Knee injuries Hillsboro, MO. The knee is a versatile joint that permits our bodies to carry out a wide array of motions like sitting, standing, lifting, walking, running, jumping and more. Suffering a knee injury makes walking and many other daily activities painful or even impossible. If you’ve recently experienced a knee injury or suffer from chronic knee pain, it is vital to find quality physical therapy with licensed physical therapists in the Hillsboro, MO area. At Axes Physical Therapy, we provide safe and effective care to hundreds of patients in the Hillsboro, MO area. Contact us today to find out more or schedule your first appointment.

Axes Physical Therapy provides bespoke, evidence-based analysis and treatment for people with knee injuries in Hillsboro, MO. Our knee injury experts specialize in custom tailored treatment plans made specifically for your injury, needs and movement goals. Axes Physical Therapy is a network of physical therapy experts at various locations, each owned and operated by physical therapists. We are devoted to serving the individual needs of each Hillsboro, MO resident we treat.

The Human Knee

The knee is one of the biggest and most complex joints we have. It attaches the tibia (shin bone) to the femur (thigh bone). The fibula (the small bone that runs next to the tibia) and patella (kneecap) are the other bones that comprise the knee joint. Surrounding the knee are leg muscles, which help move the knee, and tendons and ligaments that attach the knee bones to the leg muscles or ligaments which give support and stability. These ligaments include the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and posterior cruciate ligament (PCL), which offer stability to the front and back of the knee, and the medial and lateral collateral ligaments (MCL and LCL), which stabilize side-to-side movement. The medial and lateral menisci are shock absorbers between the tibia and femur.

Due to the complexity of the joint and the forces placed on the knee, with parts that can be torn, fractured, sprained, or dislocated, knee injuries are one of the most common musculoskeletal injuries that are suffered. If you’ve experienced a knee injury or are living with chronic knee pain, you need the attention and careful treatment of Hillsboro, MO area physical therapists. Our team of qualified therapists who specialize in treating knee injuries will lead you in your recuperation and restore full mobility of your injured knee.

Types of Knee Injuries and Common Causes

Knee sprains can be painful knee injuries that happen when ligaments in the knee are torn or overstretched. Knee sprains are painful, and if untreated or treated poorly can lead to chronic issues, including arthritis. Knee sprains are commonly caused by acute twisting injuries, or occur when an outside force stretches or tears a ligament. It is usually a sports related injury that comes from force, such as a knock to the front or outside of the knee. Additionally, non contact knee sprains are very typical and result from weakness, muscle fatigue or improper technique. Symptoms include:

• Swelling
• Weakness or tenderness
• Pain and stiffness
• Popping
• Muscle Spasms

Torn cartilage can often take place take place at the same time as sprains, and take place when trauma to the knee tears the menisci. It’s usually caused by forcefully twisting or rotating your knee and is common in contact sports such as football, as well as sports like soccer or baseball with continued jumping and rotating/pivoting. In older adults, a cartilage tear in the knee can take place with little or no external force as the knee cartilage loses flexibility and pliability with age. Symptoms include:

• Dull pain when training or exercising
• Buckling or locking of the knee joint
• Crunching or popping noises when walking
• Difficulty bearing weight
• Inability to bend or straighten the knee

Patellar Tendonitis, also known as “jumper’s knee,” is caused by inflammation of the tendons in the knee, specifically the quadriceps tendon. Anterior knee pain is commonly the main symptom of this sort of knee injury, and initially it might only occur when training or exercising. It frequently stems from overuse. Over time, the pain becomes worse and starts to make exercising or playing sports more difficult. If unattended, after a while you could find it difficult to climb stairs or even rise from a chair. That’s why it’s essential to receive physical therapy for knee injuries.

Patellofemoral pain syndrome is a knee injury that worsens with time and causes pain felt in the front of the knee. The pain is a result of tracking and alignment issues between the patella and femur and is often experienced climbing stairs or rising from a chair. The exact cause is still unknown; however, most doctors and physical and occupational therapists think these knee injuries occur when the knee is overused, or there is weakness of the quadriceps muscle and inflexibility of other hip and knee musculature.

Fractures are an extremely painful of of knee injuries and require urgent medical attention. More destructive fractures can require surgery to repair the knee and allow it to function normally again. There are three common knee injuries associated with fractures:

• Patellar: a fracture of the kneecap that often happens when you land exactly on your knee, hit the dashboard in a motor vehicle crash or sustain another type of extreme external force to the knee. Symptoms include:
  • Pain, inflammation, and bruising
  • Inability to extend the knee or keep it keep it
  • Inability to walk
• Distal Femur: takes place where the thigh bone and knee connect. The bone may shatter or might break straight across. Because distal femoral knee injuries can damage the cartilage in the knee, they can sometimes be harder to treat. They typically occur in the elderly whose bones have become weaker, or to people in high energy impact collisions. Symptoms include:
  • Pain when placing weight on the knee
  • Swelling, bruising, and soreness
  • The leg may look shorter and bent
• Proximal Tibia: frequently injure the soft tissue of the knee as well. The top of the tibia, where it connects to the knee, is softer than the rest of the bone. These knee injuries frequently happen when the femur is forced by trauma into the soft bone at the top of the tibia. Proximal tibia knee injuries are occasionally minor breaks that occur from too much activity, but most are the result of trauma from falling, sports injuries or car accidents. Symptoms include:
  • Swelling around the knee
  • Visually obvious deformity or misalignment
  • Lack of feeling or warmth in the foot, as the flow of blood to the foot could be restricted

