Knee pain, a common occurrence amongst most of the UK population presents to us at Rugby Physio on a regular basis. Knee pain can vary between a problem being inside the knee or a problem being on the outside of the knee and in some cases, referred pain from elsewhere. Regular knee pain most often improves with physiotherapy. Physiotherapy is the most evidence based non-invasive treatment for mending your poorly knee.
Common questions we get asked about knees during a consultation.
How does Physiotherapy help knee pain? The doctor says I have:
- Arthritis
- A tear of the cartilage or ACL
- I might need surgery
These are commonly what we hear as Physios. But the truth is, as physios, we must do our own assessments and diagnostic work up to figure out what is actually wrong with your knee. This enables our decision making process for your treatment going forwards.
Arthritis
This is a normal aging process we all go through, including physiotherapists and doctors. Think of it as though you are getting wrinkles as you age or grey hairs. This is normal.
Not all knee arthritis needs to surgery. If you have very limited range of movement, severe pain and debilitated and your knee X-Ray correlates with your physical assessment findings, and you’re in the right age bracket, then off you go to the surgeon. Rugby Physio has strong links with local knee surgeons.
However, if you have some mild moderate arthritis with less severe pain, physio can help. Treatments such as manual techniques such as joint and soft tissue manipulation, acupuncture/dry needling, focused strengthening programmes and lifestyle alterations can help improve your knee and get you back to what you enjoy. At Rugby Physio, our physiotherapists have years of experience in cultivating cutting edge skills in knee rehabilitation.
Tears
There are two types of tears to consider. You could have a degenerative tear or an acute tear. The latter would need an MRI scan. If your knee was locking or feeling unstable, then a surgeon would be more appropriate for you. If there is no locking or instability, then you would improve with guided specialised physiotherapy.
Why are scans and X-rays appropriate or not appropriate
X-rays are not often recommended for routine knee pain unless there has been significant trauma (to rule out a fracture) or there is consideration for referral to see a knee surgeon for surgery. At Rugby Physio, we are skilled to determine when further scans or X-rays are needed. Scans and X-rays are only part of the puzzle. But most of the time, physiotherapists can assess and diagnose the problem without a scan or X-Ray and treat your knee effectively with physiotherapy.
Most commonly, what is the cause of regular knee pain?
The knee cap becoming misaligned,, tight overloaded muscles, poor muscular conditioning or changes in biomechanics are the most common cause of regular knee pain. Physiotherapy treatment involving exercise, hands on therapy and biomechanics assessments with small tweeks most often improves knee pain. If we address the muscle imbalances, take pressure of the joints and help muscles and joints glide freely, the symptoms will resolve.