Authored by Dr Harsh Sharma, Edited and Peer Reviewed by Dr. Pooja Sharma

Published June 12, 2023, Last updated June 12, 2023

Knee bursitis is a common problem which affects middle aged people. It causes pain in the knee with restriction in mobility. The following homeopathic medicines for knee bursitis are very effective in treating the pain and swelling –

1. Arnica
2. Calcarea Phos
3. Natrum Mur
4. Silicea
5. Sticta Pulmonaria

   But before we come to the various medicines that are used for treatment of bursitis of the knee, let us understand the problem in detail.

What is Bursitis?

Bursitis is the inflammation in the fluid filled sac or sac like cavity known as bursa. The purpose of a bursa is to lubricate the movement of the joint where it is located. Such cavities or sacs are present in the knee joints, shoulders, elbows and hip joints too. Most commonly, soft tissue trauma or strain causes bursitis. Infections are uncommon cause of bursitis.

Bursitis of the knee

The knee has three major bursae. The Pre-patellar bursa is situated at the tip of the knee joint, over the kneecap bone or the Patella. This bursa can become inflamed due to direct trauma to the front part of the knee joint. It occurs commonly due to prolonged kneeling position. This causes irritation of the pre-patellar bursa. ‘Housemaid’s knee’ is another common name for this problem. The occupation of certain people predisposes them to this kind of bursitis.

The second bursa is the infra-patellar bursa. This bursa is situated just below the kneecap bone. Jumping predisposes one to this kind of bursitis. ‘Jumper’s knee’ is another common name for this problem.

The third bursa is at the inner side of the knee. Pes Anserine Bursitis is the medical term for this problem. This bursa is situated at the lower inner side of the knee. This kind of bursitis is quite common in obese people. Patients suffering from anserine bursitis feel pain while ascending or descending stairs.

Causes of Bursitis

Bursitis is a common occurrence in adults above the age of 40. The most common cause of bursitis is the repetitive motion of the joint surrounding the bursa. The repetitive movement could be due to your occupation or hobby. Carpentry, gardening, housekeeping, playing cricket or golf can predispose you to bursitis. Folding the joint in a manner that puts pressure on the bursa could also cause bursitis. Standing or sitting for long hours in a wrong posture can also cause bursitis. Occasionally, an injury too can lead to bursitis. An infection is a less common cause of bursitis.

Symptoms of Bursitis

The common symptoms of bursitis are as follows-

• Pain- there is pain in the bursa and the joint where the bursa is situated. This pain may happen at the time of the movement of the joint or even when not in motion. The pain may be an ache type of feeling or a stinging or stitching type of pain.
• Swelling- There is swelling around the location of the bursa. The swelling is usually localized to the joint where the bursa is situated.
• Restriction of movement – The movement of the joint where the bursa is situated is restricted. One may find it difficult to lift things or walk depending upon the location of bursitis.
• Redness or warmth – The affected part may become red and warm, indicated an inflammation of the said part.

Prevention of Bursitis

One can take a few steps to prevent bursitis. Some of these steps may be occupation specific. Others are more general which every person can use to prevent bursitis.

• Maintain your ideal weight- It is very important that one should not be overweight. Excess weight means more pressure on the joints like your knee. This predisposes one to bursitis.
• Avoid repetitive movements- If possible, try to avoid or at least minimize repetitive movements.
• Muscle strengthening exercises – Strengthening your muscles surrounding your joints is a very effective way to prevent bursitis.
• Warming up before exercise- Warming up before exercise helps prevent any injury to the bursa.
• Frequent breaks- If you have no option but to perform a repetitive task, it is better to take frequent breaks. This provides rest to the muscles and tendons and prevents bursitis.

Treatment of bursitis of knee

One can easily treat bursitis of the knee. A few steps can help immensely.

