Knee Pain
Return to walking, standing and running. The key to life.Knee Pain and Injuries Singapore
Address your knee pain and return your activities!
Knee pain is one of the more common areas of pain that we address in clinic. With a growing silver generation, there appears to be an increasing trend of non-traumatic causes of knee pain.
The knee is one of the main joints involved in locomotion i.e. walking, running and stair-climbing. Being unable to do any of these activities comfortably is frustrating and can affects one mood and outlook on life.
There are various reasons why your knee might hurt. There might be a traumatic event i.e. fall from height or landing on your knee cap or a non-traumatic event where you don’t even know you did anything until one day your knees begin to hurt.
The management of the any knee pain is dependent on how you injured the knee. If there was a traumatic event i.e. you were tackled on the soccer field or you were involved in an unfortunate case of a car accident, you might consider visiting first the Emergency Department.
However, if your knee is begining to hurt but you’re unsure what is happening or how it might have started, you’re in the right place! Physiotherapy is able to address the root cause of your pain and be able to return you to your original level of sport comfortably and efficiently!
Common Knee Injuries & Causes of Knee Pain
Regardless of your cause of your knee pain, our Physiotherapist will work to get to the root cause of your shoulder pain. The good news is that most knee pain is generally not serious as it responds well to Physiotherapy, and usually subsides within 4-6 weeks.
Knee Instability
There are 4 major ligaments in the knee joint which serve to stabilise the knee joint during movement. You might have heard of someone injuring their ACL, this is a common injury amongst the sporting population where it occurs primarily due to a forceful twisting of the knee. Injury to these structures normally result in pain and instability of the knee joint and a lengthy rehabilitation period.
Knee Osteoarthritis
Osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee is a common condition that occurs when the protective cartilage on the ends of the bones wears down over time. This can lead to pain, stiffness, and difficulty with mobility. While there is no cure for OA, there are a variety of treatments that can help manage the symptoms and slow the progression of the disease.
Patellofemoral Pain
Patellofemoral pain, also colloquially known as Runner’s knee, refers to pain in and around the knee cap. It is the most commonly felt type of knee pain across the populations and generally affects females and older individuals. There are a variety of risk factors for this condition such as a sudden increase in physical load, the structure of the knee joint and a lack of strength in the muscles surrounding the knee and hip.
Patella Tendinopathy
Patella/ quads tendinopathy, or more commonly known as Jumper’s knee, is pain above or below the knee and is usually associated with individuals involved in high impact jumping sports such as volleyball and basketball. It involves changes to the tendons around the knee cap which help to transmit forces from the muscles to the bones and is normally caused by repetitive jumping or high impact activities.
Customised Knee Rehabilitation Programmes
At The Rehab Centre, we do not believe in stop-gap solutions to treat your pain and we don’t take shortcuts. After we’ve assessed your symptoms and uncovered the root problem, we’ll put together a customised rehabilitation programme just for you.
A typical session with your Physiotherapist might look like a time of understanding your pain, having a thorough assessment of your hip, knee, foot and ankle and after, prescribing specific exercises that will address your concerns.
The hip, knee and ankle moves in synergy with each other. Should the hip or ankle move poorly, the knee might be overloaded or move in a manner that is compensatory and therefore cause pain in the knee.
Understanding how each region contributes to the knee will allow us to get to the root of the problem effectively and efficiently. It will provide a clear and accurate diagnosis and therefore allow for the prescription of specific exercises that will address your pains.
When you leave The Rehab Centre, we want you to be more confident in your knee, to have a thorough understanding of the cause of your pain and a clear plan about what you can do to address the pain in your knee.
Having knee pain and you Google for knee pain relief, knee pain treatment, knee pain exercises or knee pain remedy? Look no further! Allow our Physiotherapists to deploy effective preventative and management strategies to assist and empower you to reduce the incidence, recurrence and consequent burden of knee pain! Forget ultrasound machines, ESWT and the many passive therapies one may offer for a promise of a quick relief of pain. Chat with us to find out more if you can learn to manage the aches and pain you experience and be free from frequent visits to medical clinics!
