Your hips and knees: they’re the largest joints in your body, connecting a large number of muscles, bones and ligaments. That means that much of the daily abuse that your body takes can ultimately impact your hips and knees. And when these crucial joints begin to show strain, it can become difficult to move much at all — at least without pain. For that reason, it’s important to seek medical attention for hip pain and knee pain as soon as possible. Often, physical therapy can be the key to avoiding surgery or prescription medication altogether, or rebounding quickly from those less conservative treatments.
How can I decrease hip pain?
Worn joints and pinched nerves are the most common culprits for hip pain. Aging and overuse often cause osteoarthritis, but this painful joint disease can also stem from old injuries. Repetitive motion sometimes leads to hip bursitis, in which fluid-filled sacs around your hips become inflamed. What’s another possible reason for your hip pain? Tight buttock and thigh musculature can also cause unnecessary hip joint strain. Lastly, various nerves running from your lumbar spine can also become pinched, due to anything from pregnancy to poor posture.
Our physical therapist will give you a full evaluation, assessing your range of motion, level of hip pain, and whether the discomfort also radiates from your back into your buttocks, thighs and groin.
Based on this evaluation and existing medical tests, we’ll work on soft tissue and joint mobilization manual therapy techniques, adding flexibility and strengthening exercises as needed, and give you movement and strengthening strategies to manage the pain.
What can I do about knee pain?
Some of the same causes of hip pain can also affect knees, including arthritis and bursitis. In addition, sports injuries such as tearing your anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) or medial collateral ligament (MCL) can lead to severe knee pain and instability, as can suddenly twisting your knee and tearing your meniscus. “Loose body” is another knee pain cause; this involves bone or cartilage coming loose and getting in the way of joint movement. Finally, it’s not uncommon for a hip or foot problem to throw your knees out of alignment.
Our highly trained physical therapist will evaluate your knee issues, including the location and level of pain and how far you can bend and move your knees and legs in various positions. In all likelihood, your physical therapy to decrease knee pain will consist of soft tissue and joint mobilization, strength-building movements, as well as stretches and other flexibility-enhancing techniques. Bracing and taping the knee can also be utilized to facilitate proper knee mechanics and reduction in pain.
When you’re ready to begin working on methods for getting rid of your knee and/or hip pain, contact us . Our dedicated physical therapist will evaluate your condition and suggest a course of treatment.
Looking for physical therapy in Farmington? No problem! BodyFit Physical Therapy is located in Canton CT, just a few miles down the road from Farmington center.