• Rest- Resting for a few days can alleviate the inflammation of the bursa. This allows the natural healing of the body to happen.
• Ice Pack – Applying ice on the inflamed joint can provide relief to the pain and swelling in the affected area. One can apply ice or frozen vegetable packs 3-4 times daily for around 20 minutes each. Cycling is a good exercise that strengthens the muscles without putting too much of a stress.
• Compression – Compressing the joint lightly with a bandage or a contraption is quite helpful.
• Elevating the knee- One needs to keep the knee joint elevated while resting. It helps in relieving swelling, pain and inflammation of the knee joint.
• Stretching and exercises- Once the initial inflammation has subsided, the joint mobility should be restored. Stretching the muscles around the knee joint and strengthening them also by gentle exercise is also helpful in managing knee bursitis.

Homeopathic treatment for bursitis of knee

Homeopathic treatment of knee bursitis is very effective and is able to completely cure it. Homeopathy quickly relieves all the attendant symptoms of bursitis like pain, swelling, stiffness and loss of motion . I can confidently say that Homeopathy should be the first choice of treatment for knee bursitis. Patients often overlook homeopathy for knee bursitis because they are not aware of its effectiveness.

5 best Homeopathic medicines for knee bursitis

The choice of an individual medicine for a patient suffering from knee bursitis depends upon the individual’s symptoms and the causation in each individual case. Homeopathy tries to go deep and find the susceptibilities of the individual which predispose him or her to certain diseases. The guide to such individualization is invariably the symptoms that the patient suffers from. Although it is beyond the scope of this short article to give all the medicines that are used for knee bursitis, I am giving the 5 best homeopathic remedies for knee bursitis that I have found to be extremely effective in more than 2 decades of my practice.

1. Arnica – One of the best homeopathic medicines for knee bursitis due to injury

2. Calcarea Phos – One of the best homeopathic medicines for knee bursitis with stiffness

3. Natrum Mur – One of the best homeopathic remedies for bursitis of knee with weakness of the knee joint

4. Silicea- One of the best homeopathic medicines for bursitis with pain relieved by warmth

5. Sticta Pulmonaria – One of the best homeopathic medicines for bursitis due to frequent sitting or squatting

Here is a brief description of the symptoms that guide towards the selection of each remedy.

1. Arnica – One of the best homeopathic medicines for knee bursitis due to injury

When the bursitis can be traced an old injury or a fall, Arnica is one of the best homeopathic medicines for knee bursitis. There is sore and bruised kind of pain in the knee joint. The knee joint feels sprained. This pain may be present at all times. In severe cases, the joint may feel dislocated though there is no actual anatomical anomaly.

2. Calcarea Phos – One of the best homeopathic medicines for knee bursitis with stiffness

When there is stiffness in the knee joint and the surrounding tissue, Calcarea Phos is one of the best homeopathic medicines for knee bursitis. The joint may even feel cold and numb. Cold and any change of weather aggravates the pain and stiffness of the knee joint. Going upstairs makes the patient feel weak and tired.

3. Natrum Mur – One of the best homeopathic remedies for bursitis of knee with weakness of the knee joint

When the knee joint feels weak, Natrum Mur is one of the best homeopathic medicines for knee bursitis. The patient is usually thin and is fond of salt and salty things. He cannot tolerate heat in any form. Anaemia and oedema are also often present.

4. Silicea- One of the best homeopathic medicines for bursitis with pain relieved by warmth

When warmth ameliorates the knee pain, Silicea is one of the best homeopathic medicines for bursitis of the knee. The patient is unable to tolerate cold in any form. There is a sensation as if something is tightly binding the knee. Even the calf muscles feel tense and contracted.

5. Sticta Pulmonaria – One of the best homeopathic medicines for bursitis due to frequent sitting or squatting

When frequent sitting and standing or squatting cause bursitis of the knee, Sticta Pulmonaria is one of the best homeopathic medicines for knee bursitis. There is shooting pain in the knees. There is redness, swelling and pain in the knee joint and the surrounding tissue.