Just had my second physio session today for my knee which has arthritis and a torn meniscus.I feel it is a waste of time as she has given me exercises especially to do but doesn't seem to give me any treatment herself on my knee.It has been 2 weeks since I saw her and am going back in another 2 weeks.It is only about a 15 minute appointment so hardly any time at all but it is the NHS.I am not seeing the consultant until the end of July but there was mention about trying arthroscopic surgery but I am not sure if I want this or not.I am not in pain 24/7 but my knee feels achy and uncomfortable all the time and I feel more pain when going up and down stairs.Advise needed please
I can testify that physical therapy can help a LOT with an arthritic knee (don't know about the torn meniscus) - having strong muscles to support your knee can take away a lot of the pain, and make you feel more secure on that leg. I am really glad that I did PT and regular exercise - helped me live with a bad knee probably longer than I should have; had a TKR six weeks ago, and having strong muscles has also helped me bounce back more quickly than the norm. So for what it's worth!
you should be going to physio at keast once a week, so that they can keep up with your progress and tell you what to do or not do. Also they're supposed to watch you to see if you're doing the exercises correctly b/c if you're doing them wrong then its useless and you may develop arthrofibrosis
You are having physio under supervision to build up the surrounding muscles. She is not there to treat you as such, but to make sure you are doing the exercises necessary to make the surrounding area stronger. That way, when you have surgery,your recovery will be quicker. If you don't do the right exercises your quads will waste away and recovery will be longer. Also by do exercises your thigh muscles will help realign the main tendon going across your knee, this sometimes help alleviate pain in that area, If you are doing stair exercises, walk up in a deliberate fashion and come down backwards for a while
I also have OA in both knees and a torn meniscus in my right knee. I saw a rheumatologist a couple of weeks ago who suggested hydrotherapy, I agreed that it was a good idea. She said that she cannot refer me for hydrotherapy directly but first have to see the physiotherapists who will then hopefully refer me for the hydrotherapy! Seems like a ridiculous way to go about it and also a waste of money and resources but who am I to argue?
Unfortunately I am in constant horrible pain so I am hoping that a tkr will cure most of it. I am not prepared to have an arthroscopy and a washout as it seems that almost everyone who does goes on to need a knee replacement anyway. When I first saw the orthopaedic surgeon in February my left knee was nowhere near as painful as my right but now it's almost as bad.