Loose Bodies of the Knee 

Loose bodies are fragments of cartilage or bone that freely float inside the knee joint space.

They can be the result of an injury or from generalized wear and tear over time.

Depending on the severity of the condition, there can be one or many loose bodies inside the joint.

They can be stable (they don’t move about inside the joint) or unstable (they float through the inside of the joint) which can cause pain or loss of motion.

Bone spurs are bony overgrowths that occur around the joint (i.e., at the end of the thigh bone or top of the shin bone) and are in response to abnormal stresses placed across that area.

These are most commonly seen in patients with degenerative joint disease (DJD or arthritis). Sports injuries or trauma may move the joint too much one way or another causing small pieces of bone or cartilage to shear off.

Cause

  • Injury to cartilage during trauma or sports can lead to the formation of a loose body.
  • Osteoarthritis or Charcot’s disease, but the secondary cause is direct or indirect trauma.
  • Fibrinous loose bodies in case of inflammatory conditions of knee.
  • Synovial chondromatosis (also called synovial osteochondromatosis) is rare; synovium grows abnormally and produces nodules made of cartilage.

Symptoms

  • The feeling of something moving in knee.
  • Knee locking as though something is blocking it.

  • Anterior Cruciate Ligament
  • Bursitis – pes Anserive
  • Cartilage Injuries
  • Degenerative Joint Disease (Osteoarthritis)
  • Iliotibial Band Syndrome
  • Knee Sprains & Strains
  • Lateral Collateral Ligament Injuries
  • Loose Bodies
  • Medial Collateral Ligament (MCL) Injury
  • Meniscus Tears
  • Osgood Schlaater Disease
  • Osteochondritis Dissecans
  • Osteonecrosis of the Knee
  • Patella Tendonitis
  • Patella Tendon Rupture
  • Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome (Runner’s Knee)
  • Posterior Cruciate Ligament Injury (PCL)
  • Quadriceps Tendon Tear
  • Unstable Kneecap

  • Anterior Cruciate Ligament Repair (ACL)
  • Arthroscopic Chondroplasty
  • Arthroscopic Meniscus Repair
  • Autologous Chondrocyte Transplantation
  • Bilateral Knee Replacement Surgery
  • Cartilage Transplant
  • Computer-Assisted Total Knee Arthrhoplasty
  • High Tibial Osteotomy
  • JOURNEY II Total Knee Replacement
  • Knee Arthroscopy
  • Lateral Collateral Ligament (LCL) Repair
  • Medial Collateral Ligament (MCL) Repair
  • Meniscus Repair
  • MPFL Reconstruction of the Patella
  • OCE – Repair of the Osteochondritis
  • Partial Knee Replacement
  • Partial Knee Resurfacing
  • Partial Menisectomy
  • Posterior Cruciate Ligament (PCL) Repair
  • Revision Knee Surgery
  • Subchondroplasty
  • Total Knee Replacement ~ VERILAST
  • Total Knee Replacement ~ VISIONAIRE
  • Uni-Compartmental Joint Repair

The Orthopedic physicians at Peninsula Bone & Joint Clinic provide conservative treatment options for Knee conditions and injuries.

Diagnosis

Physical Examination & Patient History

During your first visit, your doctor will talk to you about your symptoms and medical history. During the physical examination, your doctor will check all the structures of your injury, and compare them to your non-injured anatomy.  Most injuries can be diagnosed with a thorough physical examination.

Imaging Tests

Imaging Tests Other tests which may help your doctor confirm your diagnosis include:

X-rays. Although they will not show any injury, x-rays can show whether the injury is associated with a broken bone.

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan. If your injury requires an MRI, this study is utilized to create a better image of soft tissues injuries. However, an MRI may not be required for your particular injury circumstance and will be ordered based on a thorough examination by your Peninsula Bone & Joint Clinic Orthopedic physician.

Treatment Options

Non-Surgical

There are limited options of non-surgical management of a loose body as it mainly leads to mechanical symptoms which are relieved only after removal.

However, physical therapy and anti-inflammatory drugs can be used to help with the symptoms and to keep the joint flexible.

Surgical

Arthroscopy: The gold standard today is to remove possibly all loose bodies by arthroscopy, popularly known as “clean out “arthroscopies.

It is minimally invasive and allows surgeon to thoroughly examine the knee for loose body and allows to asses any damage to cartilage and treat the condition, hence it is best Diagnostic and therapeutic modality available.

Open arthrotomy: This is less common due to the availability of arthroscopy but it can be done when the loose bodies are very large and numerous or there is associated complete synovial involvement.

Conservative Treatment Options

  • Non-Operative Knee Injury Treatments

Treatment Highlights

Innovative Implant Design

Smith Nephew JOURNEY II BCS knee is a second-generation knee replacement that combines the stability and natural motion of the human knee with new low-friction materials that may extend the life of the implant.

This Implant Technology is one of several innovative implant solutions  provided by Dr. Robert Detch of Peninsula Bone & Joint Clinic.

Peninsula Bone & Joint Clinic

The Orthopaedic physicians at Peninsula Bone & Joint Clinic provide comprehensive services to all members of the family.
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