In my practice, I often see worried parents in Dhaka who bring their child or teenager because of knee pain that has started affecting walking, stairs, sports, school, or even normal play. One important point I want Bangladeshi parents to understand is this: knee pain in children is common, but it should not be dismissed automatically as “just growing pain.” Sometimes the cause is a simple overuse problem that improves with the right advice. In other cases, the pain may signal an injury, kneecap instability, meniscus problem, inflammation, infection, or pain referred from the hip.[1][2][3]
Children are not just small adults. Their bones are still growing, their growth plates are open, and their patterns of sports injury and overuse are different from what I usually see in older patients. That is why a child with knee pain deserves an age-appropriate evaluation and a treatment plan based on the exact cause rather than guesswork.[1][4]
For families in Bangladesh, the impact can be significant. A child may avoid sports, miss school, stop playing, struggle with prayer movement, or develop fear around running and stairs. When the diagnosis is correct and treatment begins early, many children recover very well and return safely to activity.[1][2]
Why children get knee pain
Knee pain in children can come from many different structures:
- the kneecap and front of the knee
- growth plates
- tendons
- ligaments
- meniscus and cartilage
- inflammation inside the joint
- infection
- referred pain from the hip or sometimes the spine[4][5]
One important point I explain to parents is that the location of pain, age of the child, activity pattern, swelling, limp, and fever history all matter. A sports-related teenager with pain below the kneecap is very different from a younger child with fever and a swollen joint.
Common causes of knee pain in children
Anterior knee pain in adolescents
Front-knee pain around or behind the kneecap is very common in active teenagers. AAOS notes that adolescent anterior knee pain often becomes worse during running, jumping, stair climbing, squatting, or sitting with the knee bent for a long time.[2]
This may be related to:
- patellofemoral pain
- muscle imbalance
- poor kneecap tracking
- overload from sports and training
- weak hip and thigh control
In Bangladesh, I often see this pattern in school athletes, cricket players, football players, dancers, and children who suddenly increase training without enough recovery.
Osgood-Schlatter disease
This is a very common cause of pain at the upper shinbone just below the kneecap in growing children, especially during growth spurts. It is an overuse condition related to traction where the patellar tendon attaches to the tibial tubercle.[1]
AAOS explains that sports involving running and jumping increase the risk, and the pain often gets worse with activity.[1] Many parents notice a tender bump below the kneecap.
Sinding-Larsen-Johansson syndrome
This is another overuse problem in growing children, but the pain is usually at the lower pole of the kneecap rather than the tibial tubercle. It can occur in active children and adolescents during growth periods and repetitive jumping or running.[6]
Patellar instability or kneecap dislocation
Some children have kneecaps that partially slip or fully dislocate. This may happen after twisting, a fall, sports injury, or because of an underlying tendency to instability. AAOS notes that children with unstable kneecaps may have pain, swelling, repeated slipping episodes, and apprehension with knee movement.[3]
Discoid meniscus
A discoid meniscus is an abnormally shaped meniscus present from childhood. Some children have no symptoms, but others develop pain, snapping, locking, limited motion, or recurrent swelling. AAOS notes that discoid meniscus can cause pain and mechanical symptoms and may be detected during evaluation for knee clicking or motion loss.[7]
Ligament injury
Older children and adolescents who play sports can injure ligaments such as the ACL, PCL, or collateral ligaments. These injuries are more likely after twisting, sudden stopping, awkward landing, or trauma.
Infection or inflammatory disease
This is less common than overuse pain, but it is extremely important not to miss. A child with severe pain, swelling, fever, redness, or inability to bear weight needs urgent medical assessment to exclude joint infection or other serious conditions.[4][5]
Hip problems causing knee pain
One important point I want parents to understand is that sometimes the child says the knee hurts, but the real problem is in the hip. Slipped capital femoral epiphysis and some other hip conditions can present as knee pain, especially in children and adolescents.[4][5]
Symptoms that help identify the cause
When I evaluate a child with knee pain, I pay very close attention to the pain pattern.
Questions I ask parents and older children
- Where exactly is the pain?
- Did it begin suddenly or gradually?
- Was there a fall, twist, or sports injury?
- Is there swelling?
- Is there limping?
- Does the knee lock, click, or give way?
- Is the child waking at night with pain?
- Is there fever?
- Has the child recently increased sports load?
Symptom patterns that matter
- pain below the kneecap in an active adolescent may suggest Osgood-Schlatter disease[1]
- pain around the kneecap with stairs and squatting may suggest adolescent anterior knee pain or patellofemoral overload[2]
- snapping, locking, or loss of motion may suggest meniscal pathology, including discoid meniscus[7]
- instability or kneecap slipping may suggest patellar instability[3]
- fever and inability to move the knee raise concern for infection and need urgent evaluation[4]
- a limp with unclear knee findings may require hip assessment[5]
How I evaluate knee pain in children
When I evaluate children in clinic, I do not start by assuming the cause. I build the diagnosis step by step.
History
The story often gives the biggest clue. I ask about:
