Knee condition
Knee bursitis is the swelling that isn’t actually in your knee. Bursae are small fluid cushions sitting between skin, tendon and bone — outside the joint — and when one is squeezed or rubbed repeatedly it fills up and becomes a tender lump you can often see and press. That outside position explains almost everything about it: why the joint still bends, why kneeling is usually the culprit, why it refills if nothing changes — and why this is the one knee swelling that can become infected through a simple graze.
Tap any that apply to you — this is guidance, not a diagnosis, but it tells you how quickly to act.
One or more warning signs deserve prompt attention. A hot, red bursa — especially after broken skin, or in anyone with diabetes — may be infected, and infected bursitis needs treating quickly rather than watching. Pain deep inside the joint suggests the problem isn’t the bursa at all.
Good news — nothing urgent on that list. A soft, tender swelling with normal-looking skin is the ordinary picture: irritating, visible, and usually settled by taking the pressure off. An assessment confirms which bursa is involved and what has been provoking it.
Bursae exist to absorb friction and pressure. They complain when they get too much of either — and the pattern usually points straight at a habit or an occupation:
Worth separating from bursitis: a soft bulge behind the knee is usually a different problem, and pinpoint pain on the tendon below the kneecap is a tendon issue rather than a bursa. More: Baker’s cyst → More: patellar tendinitis →
The single most effective treatment is unglamorous: take the pressure off. Stop kneeling on the affected knee — or if your work makes that impossible, use a thick kneeling pad, kneel on one knee at a time, and break up long stretches. Ice for fifteen minutes a few times a day settles the swelling, a light compression sleeve helps it stay down, and elevating the leg when resting speeds things along. Simple pain relief from your pharmacist keeps you comfortable meanwhile. Do keep the knee moving — unlike problems inside the joint, bursitis doesn’t need immobilising, and stiffness only adds a second problem. Don’t try to squeeze or drain it yourself: puncturing the skin over a bursa is exactly how a simple swelling becomes an infected one. And if the skin turns red and hot, if you feel unwell, or if you have diabetes, get it looked at promptly rather than waiting it out — infected bursitis is straightforward when treated early and troublesome when it isn’t.
Location tells us which bursa is involved — and what has been provoking it. Tap the one that fits:
The kneeling bursa — and the one most prone to infection. Swelling directly over the kneecap almost always follows kneeling or a fall onto it. Stop kneeling on that knee, pad it when unavoidable, and watch the skin: redness, heat or feeling unwell means it needs seeing promptly rather than resting.
Below the kneecap — worth distinguishing carefully. Swelling here sits close to the patellar tendon, and bursitis and tendon problems get confused constantly. The difference matters because their treatments pull in opposite directions: pressure relief for one, progressive loading for the other. An examination separates them quickly.
Inner-side bursitis — the one that hides behind other diagnoses. Tenderness a few centimetres below the inner joint line, worse on stairs and when knees touch at night, is often blamed on arthritis or a meniscus. It responds well to targeted treatment — which is why identifying it correctly is worth the visit.
Treatment is a ladder — and most people are fixed on the first two rungs:
Tap each card to reveal the truth:
A bursa is a small fluid-filled cushion that lets skin, tendon and bone glide over each other without friction. Several sit around the knee. Knee bursitis is irritation of one of them — it fills with fluid and becomes a tender, often visible swelling. The distinction that matters: bursae sit outside the joint, so this is swelling on the knee rather than inside it, which is why the knee itself usually still bends and works reasonably well.
For most people, knee bursitis treatment is about removing the pressure that caused it: stopping the kneeling or repeated rubbing, using a cushioned pad when kneeling is unavoidable, plus ice, gentle compression and keeping the knee moving. Where a bursa is tense and uncomfortable, drawing off the fluid gives quick relief and lets us check it. Infection needs treatment prescribed by a doctor without delay, and surgery to remove a chronically thickened bursa is a last resort.
Infected bursitis usually looks and feels different: the skin over the swelling turns red and hot, the area is very tender, and you may feel feverish or unwell. A graze, crack or cut near the kneecap in the days before is a strong clue, because the bursa in front of the kneecap sits directly under the skin. Anyone with diabetes or a weakened immune system should be checked promptly. Examining fluid drawn from the bursa settles the question definitively.
Because drainage empties the bursa but doesn’t change what irritated it. If the kneeling, leaning or rubbing continues, the bursa simply refills — often within days. Lasting results come from combining drainage with genuine pressure relief: changing the kneeling habit, using padding, adjusting work practices. When those change, recurrence becomes uncommon.
Simple, non-infected bursitis usually improves over one to three weeks once the pressure is off, though the swelling can take longer to disappear completely than the pain does. Long-standing bursitis with a thickened bursa takes longer and may never look entirely normal again. Infected bursitis follows its own timeline and needs medical review to confirm it has fully resolved.
Same-day appointments are usually available. Call or book online — our team will take it from there.
