What's the problem with my legs suddenly going weak

Leg discomfort often occurs in the elderly, but this is of course not always the case. What is the problem that causes some people to suddenly feel weak in the legs? If it's just weakness in the legs without any other pain, you'll recover after resting for a while. But if in addition to weak legs, there is also some joint pain, you should be alert and think about whether the joints are injured. In addition, chronic joint diseases can also cause this symptom.

What are the possible causes of sudden leg weakness?

1. Joint sports injuries

Meniscus injury is the most common injury. When the lower limbs are weight-bearing, the feet are fixed, and the knee joints are slightly flexed, sudden excessive internal rotation or external rotation of the knee may cause meniscus tear. Meniscus injury will cause obvious weakness when walking on flat ground, and sometimes there will be joint pain, limited movement, and popping noises during movement.

The second is knee ligament damage, which causes knee instability and makes you feel that you are not as brave as before in using the injured leg. I can clearly feel the injured leg is weak, I walk more slowly than usual, my knee joint feels dislocated, and part of it is swollen.

2. Chronic joint diseases

When the fat pad becomes congested, thickened and inflamed due to trauma or long-term friction, and adheres to the patellar ligament, fat pad strain will occur, thereby limiting the movement of the knee joint. This situation often occurs in people over 30 years old who frequently walk, climb mountains or squat.

Chronic synovitis of the knee joint and abnormal hypertrophy of the synovial folds due to factors such as trauma or excessive strain can also cause "synovial incarceration", that is, the synovium floating like water grass in the joint cavity is suddenly squeezed between the joints, and a large amount of fluid is produced, causing the patient to feel soft, painful, swollen, tenderness in the knee joint, and even locking symptoms, affecting normal activities.

3. Degenerative changes

Osteoarthritis of the knee is more common in middle-aged and elderly women. It will cause bone hyperplasia, commonly known as "bone spurs", and cartilage degeneration and exfoliation will produce loose bodies. When these inflammatory factors stimulate the soft tissue around the knee, the muscles will suddenly spasm, causing the joints to become weak, and some joints will have friction sounds when moving. Severe knee deformity may cause varus deformity and medial pain.

There is also a cartilage lesion between the patella and femur that occurs in young people, namely "patellar softening", which can cause premature degeneration and defect of cartilage, resulting in symptoms of softening of the knee joint.

Director Wu Yulong reminds that if weakness in the legs occurs frequently on one or both sides, one needs to go to the hospital for a check-up. After ruling out weakness in the legs due to cerebrovascular accident or other causes such as hemiplegia, most of the problems are with the bone and joints mentioned above. It is hoped that the cause of the disease can be determined through physical examinations, X-rays, and even MRIs.