knee locks, clicks excessively, or gives way
• You can’t fully straighten or bend your leg

The knee is complex. A clear diagnosis is the foundation of an effective treatment plan, which may include:

• Activity modification
• Targeted rehabilitation exercises
• Physiotherapy referral
• Imaging (if needed)
• Pain management strategies

Early diagnosis matters. With any unusual and persistent knee pain, the sooner we understand what’s going on, the sooner you can start the right recovery plan.

If needed, your GP can coordinate imaging, physiotherapy, and referrals to orthopaedic specialists to ensure your care is streamlined and appropriate.

The Bottom Line

Knee pain doesn’t have to mean the end of your season.

With early assessment, targeted treatment, and proper rehabilitation, most knee injuries recover well. The sooner you act, the sooner you’ll return to the sports you love.

Let’s get you back in the game, whatever that may be.

Dr Michael Macpherson (BAppSc, MBBS, FRACGP) is a local GP at Doctors of South Melbourne.

His special interests include sports medicine, men’s health, and chronic disease management.

You can make an appointment online with Michael or call us on 8579 6838.