Knee Pain

There are many reasons for why the knees can be painful. They can become injured from trauma, for example in a sporting injury or you might find that the pain has gradually developed over time. This is often due to your biomechanics (how you move), putting extra stress and strain onto the joint and the soft tissues. Physiotherapy has great scientific evidence to support its use for many knee conditions. In fact more and more studies comparing physiotherapy and surgery show that physiotherapy can give as good and often better results than surgery. 

At JWPhysiotherapy appropriate treatment is used to aim to achieve these good and long term outcomes, using treatments that are backed up by the research.

Some conditions of the knee

  • Osteoarthritis - Physiotherapy, along with diet and pain medication can effectively relieve pain and improve function to either delay or prevent the need for knee replacements. It should be the first line of treatment before considering surgery.
  • Meniscal tears - Research is suggesting the arthroscopies (key hole surgery) should be avoided unless the knee is locked. Physiotherapy is shown to have better long term outcomes.
  • Anterior cruciate tears - The option to have surgery has always been based on an individual's lifestyle and needs but recent research is suggesting that physiotherapy can have just as good outcomes as surgery for pain and function, even in athletes.
  • Anterior knee pain/patellofemoral pain/chondromalacia patella - Physiotherapy is the most supported treatment for this. Rarely surgery is offered.

When to be concerned...

  • If you have an injury (fall, knock etc) and then suffer with a locked knee (unable to fully extend the knee), swelling or inability to weight-bear, you should attend A&E. A fracture (break in the bone) would need to be excluded. 

 

  •  If you have knee pain, swelling, redness and increased temperature of the joint, especially if accompanied by fever or recent infection in your body attend A&E to exclude a knee joint infection.