Dislocation of the knee or kneecap can either happen when the femur and tibia are forced out of alignment, or when the patella is forced out of place. These are most often caused by high impact trauma from sports, car accidents or falls. People with a somewhat abnormal structure of the knee are at a higher risk of patellar dislocation knee injuries. While a Hillsboro, MO doctor will be able to put the knee or kneecap back in place, treatment by a physical therapist will be a vital part of the rehabilitation process to reduce swelling, slowly improve movement and increase strength in the hip and leg musculature.

ACL, PCL, MCL, and LCL Injuries can be either tears or sprains. ACL injuries can often happen in high-action sports where players are landing after jumping or switching direction rapidly. The PCL can frequently be torn when there is trauma to the front of the knee as it is bent. Symptoms of these knee injuries include inflammation and lack of stability. While ACL tears are often accompanied by injury to other parts of the knee, ACL tears alone are often not painful. MCL and LCL tears occur when there is a blow that pushes the knee sideways.

Diagnoses and Tests

It is vital to receive appropriate immediate and long-term treatment after suffering a knee injury. The care you receive can account for either quick and effective recovery or a lifetime of chronic, debilitating pain. In the event of knee injuries that cause obvious and major trauma, such as a dislocated patella, tests may not be needed and a Hillsboro, MO ER doctor will work to stabilize the knee as quickly as possible. Other methods of diagnosis for knee injuries are:

• A physical examination. A Hillsboro, MO medical professional can analyze the appearance and movement of your knee while looking for inflammation or tenderness. Our physical therapists are specialists in human movement and provide free, no obligation injury screenings for your knee injuries and other injuries.
• X-Rays can detect broken bones and degenerative joint disease.
• CT scans combine X-rays from various angles to create cross-sectional images of your knee. They can help detect knee injuries such as subtle fractures.
• Ultrasounds use sound waves to make images of the soft tissue in your knee. Your doctor may move your knee into different positions to look for specific issues.
• MRIs create 3D pictures of the inside of your knee. This test is often utilized to reveal soft tissue injuries, such as ACL tears or patellar tendonitis.

If you are suffering from pain caused by a knee injury, contact Axes Physical Therapy to work with a Hillsboro, MO physical therapist who specializes in knee injuries. Your knee injury therapist will analyze your motion, your mobility, and will also examine the strength of your knee and its stability. After diagnosis, your Axes physical therapist in Hillsboro, MO County will recommend a customized treatment plan, which may include an appointment with a Hillsboro, MO orthopedic or sports physician.

Treatments and Therapy

Minor knee injuries can often heal with the RICE Method: rest, ice, gentle compression, and elevation. If you feel pain, it’s important to rest and to temporarily stop any activity you think may have resulted in your injury. Seek medical attention if you hear a popping noise or feel loss of stability when your injury first occurs, if you experience severe pain or swelling, are unable to move the knee, or cannot bear weight without pain. With some serious knee injuries, such as ACL tears or bone fractures, surgery is necessary to correct the structure of the knee and make the knee functional again. Physical therapy will then be part of your preoperative and postoperative treatment plan. A Hillsboro, MO physical therapist who treats knee injuries will help you safely restore motion and strength to your knee as your injury heals. Common therapies for knee injuries are (depending on your injury):

• Stretches and strengthening exercises of the entire lower extremity
• Core strengthening
• Ice and heat
• Soft tissue mobilization
• Electrical stimulation
• Proprioceptive exercises
• Functional return to sports, activity, and exercises

At Axes Physical Therapy, our treatment plans are designed from proven treatment strategies and are tailored specifically for each patient. We lead you in your recuperation to safely get you back to the activities you love.

We treat a wide variety of conditions and complaints and have a team of specialists ready to help you. Some of our other services are:

• Physical Therapy Clinic
• Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Treatment
• Sciatica Treatment
• Sports Medicine
• Hand Pain Physical Therapy
• Foot & Ankle Pain Treatment
• Hip Pain Treatment
• Plantar Fasciitis Treatment
• Stroke Rehabilitation
• Hip Replacement Physical Therapy

Receive Physical Therapy for Knee Injuries

If you are living with knee pain or have recently suffered a knee injury, you need the expert advice of Hillsboro, MO physical therapists to eliminate your pain and return you to full motion. Axes Physical Therapy will help you get back to the sports and activities you love with the devoted, individualized care of your Axes physical therapist. Contact us today to schedule an appointment or discover the knee injury treatment location nearest you.