I used to play a lot of soccer and have not in years, but I remember having knee and ankle pain quite often, enough so that I frequently wore knee braces and wrapped both ankles.
Recently I started playing golf, and after playing one day I noticed some knee pain. I don't remember a specific incident or the actual onset of pain - it just seemed to gradually appear. I also noticed that I was hearing a lot of popping noises, which is usual, but now I was able to feel movement in my knee and pain when the popping occurred. In addition, when I tried to straighten my knee it would sometimes catch and I'd have to wiggle my knee to get it straight - and sometimes when I did this, something moved in my knee that seemed more like a "clunk" than a pop! I also noticed that sometimes if I knelt down on that knee, I felt a cushiony sensation even though my knee didn't look swollen - and that sometimes it would pop painfully as if my knee was "settling" - my body would shift lower.
I saw my general doctor after the first week, and an x-ray didn't show anything abnormal. He put me in a knee stabilizer for almost 2 weeks, during which the pain didn't improve. I then saw an orthopedic doctor who said it could be one of three things - a meniscal tear, a piece of torn off meniscus getting caught in my knee joint, or just inflammation. He said to give it about a month and return for a follow-up appointment (scheduled for late May). He said I could continue to play golf and should even walk and exercise the knee as it could help.
It's been a couple of weeks since I saw him, and I'm now noticing that in addition to the popping while straightening or kneeling and the resulting pain, I can't walk up or down stairs or hills without more pain. There is also pain when I inadvertently twist my knee (if I turn while walking) or if I try to get up from a sitting position by placing most of my weight on that leg.
My confusion lies in the usual symptoms of meniscal injuries - I've had no swelling, my knee doesn't lock completely. Is this a meniscal tear? Could it be that an old injury is starting to cause this years later? Do my symptoms seem to warrant surgical repair or is there some way I can get it to heal without surgery? I've tried a knee brace, no help, and NSAIDS just treat the pain.
Thank you!