As kids, we have always experienced a specific kind of a pain in our hands and legs. Our parents used to treat it as a pain of growing years when entering into adolescent years. Growing years bring many changes to our body, which is very natural, and part of our body progressing in various ways.
It is understood that the growing pain we experienced during our increasing years is known as Musculoskeletal Pain. Experts say that the pain we feel while we are into our developing years isn’t connected with growth; they still haven’t concluded the reason behind this pain and its associated development.
The pain might seem evident in children or teenagers. Still, things might not seem so familiar if the same kind of problem is experienced by an adult of middle age or older age; it might indicate an underlying health condition that requires immediate medical attention.
A review in 2017 mentioned that the pain a child experiences during his/her growing age might not be due to his developing years but mainly on the child’s daytime activities. Experts called this pain “mild nocturnal limb pains of childhood.
As a child may also feel this nocturnal pain during night time, it isn’t connected with growth pain, similarly considering an adult’s pain as similar to growth pain isn’t an appropriate diagnosis of the problem. An adult doesn’t seem to experience the growth in his bones or ligaments during adulthood since the body has already taken its definite shape and form.
So what could be the actual reason behind the growth like pain in adults? Experts have noticed that children’s growing problem is only possible when doctors rule out other underlying conditions. Some underlying medical conditions could include; the increased tendency of a fractured bone, limping while walking, the affected limbs seem swelled, and persistent pain in them.
A grown adult’s ache in the limbs during the night time may be due to muscle overexertion or maybe some of the medical conditions mentioned below in the article.
The Other Reason Behind Leg Pain Besides Growing Pain
Some of the other potential reason behind pain leg and their treatments are stated below:
Rheumatoid Arthritis
Rheumatoid Arthritis is a kind of autoimmune disorder that is chronic. In this disease, the immune system begins to attack the healthy cells that line and cushion the joints. This leads to tenderness and inflammation in the joints.
Although it isn’t curable, the condition could be managed and controlled with the help of treatment, which aims to reduce the inflammation in the joints, reduce any further more injuries that could probably cause to the joints, and reduce the chance of any risk factors.
Experts have recommended patients with arthritis to maintain a balanced diet, try for more heat treatment that could soothe the ache in the joints, and initiate treatments that could alleviate the joints’ pain and inflammation.
Leg Cramps
Leg cramps could be one of the reasons behind leg pain during the evening. People who are above the age of 50 years are likely to experience leg cramps. The rate is 50 percent who suffer from leg cramps, and out of that, around 40 percent suffer from leg crams thrice in a week, and the rest 5-10 percent experience it every night.
Apart from age as a factor, others may involve dehydration, standing or sitting for too long, or flat feet could be the reason behind leg cramps. A specific medication has side-effect cause leg cramps; such medicines may involve birth control pills, antipsychotics pills, etc.
Doctors recommend keeping oneself hydrated as much as possible and wearing footwear that is comfortable to the feet’ arches. The experts have also mentioned that applying heat or cold pack instantly on the cramps can help reduce help.
Restless Leg Syndrome
Restless Leg Syndrome is a disorder where there is a particular jittery sensation in an individual’s legs. The feelings triggered in the legs due to this syndrome are very uncomfortable and don’t allow a person suffering from it to sleep peacefully at night. It triggers an uncontrollable urge to keep moving the legs so that the symptoms lessen or reduces for a bit.
RLS triggers typically when an individual is lying or sitting at a place for a longer duration. Its diagnosis is only possible when no other alternative cause for triggered pain in the legs seems evident.
Since there is no cure for this syndrome, doctors recommend specific lifestyle changes such as; avoiding nicotine or caffeine, a warm bath before bedtime, indulging in exercise, and stretching. Other treatments could be a particular medication that helps to reduce the pain or manage it efficiently.
Round Ligament Pain During Pregnancy
It is a pelvic pain that occurs during pregnancy—the round ligament is found in the pelvic attached to and cradle the uterus. The uterus’s growth during pregnancy can lead to a stretch in the round ligaments in the pelvic, which leads to a sharp pain either on one side of the pelvic or on both sides.
Some of the potential treatments for this include; prenatal massage, applying a heat pack to the pelvic area, performing gentle exercises, performing prenatal yoga, drinking fluids, etc.
These disorders mentioned above could potentially cause leg cramps, which shouldn’t be neglected because they might be an underlying severe medical condition.
When to visit the doctor
If an when you a pain in your legs, which occurs suddenly during the night and makes you restless, it is necessary to visit the doctor and understand the reason behind the condition. Pain in legs and ligaments could essentially occur during the night time. So the state could form certain restless nights without any sleep.
Every pain doesn’t indicate or associate itself with growth. Children’s experience is musculoskeletal, and it is not the reason for the development in the limbs and bones because adults experience the pain. Hence, there could be many reasons for it.
Although researchers haven’t accurately found out the reason for this cause of pain, an adult experiencing the number of health conditions mentioned above must consult his/her physician as soon as possible.
