"Almost Daily Health Tips From Physical Therapist Tom Willemann..."
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Category: Knee Pain
How runners can conquer chronic knee pain
It is quite common for runners to suffer from knee pain as there is a lot of physical stress and pressure exerted on the knees while running. Besides running there are other several causes that lead to knee pain, however, running further aggravates the problem. Runners normally experience chronic knee pain due to the continuousContinue Reading »
Flexing Your New Replacement Knee
Deciding to have your knee replaced can lead to many logical concerns regarding safety, rehabilitation and whether the increase in quality of life makes the procedure worth the trouble. Not everyone will regain full range of motion after total knee replacement. Depending upon the specific nature of your injury and knee replacement, however, a fullContinue Reading »
Knees Hurt? Strengthen Your Hips
Does your knee hurt when you walk, run or climb stairs? If so, you have plenty of company. According to the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, Americans make more than 19 million physician visits each year for knee pain. Although osteoarthritis is the most common cause of knee pain in individuals over age 55, kneeContinue Reading »
Mending Your Torn Meniscus
The menisci are cartilages in the knee that protect the joint from stresses of activity. Pivoting actions that cause the knee to twist pose a risk for meniscus tears. The injury is common among tennis players, but it can also result from deep knee bending, squatting or lifting a heavy object. If you haveContinue Reading »
Nothing Odd About Eccentric Exercise
When you hear the term “eccentric,” you may think of a quirky aunt or a piece of shabby but chic furniture. In the physical therapy world, however, this term has a much different and very important meaning. Eccentric exercise—active contraction of a muscle while it is lengthening—has gained popularity in recent years among both athletesContinue Reading »
Ski, Hike and Snow Shoe with a Meniscus Tear and Osteoarthritic Knee- Is it possible?
YES! I recently went on a ski, hike and snow shoeing vacation to Tuckerman’s Ravine located at Mount Washington in New Hampshire. Prior to the trip I did a fair amount of preparations to ready my body and my left knee for the demands of climbing and skiing. To provide a little bit of background.Continue Reading »
TENS Ways to Alleviate Pain
One approach used in a rehabilitation program, transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) uses an electric current to stimulate muscles to contract. Electrical impulses are thought to interrupt messages sent by pain receptors from the nerves to the brain. If the brain does not receive these messages, it does not recognize pain, and you do notContinue Reading »
The Broken Bone You Never Knew You Had- Osteochondritis Dissecans
Considering that most patients with osteochondritis dissecans are adolescent boys, the explanation of the condition is sure to win points for sheer gross-out potential. Characterized by pain, limited range of motion, and a popping or locking sound in the joint, osteochondritis dissecans occurs when a small piece of cartilage breaks off from the end ofContinue Reading »
ACL Repair: Your Tissue or Someone Else’s?
If you have torn your anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), the main ligament that stabilizes the knee, and are scheduled for reconstructive surgery to repair it, your surgeon could use either an autograft or an allograft. What is the difference between the two? An autograft is a piece of tissue removed from your body and usedContinue Reading »