Today we’re discussing a knee injury, and how it can be treated. Your knee, just like every other organ and structure that makes your body, is an absolute wonder of nature. Made up of bone, cartilage, ligament, and fluid, your two knees are a necessity for you in order to perform some of the most basic functions in life: walking, running, standing up and sitting down, playing sports, doing yoga, and much more. So, if you face a knee injury below is your treatment in detail.
However, just like other organs that comprise your body, your knees are also at the risk of getting injured. Muscles and tendons associated with the knee play an important part in facilitating your knee joint to move. Knee injury occurs if the muscles and tendons of the knee area are somehow damaged.
What Are The Different Types Of Knee Injuries?
A Knee injury is quite painful and can hamper the person affected from performing several everyday tasks. People of all ages can suffer from these injuries. Osteoarthritis is one common knee related disease in which, the cartilage on the end of bones wears away with time, resulting in damaged joints, pain, and swelling. This too sometimes can be the cause of a deadly knee injury.
Along with the cartilage, the ligaments holding the bones, or joints together can also get damaged, causing knee injury to be quiet hurtful. Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) is regarded one type of such ligament damage, occurring due to the tearing or spraining of any one or more of the four ligaments that are present in your knee. Therefore, a knee injury is quite common among athletes.
Knee dislocation takes place if the knee bones are out of place, either entirely or to a certain extent. Moreover, knee fractures, resulting due to high energy trauma, are also common knee injuries.
How To Heal A Knee Injury?
Orthopedic surgeons can treat knee injuries in a number of ways. The treatment generally depends on the severity of the injury, with recovery time ranging between days and months.
The term RICE is relatively common when it comes to healing injured knees. RICE method includes: rest, ice, gentle compression, and elevation. The process brings a speedy recovery. It is always recommended to visit a professional when the pain in your knee becomes unbearable, the injured region gets swollen, you face difficulty in walking.
Orthopedics first asses the severity of your injury and treat it whilst keeping in view your age, gender, other pre-existing health-related issues, and more. Knee injury treatment divided into two types; Non-surgical treatment, and surgical treatment.
As the name suggests, non-surgical treatment involves the use of measures that can heal the injury without having to cut open the injured area and then fix it. Physical therapy, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medicine, and immobilization are some techniques that can help in healing your injured knee.
However, if the injury is severe, the surgeon may have to apply incisions of different sizes, based on the severity, to treat accordingly and to effectively deal with the issue at hand.
What Is The Best Way To Prevent A Knee Injury?
We can avoid knee injuries in many ways. Orthopedics usually suggest to monitor your weight. Extra weight puts more burden on your knees, hence leading to greater chances of developing osteoarthritis. Moreover, you can keep your knees in shape by walking. You can even burn some calories through the process.
While exercise we must be careful of the knee injuries. It is always good to warm up before getting into any kind of exercise. Experts suggest not to change the intensity of your exercising routine all of a sudden. Bring change gradually, thus giving enough time to your body to adjust accordingly.
You can use the different equipment made available at the gym to lift weights. This helps strengthening the muscles in your legs to providing support to your knees for bearing the body weight. However, before doing such exercises, experts must be consulted. You should get good advice in terms of proper weight lifting that may not injure you.
Doctors recommend to wear comfortable shoes. In order to prevent knee injuries, it will provide the balance and support that your feet requires.
Whom To Consult If You Have A Knee Injury?
Despite all the care and attention, if you still have afflicted a knee injury, be sure to consult an expert orthopedic surgeon. He can understand the severity of the issue, knows how to treat it effectively. Dr. M.A. Wajid is one such orthopedic surgeon.
With an experience of over two decades, and achievements secured by none other in the country practicing this field, Dr. Wajid is an expert when it comes to the treatment of injured or broken bones and joints. Having qualification from the UK (FRCS in Trauma and Orthopedic), and specialization from Germany and Belgium. Dr. Wajid knows well the trends and updates in the field of orthopedics.
Apart from offering his professional duties as an orthopedic surgeon at the National Hospital and Medical Center, DHA, Lahore. Dr. Wajid also serves as professor of orthopedic surgery at the Shalamar Medical and Dental College, Lahore, and is a visiting faculty member and former head of orthopedic surgery at the Aga Khan University, Karachi. His expertise and areas of interest include Keyhole (Arthroscopic) surgery, joint replacement surgeries, and sports injuries, along with routine trauma and Acetabular fracture injury.
Dr. Wajid is renowned among the orthopedic circle of the country not just due to his contributions to the field at a national level, but also because of his many talents and skills that have made him serve several thousand patients till date, enabling them to return to a painless life.