Common Treatments for Knee Pain
Here are some common treatments and rehabilitation approaches we take for knee pain:
Acute Knee Pain
For patients experiencing acute knee pain, we focus our rehabilitation programmes on:
- Education. We want to help you understand the makeup of your knee, why you’re experiencing pain, and how our plan will help you alleviate it.
- Assurance. There’s a low chance you have a serious or long term knee condition. We’ll assure you that all will be okay, and help you adopt a positive mindset.
- Manual Therapy. Manual therapy can include massage or joint / soft tissue mobilizations. It can help relieve stiffness and improve range of motion
- Electrotherapeutic Agents. Agents like TENS (transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation) are low-voltage electrical currents that disrupt pain signals and reduce discomfort.
- Gradual Movement within Comfort Levels. We’ll slowly introduce gradual movements and exercises within your level of comfort to get your neck back to 100%, or as close as possible.
- Return to Activity. Our ultimate goal is to get you back to the daily and extracurricular activities you love – pain free.
- Referral to Doctor or imaging. However, if your Physiotherapists, after a thorough interview and physical examination, determines that your knee requires a scan or further investigations, we will refer you to an appropriate Doctor for it.
Knee Instability
It is usually diagnosed through a history taking and physical examination carried out by a Doctor or Physiotherapist. The medical specialist will usually take an MRI to determine the extent of the ligament damage to determine whether a surgical intervention is warranted. In cases where the ligamentous injury is not as severe, it can be managed conservatively with Physiotherapy interventions. For patients experiencing an unstable knee, we aim to:
- Advise and Educate. If you’re experiencing an unstable knee, we want to ensure that you understand what is going on so that you will be compliant with the exercsies and therefore reduce the instability in your knee.
- Assurance. Understanding the condition is half the battel won. That will allow you to concentrate on what needs to be done though you feel unstable in your knee. Managing your expectations regarding your unstable knee can be incredibly helpful.
- Heat Therapy. Heat can help your muscles relax, often reducing pain and improving mobility.
- Graduated Movement Programme. Lastly, we’ll gradually introduce new movements and exercises to help you return to function and daily activities you love. We utilise a criteria-based progression. We will only allow you to move on to the next stage of your rehabilitation only if you have met the necessary strength and movement criteria.
Knee Osteoarthritis
Osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee is a common condition that occurs when the protective cartilage on the ends of the bones wears down over time. This can lead to pain, stiffness, and difficulty with mobility. While there is no cure for OA, there are a variety of treatments that can help manage the symptoms and slow the progression of the disease. For patients experiencing knee osteoarthritis, we aim to:
- Pain management: A Physiotherapist can teach exercises and techniques that can help reduce pain and inflammation in the knee joint. This can include exercises to improve flexibility and range of motion, as well as techniques such as heat or cold therapy or transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS)
- Strengthening exercises: Your Physiotherapist can design an exercise program to help improve the strength of the quadriceps and hamstring muscles, which support the knee joint. This can help reduce the load on the knee and improve function.
- Gait and balance training: Your Physiotherapist can work with you to improve your gait and balance, which can help reduce the risk of falls and improve your ability to perform daily activities.
- Education and advice: Your Physiotherapist can teach you how to perform exercises correctly, provide information on appropriate activities and equipment, as well as give advice on how to manage your symptoms and prevent further deterioration of the knee joint.
- Coordinating with other healthcare professionals: Your Physiotherapist can work closely with other healthcare professionals such as rheumatologists, orthopedic surgeons, and primary care physicians to provide a comprehensive treatment plan.
Patellofemoral Pain
Patellofemoral pain, also colloquially known as Runner’s knee, refers to pain in and around the knee cap. It is the most commonly felt type of knee pain across the populations and generally affects females and older individuals. There are a variety of risk factors for this condition such as a sudden increase in physical load, the structure of the knee joint and a lack of strength in the muscles surrounding the knee and hip. For patients with patellofemoral pain, we aim to:
- Pain management: A Physiotherapist can teach exercises and techniques that can help reduce pain and inflammation in the knee joint. This can include exercises to improve flexibility and range of motion, as well as techniques such as heat or cold therapy or transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS)
- Strengthening exercises: Your Physiotherapist can design an exercise program to help improve the strength of the quadriceps and hamstring muscles, which support the knee joint. This can help reduce the load on the knee and improve function. Exercises will also be prescribed for your hip or ankle since these joints contributes to the load in the knee and may increase the load and therefore cause pain.
