|  | Conditions Treatments | Bones, Joints Muscles

Physiotherapy Exercises for Knees

The main treatment for any knee injury is strengthening the muscles and controlling the pain. While pain control may be easier, building muscle strength in the knee is more complex. When the muscles regain their strength, the pain will be managed and movement will become more controlled. However, in any knee injury, all exercises must be performed with the guidance and supervision of a physiotherapist to ensure that there are no muscle tears or further injury to the knee.

  1. Muscle Strengthening Exercises

    • After a knee injury, the muscles that help move and support the knee become tense and strained. This causes pain for the patient and limits movement of the knee joint. Weak muscles will not be able to support the knee and can cause knee movements to become disjointed. The main muscles that coordinate knee movements are the quadriceps. In order to coordinate knee movement, these muscles must be strong. The best form of physiotherapy for the quadriceps is the following exercise: Lie down with your leg straight and tense your thigh muscles. Attempt to push the knee down while raising the heel of your foot. Do this only for a few seconds for 15 to 20 minutes every day.

    Stretching Exercises

    • Stretching exercises will help complement the muscle-strengthening exercises. One of the best forms of exercise for the knee is to activate the quadriceps muscles. Place a rolled-up towel under your knee and lift your heels. Straighten the knee as much as possible without raising it from the towel. If this is too painful, start with a larger roll and, as the knee gets more flexible, make the towel smaller, which will make lifting the knee more difficult.

    Pain Killers and Heat Therapy

    • Physiotherapy is not all about exercise. Patients with a lot of pain will be given pain killers and muscle relaxants that will help control and alleviate the pain from their knee injury. To further soothe and relax the muscles, treatment in the form of heat therapy may be advised. In this kind of therapy, infrared heat rays are focused on the site of injury after the exercises have been completed. Hydrotherapy, in the form of swimming, may also be advised, as this helps relax the muscles, making exercise more effective.

Bones, Joints Muscles - Related Articles