Don’t let persistent KNEE PAIN hold you back…
Knee pain is something that everyone will experience at some point in their lifetime. Having knee pain can be the result of many factors and affects all ages. We as physical therapy clinicians work with patients to educate them about their problem in addition to how it can be corrected. So don’t sweat it! We are here to help!
About the Knee
The knee is a large hinge joint that gives you the ability to bend and straighten your knee which is necessary for day to day functional tasks like getting up from a chair or going up and down stairs. Knee symptoms can often interfere with the basic of things like walking. When your knee is painful, odds are good that you are not using it as designed which may result in:
- Loss of ROM
- Loss of strength
- Loss of stability
This in turn may also contribute to other problems associated with the way we avoid pain which results in increased stress on other area of our body. Persistent knee pain is something that you should not ignore!
Symptoms
The severity and location of your symptoms can depend on the cause of your problem. Some other symptoms associated with knee pain may also include:
- swelling or redness
- weakness or instability
- popping/crunching or grinding sounds
- inability to straighten out your knee
- stiffness
Causes
Knee pain can come from a number of causes that most likely will be due to:
- Injury
- Surgery
- Mechanical related problems
- Arthritis
- Changes in the health of the joint.
Injuries can be related to both that of soft tissue like ligaments or tendons but also bones which may be due to repeated stress like sports or from a fall.
How PT can Help
Overuse injuries are very commonly treated in therapy that if not corrected can lead to further problems. Surgeries involving the knee are high in number these days and can be very successful with therapeutic interventions. Although osteoarthritis is associated with the breakdown of the joint that we as therapists can’t magically change, we can however help you address symptoms that can help preserve the life of the joint.
So as you can see there are many things that can cause this persistent knee pain! That being said let one of our therapist here at Loudoun Sports Therapy Center fully evaluate your knee so that we can help restore your function to its fullest.
By Angie Austin, LPTA
