Have You Had A Knee Injury? 3 Benefits Of Seeing A Physical Therapist

Posted on: 15 June 2016

If you have had a knee injury, it can take a while to get back to normal again. Your doctor will likely send you to a physical therapist to have orthopedic rehab as part of your recovery process. If so, below are three benefits of going to a physical therapist so you can understand how helpful it will be for you.

Get Your Knee Function Back

The physical therapist doing the rehab will work with you to ease your knee inflammation. They will help you strengthen your quadriceps (thigh muscles) and your hamstrings (back of your thigh muscles) to give support to your knee joint.

They will ask you to do some exercises at home and teach you how to do them. They will also ask you to do aquatic exercises and swimming, if possible. The physical therapist will teach you how to do certain stretches to help your knee muscles get back to normal, and keep your muscles from tightening up on you after you heal up. It is important that you do all of the exercises they teach you at home, and follow the schedule they give you. You will likely need to continue these exercises long after you heal up.

Help You with Pain

The physical therapist may use a TENS (transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation) unit to help you with pain. This is a battery-operated device that uses an electric current that is low voltage. The physical therapist will place electrodes that are attached to the device around your knee. When they turn the TENS unit on, it sends stimulating pulses to the area that is in pain to prevent your brain from sending pain signals to this area. You can also purchase a TENS unit that you can use at home.  Your therapist can tell you where you can buy this, as well as tell you what type you need.

Help You Prevent Further Knee Injury

Seeing a physical therapist and following all their rules will help you avoid knee injury. This will also help you avoid surgery in some cases.  It generally takes about six weeks to go back to your normal activities after you have a knee replacement. However, it can take about three months for your pain and swelling to come down.

Talk with the physical therapist that your doctor sends you to. They can answer any questions you have about what they are going to do to help you. How long you will see the therapist depends on the type of knee problem you are having. Your doctor will work with them to develop the best plan for you.

Reach out to a business like Gotham City Orthopedics for more help.

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