Weird shit. My right kneecap feels like it got a rugburn, but not all the time, and there's no visible irratation or marks. If I, for example, kneel on the bedsheet as I'm getting into bed, it stings like hell for a second. That I could understand, because it's a firm contact on a fabric surface with maybe a little lateral slippage. But also if I just lightly brush the kneecap with a towel while drying off after a shower. Just a light touch and a big sting! Whatever the degree of contact, the skin on my knee stings like hell for a moment. It doesn't hurt at all usually, only when brushing or contacting something soft. But the constant contact with a pants leg doesn't bother it at all! And pressure or light impacts don't bother it at all. Anybody ever hear of anything like this? What says the hive medi-mind?
your knee? My shins! Seriously, sometimes it feels like a very light mist of rain is on my shins, and only my shins, nowhere else. It's baffling! That said too bad you are experiencing pain. Could it be the sheets and towels are washed or dried differently than your pants? In other words detergent or fabric softener could be a factor.
I experience something similar sometimes, where a random patch of skin suddenly becomes super-sensitive. In my case, tho, it usually fades out again in a few minutes. No idea what that is.
No recent twists, knocks, etc which could lead to inflammation? Sometimes skin sensitivities start off localised and spread? Doesn't sound like it though given it's specific to impacts and shows no reddening. Unlikely to be shingles given the location (but not impossible). Have you had any minor cuts recently which might have become infected below the skin? Cellulitis is a possibility, keep an eye for the skin getting hotter than the surrounding area and inflamed leading to it becoming slightly stretched and "shiny". Failing that chop the leg off with a rusty spoon. Only works if you film it and share.
No, none of the above. Sheet and clothes all go thru the same washer with the same detergent. It be a misery mystery.
I had cellulitis on my forearm a couple of years ago - I thought it was a routine staff infection, or routine poison ivy, but an ultrasound told the real story.
I had shingles (on my face!) once, I'm wondering if it's something like that. No visible lesions, tho. Knelt on the bed last night getting into it, and got some real screaming pain. Then I tried to do it again on purpose to try to pinpoint exactly where it hurt, and I couldn't get it to hurt again.
Edit: funny, I have the same thing. One of my knees feels like it's got a burn on it. Sometimes when I slide into bed, I get a sensation there. But there's nothing wrong with it that I can see or feel on the surface.