Have a knee meniscal injury?
The meniscus is a piece of cartilage in your knee joint. It acts as padding by providing cushioning to the joint. Bending and straightening your knee is a nice smooth fluid movement with a healthy meniscus. knee meniscal injuries are very common.The Knee meniscus may become injured either from:
1. A sudden twisting movement or;
2. Repetitive movement causing wear and tear in the joint
The most common area for a knee meniscal injury is along the inside/middle part of the knee. For instance, athletes are susceptible to meniscal injuries due to the fast twisting movements often observed in sport.
Symptoms of a knee meniscal injury may include some of the following:
– Locking of the knee
– Knee popping sounds
– Knee clicking sounds
– Pain around the knee
– Difficulty kneeling or squatting
– Tenderness when touching the knee
Luckily, meniscal injuries can heal on their own with the help of some physical therapy.
How Does Physiotherapy Help?
Not all knee meniscal injuries require surgery. Physiotherapists can help relieve the signs and symptoms you have around your knee. Firstly, A physiotherapy session will begin with a thorough discussion. Secondly, your symptoms will be identified, goals will be developed. After that, a plan to return to full activity will begin. Physios will, therefore, observe different types of movement and ask how it relates to your symptoms. Hands-on tests will be conducted to determine the extent of the injury. A mixture of exercises to address your symptoms will then be taught and prescribed.
Exercises areas focus on:
– Knee mobility
– Thigh/leg muscle strengthening
– Flexibility exercises
– Balance and agility
In conclusion, The aim of physiotherapy is to decrease your pain and improve the function around the knee. Your physiotherapist can give you a detailed plan for your rehabilitation and recovery. Come and speak to one of the Ace physiotherapists to begin your track to recovery.