- Education and advice: Your Physiotherapist can teach you how to perform exercises correctly, provide information on appropriate activities and equipment, as well as give advice on how to manage your symptoms.
- Return to Sport: Loading of the knee in patellofemoral pain is important. It is paramount that we don’t offload the knee completely as it will be detrimental for your recovery. Instead, your Physiotherapist will first work with you to offload the knee and gradually return to the activities that increases the load in your knee and hence, return you to sport.
Patella Tendinopathy
Patella/ quads tendinopathy, or more commonly known as Jumper’s knee, is pain above or below the knee and is usually associated with individuals involved in high impact jumping sports such as volleyball and basketball. It involves changes to the tendons around the knee cap which help to transmit forces from the muscles to the bones and is normally caused by repetitive jumping or high impact activities. For patients with patella tendinopathy, we aim to:
- Pain management: A Physiotherapist can teach exercises and techniques that can help reduce pain and inflammation in the knee joint. This can include exercises to improve flexibility and range of motion, as well as techniques such as heat or cold therapy or transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS). We might also deploy isometric exercises to reduce the load in your patella tendon.
- Strengthening exercises: Your Physiotherapist can design an exercise program to help improve the strength of the quadriceps and hamstring muscles, which support the knee joint. This can help reduce the load on the knee and improve function. Exercises will also be prescribed for your hip or ankle since these joints contributes to the load in the knee and may increase the load and therefore cause pain.
- Education and advice: Your Physiotherapist can teach you how to perform exercises correctly, provide information on appropriate activities and equipment, as well as give advice on how to manage your symptoms and prevent chronicity
- Return to Sport: Loading of the knee in patella tendon is important. It is paramount that we don’t offload the knee completely as it will be detrimental for your recovery. Instead, your Physiotherapist will first work with you to offload the knee and gradually return to the activities that increases the load in your knee and hence, return you to sport.
FAQs for Knee Pain
Here are some common questions we hear in clinic about knee pain:
Should I see a GP for knee pain?
Knee pain in Singapore is a common area of concern. Your GP will be able to advise if seeing a Physiotherapist or an Orthopaedic Specilalist would be helpful to you. They might prescribe medicine for your knee pain as well. However, our Physiotherapist are able to assess and determine the cause of your knee pain and if further investigations are required.
In Singapore, however, you might be required by your insurer to see a Doctor first so that you will can be referred for Physiotherapy.
Common cause of knee pain?
The most common causes of knee pain in Singapore are related to age-related changes, injury like ACL tears or repeated stress on the knee because of limited or poor conditioning and strength. Common knee problems include sprained or strained ligaments, cartilage tears, tendonitis and arthritis.
Can I fix my knee pain without surgery?
Not all knee pains require a scan or surgery. Your Physiotherapist at The Rehab Centre is able to ascertain the cause of your knee pain after a thorough assessment and interview with you. Based on the likely cause of your knee pain, your Physiotherapist will advise further on suitable exercises or refer you on to the appropriate Doctor for further investigations. Most knee pains would respond to Physiotherapy or Podiatry interventions with exercise or with an introduction of an insole to influence the load going through your knee.
Knee pain treatment at home?
Whilst we understand the desire to address your pains quickly with cost effective ways, seeing a Physiotherapist might in fact be the fastest and most efficient way! We will be able to prescribe suitable and appropriate exercises for your knee pain which you can do at home. With that in mind, we hope to address your knee pain quickly and efficiently, without the need for prolonged care and cost!
Exercises for knee pain?
We wish we could dispense exercises for knee pain to everyone and all the knee pain disappears! Unfortunately, it doesn’t work like this. Your Physiotherapist, through a thorough interview, will determine the cause of your knee pain. Combine that with a concise physical examination, your Physiotherapist will be able to suggest appropriate exercises for your knee pain. The pain in your knee could be coming from your knee or it could be a result of the way your move your hip or foot. Because of these reasons, provision of exercises for your knee pain might not work at all!
