Prevent

Runner’s knee is pain around or behind the kneecap, and most people improve within about 6 to 12 weeks of hip and thigh strengthening. Chondromalacia patella describes softened cartilage, which often doesn’t match the pain and is treated the same way.

IT band syndrome causes outer knee pain that builds during runs, and stretching the band won’t fix it. Cutting back the load that flares it and strengthening the hip helps most people improve within about 4 to 8 weeks.

Most first-time kneecap dislocations are treated with physio and people are back to normal activities in about 1 to 3 months. About 1 in 3 dislocate again, and repeated dislocations are when MPFL reconstruction is usually considered.

Most MCL injuries heal without surgery: about 1 to 3 weeks for grade 1, 4 to 6 weeks for grade 2 and 6 weeks or more for grade 3. Surgery is mainly for tears that come with other knee injuries, such as an ACL tear.

Most slipped discs in the lower back heal without surgery, and most people are free of symptoms within 3 to 4 months. The pushed-out part of the disc often shrinks back on its own, and surgery is only needed for a small group.

Achilles tendinitis usually takes at least three months to settle, and sometimes up to a year. A steady calf-strengthening program, done most days for about 12 weeks, is the treatment that works; rest alone and steroid injections into the tendon do not.

Plantar fasciitis usually lasts months, not weeks, and about 8 in 10 people are better within a year. Stretching the arch, strengthening the calf and foot, and supportive shoes do most of the work; injections and shockwave are for heels that don’t settle.

PRP injections for knee arthritis have mixed evidence: some studies look promising, but the largest placebo-controlled trial found no benefit over salt water, and US guideline groups disagree. It’s rarely covered by insurance, so ask hard questions before you pay.

A labral tear on your MRI doesn’t automatically explain your pain, because tears are common in people over 40 with no shoulder pain at all. Most people start with physio, and repair makes most sense for young people whose shoulder keeps slipping or coming out.

A cortisone shot in the knee can ease an arthritis flare for a few weeks, and major guidelines still support it for short-term relief. Regular shots every few months are a different matter: in a two-year trial they thinned cartilage slightly more and didn’t ease pain any better than salt water.