PREVENT KNEE INJURIES
Women are more likely to injure their knees than men—and if you’ve damaged this joint once, you could have stability issues for life. Here’s how to reduce your risk.
ou don’t have to be a high-intensity athlete to suffer a knee injury. Swinging a golf club or turning too quickly on the stairs can cause the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) to stretch beyond its normal range, resulting in a tear. And that’s just traumatic injury. Even in the pursuit of fitness, we may unintentionally damage the joint; patellofemoral pain syndrome (PFPS), sometimes called runner’s knee, is a common overuse injury. The risk is especially high for women: We’re two to eight times more likely than men to damage our ACLS and as much as two times more likely to suffer from runner’s knee.
Researchers believe that the reasons women are more prone to knee injuries are mostly structural. Women’s bodies typically have wider hips, higher rates of knockknees, less space for the ACL and weaker ligaments, plus there’s a tendency to use thigh muscles more than hamstrings, explains Dr. David Robinson, primary-care sports medicine physician at the David Braley Sport Medicine & Rehabilitation Centre at Mcmaster University in Hamilton. These anatomical factors all stress the ACL, effectively stacking the joint deck against us. But there might be a hormonal element, too. Fluctuating sex hormones may affect how loose our ligaments are at different points in our cycles, and for some women, that may mean decreased knee stability. Read on for tips on how to reduce your risk for the three most common types of knee injury.
ACL tears
These injuries tend to happen when you stop or change direction suddenly, or land incorrectly, often during an intense sport. The ACL keeps your shinbone from sliding out in front of the thighbone, so when it stretches, comes loose or tears, you’ll feel pain and have swelling and reduced range of motion. Depending on the severity, you may need surgery.
Reduce your risk: “Training can ensure the correct knee-over-feet-and-under-hip position when landing,” says Dr. Robinson. So if you’re a big fan of activities like soccer or Frisbee, make sure you don’t skip your warm-up. We like 11+ (f-marc.com/11plus/ home), an injury prevention program developed by medical experts working with FIFA.
PFPS (a.k. a. runner’s knee)
Pain in the front of the knee—including the soft tissue—that makes climbing stairs or kneeling down uncomfortable could be PFPS. The cause is often over-exercising, although inactive women can get runner’s knee, too. Other culprits include problems with hip-knee-ankle alignment or doing too many squats and other knee-bending activities. If it’s severe enough, you’ll need to reduce activity until the pain dissipates.
Reduce your risk: A patellar tracking sleeve fitted by a bracing specialist, or custom-fit orthotics—or both!—can help. “But if you do knee-strengthening exercises, you won’t need a sleeve,” says Dr. Robinson.
Meniscus tears
You may hear a pop or feel pain a few days after you tear your meniscus, which is the cartilage that acts as a shock absorber between your thighs and shins. Tears often happen when you’re squatting or twisting your knees, such as when you’re tackled during sports, swinging your club during golf or crouching in the garden. Aging can also weaken your meniscus; sometimes, getting out of a chair awkwardly can be all it takes. Small tears may heal with rest, but severe tears require surgery.
Reduce your risk: Dr. Robinson says that exercises like the ones in our routine (below), warming up before activities and wearing shoes with good traction to prevent slips can all help minimize the risk of injury.